Truth or Consequences

I am a victim of circumstances.

Come to think of it, we all are.

Once upon a time God had an idea.

That idea was man.

God created man and his companion, woman, and placed them in a beautiful garden filled with everything they needed to survive.

He gave them a "no no."

Genesis 2:16-17 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shall not eat of it; for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

The serpent approaches the woman, compelling her to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. It was his desire to have their eyes opened allowing them to know good and evil.

So she did eat, and so did her husband.

At that moment....at that particular time....the only ones they could see that were affected were themselves.

As the older people would say, "they could not see past there own noses."

What would have happened if she would have stopped and thought about the action before she took that bite?

Well, I might be skipping around the garden, walking with the Lord in the cool of the evening.

But, that was not the case.

Because of this action God banned them from the garden to keep them from eating of the tree of life. In other words, He did not want them to live forever in their sins.

As a consequence of this one action, man's life was forever changed; we are still feeling the effects of that one action.

Young children (and teenagers) tend to only see themselves in any situation. They want "instant gratification" and do not even think of the consequences of the actions.

But, it's not only young people.....

I am a victim of circumstances. My life has been colored by the choices of others-good and bad choices.

I have wept bitter tears as the results of choices made by another, choices made when they also had the knowledge of the consequence of the action~and still they chose that thing that would not only hurt them, but just like that domino at the end of the line, their fall touches those around them.

I know the truth of how my poor habits can affect those that I love. I have seen firsthand the cost of choosing yourself over your health. I have seen life end for this reason, and will probably do so again. And I have wept with the emptiness of lose.

So, I have a choice. Today I made it. I choose to do my best, to think about how my actions don't just affect me, but also those I love.

Today I made a choice that I hope affects the generations that follow me in a wonderful way!

I pray the consequence of this choice will change the course of my family forever.