"And whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them, I withheld not my heart from any joy; for my heart rejoiced in all my labour: and this was my portion of all my labour." (Ecclesiastes 2:10 KJV)
"The woman was convinced. She saw the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too. At that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves." (Genesis 3:6-7 NLT)
If there is something to be said about dealing with sin in our lives, it should be that it proves you have been born again! Before I was saved, sin was not really an issue that I needed to deal with. If I had any issues, it was about relationships, such as with my wife, son, or family; other than that, nothing else was really an issue.
Once I had a personal relationship with the Lord, sin became something that needed to be dealt with; it became part and parcel to my new life in Christ! There was always the prompting of the Holy Spirit, telling me that this or that was not okay, even though it really never mattered before.
In the case of Solomon, we see him pointing out something which was apparently causing him to get overly indulged in all the things he could do, be, or have! It is one thing to have some fun, make some things to feel better, hire and own people that keep you entertained, and even have a few extra wives; but when it starts to overcome you, making you become something that you don't really like; then it is time to start checking yourself, before you wreck yourself!
Several times during the year I feel there are times available to check myself. The New Year is one, as I usually make plans to change certain things, diet, exercise, reading habits; whatever it is that I need to make as a New Year resolution, it's just a habit to try to move in the right direction. The other times are the Men's Conferences and Men's Camp; as these are times when I can just prepare myself for whatever God wants to do, not about what I want, but about what He wants!
Even if I might think I know the theme of the event, I still will always go into it, as if I am expecting God to do something extraordinary, taking me into a place that causes me to see Him more clearly, or see myself more dearly! If there is anything that gets out of sorts, due to stress and life, it is the fact that He loves me!
That is what I think we need to see more clearly, that He loves us dearly! Part and Parcel to that, is that we might love Him more, dying to ourselves, and making it all about serving Him...
"I am writing to you who are God's children because your sins have been forgiven through Jesus. I am writing to you who are mature in the faith because you know Christ, who existed from the beginning. I am writing to you who are young in the faith because you have won your battle with the evil one. I have written to you who are God's children because you know the Father. I have written to you who are mature in the faith because you know Christ, who existed from the beginning. I have written to you who are young in the faith because you are strong. God's word lives in your hearts, and you have won your battle with the evil one." (1 John 2:12-14 NLT)
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