May I Be Excused

Rise and Shine for Jesus! \O/

By Pam Iannello (my late mother)

After pondering our scripture verse for today, I've now got a little tune ringing in my head.  Perhaps you're familiar with it, the chorus goes like this:

Excuses, Excuses; you'll hear them every day.

The devil will supply them if from church you'll stay away.

When people come to know the Lord, the devil always loses,

And so to keep us now from living right, he offers us EXCUSES!

Are you one for making excuses all the time?  Maybe you'll better be able to answer that question after looking at Proverbs 15:19, which says:

The way of the slothful man is as an hedge of thorns:  but the way of

the righteous is made plain.

The slothful person is of course, a lazy individual.  He is a SLUG!  He indulges in inactivity, has a habit of being idle.  In other words, he's not inclined to work.  (Sounds like a fellow who's going nowhere to me!)  The Bible says this person is as an hedge of thorns.  What does this mean?    Think for a moment of being hedged in by thorns....  Where are you going to go??  Nowhere!  As a matter of fact, every direction you take looks like it will hurt.  That's the way it is with the sluggard, the slothful chap.  He THINKS every step he takes is going to bring him great pain.  He imagines thousands of difficulties in the way, which cannot be surmounted. Therefore he constructs excuses and ends up doing nothing about anything!  He stands victimized behind that imaginary hedge of thorns, for it serves to provide him with all manner of justification for not dealing responsibly with the realities of life.... 

"I can't read my Bible every morning because I'm a night owl."

"I couldn't home school because I'm not patient enough yet."

"I can't quit smoking, I've been doing it so long now!"

"I can't speak in front of people or pass out a tract because I'm not expressive with my words."

"I can't stay home with my kids because I see no way we could afford it, and besides, my husband is bad with money."

"I can't keep things organized because I wasn't raised that way."

"I can't go to that church, the preacher is too loud and too long!"

"I can't discipline my children because I was abused."

"I can't stay with my husband because he doesn't show any promise of

changing."

"I can't go to the mission field, my family wouldn't understand."

"I can't wear dresses, they just don't flatter my figure, and besides, my legs are too short."

"I just can't lose weight, my metabolism is slower than others and I've no time at all to exercise."

"I can't keep the house clean because the kids are so young right now and they make it difficult."

"I can't fix nice dinners, nobody taught me when I was younger how to cook."

"We can't tithe on such a meager salary."

“I can't, I can't, and I can't...” The truth is, "I WON'T!"  Have you begun to notice something about this slothful person, ladies?  His heart is missing from his work! 

Eccles. 2:17

Therefore I hated life; because the work that is wrought under the sun is grievous unto me…

Without working from the heart, slothful people convince themselves that there is nothing but hardship and grief ahead of them all the time. They are led to hate life itself and doubt ever being successful. Hence, excuses are born…  Working from the heart brings diligence into the picture and a determination to see a thing through!  All excuses dissolve away, purpose is realized and a love for life is born.  A victim mentality is a sure sign of defeat!

How about you, dear lady?  Are you a victim of your circumstances?  A victim of the people you’ve come in contact with? If so, I bet you are often times defeated and talking about why a thing can't be done!  No doubt about it, a slothful man certainly wants to experience the good life, but unfortunately he is not willing to put forth the effort necessary to get the results.  He is a quitter who lives behind a hedge of thorns that nobody sees but him...

Proverbs 13:4

The soul of the sluggard desireth, and hath nothing:  but the soul of the diligent shall be made fat.

While a lazy sheep thinks even his wool too heavy, a righteous man however, having been informed of his duty, faithfully presses toward the mark, toward the fulfillment of his goals.  Such obedience lights up the pathway he is to take, and makes it clear to him how to arrive at the destination of his God directed goals. 

Because his way is plain to see, the diligent individual doesn't waste a moment of his time talking about why a task can't be done, but his life speaks as a testimony of how ALL things can be done!  Just like Jesus...

John 17:4

I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.

Work completed glorifies God. Ladies, have you finished any of the work you've been given to do?? Would God say you have done your part? Ladies, the Lord would give us further work but how many of us can’t take it on because of what is still incomplete??  Maybe there are some loose ends in your life that you ought to energetically and thoroughly tie up once and for all.  Perhaps you've been making excuses long enough as to why you are the way you are - or aren't!  You can't get to the top by sitting on your bottom, amen?  It costs Satan little trouble to catch the lazy man... Don't let the devil keep supplying you with excuses as to why you can't live right or improve in a particular area - listen to the Word of God instead!  It is full of promises of the Lord's help!  In case you’re worried about it, the Bible says the work won’t kill you - it will strengthen you…

Phillipians 4:13

I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

Now, you tell me what exceptions there are to that verse! 

God Bless,

Pam

Isaiah 60:1&2

Copyright 2000 Pamela A. Iannello