James
1
We are our own worst enemy! While I am not sure where this phrase came
from or from whom it came, I am certain it was someone who was frustrated with
themselves for not following through with something they felt like they were
called to do. It is so true, we are the
ones that get in the way of the plans that God has for our lives, we can blame
no one but ourselves when we don’t spend time digging into God’s Word or when
we don’t come to Him daily in prayer. I
have found that when I am in His Word and talking to Him continuously that all
the other things work out, things get done, and I am so more at peace with
myself and the world around me.
Why? It’s simple, when we do these
two things, we are putting God first!
After reading the first chapter in James, I began
to think about how we get in our own way.
Verse 5 says if any of you lack
wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth
not; and it shall be given him. Are
you asking for wisdom or are you asking for God to just fix the problem? Sometimes we don’t need problems removed from
our lives, but we need Godly wisdom in order to deal with them. This chapter also makes it very clear that
God never tempts us, but every man is
tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed (verse
14). Whether we want to believe it or
not, we are our own worst enemy, we get, not in our own way, but in the way of
God’s will for our lives. Verse 19 tells
us to be swift to hear, slow to speak,
and slow to wrath. Now think about
that one, what if we listened more than we spoke? What if we didn’t jump into anger as soon as
we heard something we didn’t like or saw something that disturbed us? What if we listened more and then also
listened to God before every choice made or word spoken. I can only speak for myself, but I know,
without a doubt, I would be a much better person if I did just those two
things.
We are our own worst enemy; however, we also have access
to the truest friend you could ever find.
Jesus Christ not only saves our soul, but can save us from our own
selves if we will let him. James 1:22 is
very clear when it says, But be ye doers
of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. I have found that becoming a doer of the word
keeps us focused on God and others, and we seem to forget about our selfish
wants, which usually end up turning in to some sort of trouble for us.
While we will never live perfect lives here on
this earth, we do serve a perfect Savior, and when we serve him with everything
we have in us we can live as close to perfect as we possible.
