In my last devotional I wrote that freewill is something I love and dislike at the same time. With freewill comes some so many choices! One of the simple, but sometimes most difficult, is whether we will obey God or not. Often times stubbornness is the culprit! Stubbornness can create some truly hilarious moments.
Like when I told one of the two-year-olds in my class to be still and stop playing while sitting on the toilet. He looked me square in the face, with a look of defiance, and swung his legs forward, then back, and then forward again—this time higher! And causing himself to fall into the toilet. Oh man! I laughed so hard. But stubbornness also has some major consequences.
God’s way is perfect. All the Lord’s promises prove true.
He is a Shield for all who look to Him for protection.
For who is God except the Lord ? Who but our God is a solid Rock?
God arms me with strength, and He makes my way perfect.
Psalms 18:30-32
God gives us His word to guide us. It’s His attempt at saving us from some serious consequences. Stubbornness is one way of saying our way is better. Some of my children have taken to saying “I do it!” This is awesome! I love it! Stubbornness is what I’d like to call “I do it” gone wrong.
There are things in life we can and should want to do. But not heeding God’s perfect word for the sake of independence is NOTone of those things.
When I read this week’s passage, I immediately thought of one of my favorite kings, King Asa. King Asa’s story is told in 2 Chronicles 14-16. King Asa starts off his reign in a good way and served the Lord. Then he starts relying on man and when the messenger of God confronts him and tells him the error of his way—he gets angry!
In the thirty-ninth year of his reign, Asa developed a serious foot disease.
Yet even with the severity of his disease, he did not seek
the Lord ’s help but turned only to his physicians.
2 Chronicles 16:12
A foot disease?! Why was he so stubborn that he died from a foot disease…. All he had to do was turn to God, but he would not. Oh, time wasn’t an issue. King Asa died 2 years later. Was it worth it?
Stubbornness is definitely something to be mindful of.
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Thank You, Lord, for Your awesome guide in the Holy Spirit and Your Word. I love that You have given us all the opportunity to avoid many heartaches. Give us the discernment to see these opportunities when they arise. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
About Ahmee Bronaugh
🙂 not much difference (heart-wise) between the toddler in your care and king asa! thanks, ahmee, for reminding us of the sin of stubbornness <3