My Explanation

I remember the awkardness of being a teenager and the inveitable "peer pressure" of those around me. I can think back to every single pivitol moment in my life and pinpoint the exact person that I found influential in my decisions to handle the situation I was in. Some of these moments are regrets and some are achievements. While I am fully responsible for each action I took I am also reminded that others pushed me to succeed or fail(by an action or sometimes an inaction). This is not me casting blame or giving credit to any one person but simply remembering that those I surround myself with influence my actions.

As I was reading Genesis 4, I was reminded once again of why this thought is so important to me.
Gensis 4:7 says:
If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.”

For myself, it is more of a matter of my own self-control and ability to make sure that certain aspects of life do not rule over me. It is the thought I want to impress upon my children in this time that they have If they simply do what they feel is right (which I prayerfully hope is based upon their understanding of God's word) then they will never have to have regret over something they knew not to do. Sure, there will be curveballs that have to be dealt with but hopefully those come along less frequently.

It will always be struggle to do what is right in every situation. The fall of man was an act of a simple disobedience of eating from a specific tree, but the consquence was moumental. God said NO, Adam and Eve said YES.

In my mind, my thought process is this: "God tested Adam and Eve with the simple boundary of something they could not have. They failed to accept the "NO". It was not a matter of the fact that they commited a horrible crime. God simply put a boundary of what was best for them and they chose their own way."

If no sin had existed after Adam and Eve until the age of Misti, I know I would have failed. Why? Because, I have done the same thing. I have known in my heart a simple "NO" from God and chose to act on my own for my simple yes. I did not count God's eternal plan in the equation. Luckily, thus far God has not banished me from a land :-)

So for today, I will be reminded that I am unaware of why my answers to God might have a monumental impact on a master plan. Hopefully I will live daily to have more times when I do the right thing in every situation. If I don't, I will cling to the grace and mercy of Christ who is the only reason I am worthy to be a part of the plan at all!