Genesis 11:5-7 - But the Lord came down to
see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built. And the Lord said, “Indeed the
people are one and they all have one language, and this is
what they begin to do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld
from them. Come,
let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand
one another’s speech.”
The tower of Babel…and the city that it stood in might have
been a good thing …IF…God had told man to build it. This tower and city however…were
built out of a need to be somebody…a need to “make something of oneself.” The many languages we have today were given
to us to slow down our ability to communicate.
God used our worst fear as the consequence to the wrong choice at the
time. He chose the fear of being scattered as the consequence … to tell man
that everything we set out to do is not good.
It speaks of the need to realize that just having the
technology to do something….doesn’t make it God’s will to do it. Every idea
that pops into our head is not of God. Ambition is only good if it is left
totally in God’s hands and timing. Without the approval and help of the father…it
is selfish …has distorted values…and walks us down a road of selfish
power.
The root of this issue is pride…a feeling or deep pleasure
or satisfaction derived from one's own achievements, the achievements of those
with whom one is closely associated, or from qualities or possessions that are
widely admired….according to Webster. It
is a tricky quality that in the right amounts helps us gain courage and
confidence. BUT…in just the least amount of surplus … it can lead to what Max
Lucado termed… “blind ambition”…a selfish ambition that does things without
consulting God.
Here’s the question that was posed in my Max Lucado Study
Bible…. What towers am I building without God…to gain worth….to prove I am
somebody? It gives me a task today…to write down my accomplishments and dreams….to
ponder and pray about whether all of the things I am involved in in this season
of life were directives of God. If they are not…I have some winter cleaning to
do. Perhaps God has used them for good
already and there is no danger of satan using it to weaken my faith….but if not…I
need to do some rearranging in my life to make sure that God is in control of
all my activities…before satan has a chance to use it against me.
Father…thank you for the reminder that you are to be in
control of all my thoughts…all my dreams….all my accomplishments. Forgive me for the things I have tried to do
without you. Help me to really consider
all that I am involved in and whether it is something that you told me to do.
Give me the courage and strength to cut the things from my life that might be
the source of selfishness and pride…so that all that I am involved in is fully
in your control. Amen.
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