A man’s own foolishness leads him astray, yet his heart rages against the LORD.     Proverbs 19:3 HCSB

One of the most painful things to watch is someone fighting against their worst enemy and losing. When you are your worst enemy, you can be assured you will lose every time. Watching someone fighting against themselves is excruciating.

Oftentimes, we get ourselves into a mess, and then we are angry at God. I know because I’ve been there, done that, and got the t-shirt.  I can specifically recall a time when my life had turned into a terrible mess, and while I didn’t openly blame God, I questioned why He would allow this to happen. I went to church. I tithed. I tried to be a good person. I just didn’t understand. When I stepped back and looked at my situation, I could recall red flags. Little warnings that I might be headed for a heartache. But I forged ahead thinking, “I’ve got this.” I’ve learned never to trust myself. I try to adhere to Proverbs 3:5-6, which tells us to trust in the LORD with all our heart and not to lean on our own understanding. We are to acknowledge God in all we do, and He will direct us on the right paths. I truly believe that if I had prayed before acting in this situation, it would have been a much better outcome.

When we forge full speed ahead, even when God is trying to tell us to proceed with caution or even stop, we must accept responsibility for the mistakes we make. These mistakes are typically made in pride. We decide we know best. We decide that we can handle the situation and fail to call on God for guidance. We should acknowledge God or pray to God to guide us in all we do. We should trust Him to guide us on financial decisions. We should trust in Him to walk us through hard times. We should trust in Him to guide us in finding the right mate. We should always acknowledge Him in every decision we make.

Proverbs 3:7 goes on to say, “Don’t consider yourself to be wise; fear the LORD and turn away from evil.”

We know that Job was a righteous man who suffered as a test of his faith. Job passed that test, and God blessed him greatly. So, sometimes our suffering is not because we have done anything wrong; it’s simply a test. It will pass. 1 Peter 5:10 tells us that after we have suffered a little while, God Himself will personally restore us.

If you are going through a test, stand strong knowing God’s got this. He will walk with you through the fire and flames (Isaiah 43:2). He will take good care of you and see to it that you are not overcome by the waters or the fire.

We also suffer when God is trying to get our attention. Author and Bible teacher Warren Wiersbe has said that no nation has suffered like the nation of Israel. If you read about the Israelites, you will see that they brought this suffering upon themselves. After all God did for them, they lacked faith. They didn’t trust in God as they should, even after seeing Him perform countless miracles on their behalf. And to make matters worse, they often turned to idol worship.

If you’ve made a mess of things, don’t blame God for it. Don’t be mad at Him because you rejected Him or rebelled against Him, and now your life isn’t all rainbows and lollipops. If you are wise, you will turn to Him. You will humble yourself before Him and repent. You will ask His forgiveness and ask Him to strengthen you against temptation. You will surrender your life to Him and trust in Him.

However, if you are not wise, you will continue to mess up and be angry at Him because of your mistakes. This will not have a good outcome, I can assure you, but the choice is yours.

Have a great day!