30 Days of Encouragement - Day 9

Many years ago I read a book by Robert Fulghum entitled, "All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten" In the book, he reminds us of the simple Kindergarten rules we learned at 5-years old. And, he shows us how these same rules apply all of our life.

Nothing has changed. We should still play fair, be nice, put things back, don't hit people, say you're sorry, wash your hands, wait your turn, share, sing a happy song every morning, have cookies and milk after lunch and take a nap.

There is no need for new rules. The rules learned at 5-years old will carry us on. If we live by the rules we learned in Kindergarten, our social lives would be happier, and our society would be kinder.

There will always be rules to follow. Every society no matter how technologically advanced or primitive, all have rules to follow.

Is there any wonder God has rules He wants us to follow? How can people demand His blessings when they NEVER follow His rules? In what world does that even make sense?

God's rules for living are not strenuous. They are not hard. Many people are turned off by what they thought God's rules were. But, some of those things are man's rules, not God's.

Man-kind has a problem. You can't give us too much authority and power over others. If you do and we don't have to be accountable, we will corrupt it every time. That is what Satan did. He had authority and power. He was the chief praise leader, he covered the throne of God.

I guess that wasn't enough for him. He lost focus and began to first imagine himself as equal to God. Eventually, he imagined himself exalted above God.

What's wrong with the boy???! He forgot that he was a created being. He forgot that the only reason he existed is that God wanted him to exist. He forgot that he was not functioning under his abilities or that his source of life came from God! He forgot that he is a dependent being, whereas God exists independently of anyone and everything else.

Sometimes when we talk about Satan's fall, we take a superior attitude, or we take an attitude of disgust. We shake our heads and think what he did was stupid. We wonder how he could have gotten such a swelled head.

Well, if it happened to him, you better believe that it can happen to us. Any of us can harbor iniquity in our hearts and plan a mini rebellion against God.

Satan didn't have the influences that we have around us, namely him!

I am sure that the stupid stuff he says in our ears is the same stuff he must have been thinking to himself. He had to mull over in his mind his visions of grandeur before putting his plan into action.

He epitomized the scripture - as a man thinketh in his heart, so is he - [Proverbs 23:7a]. But, his thoughts didn't lift him exalt him. His thoughts caused him to start a war in Heaven and get booted out.

Satan could not handle having the authority and power God gave him. Angels looked up to him. He was in charge of worship and praise. He was full of wisdom, perfect in beauty, anointed of God and, he was set, by God as a covering over the throne of God.

The scriptures tell us that it was all too much for him. He was lifted up in himself and forgot who he was. [Ezekiel 28:16]

We have all done what Satan did and we are all subject to do it again. [Thank God for the Blood of Jesus!] We have all thought our way would work out better than God's way. And, every time we do things contrary to the Word of God, we are rebelling against God just like Satan did.

God tells us to love our enemies. We don't even try. We can't wait for something bad to happen to them. And, when it does we say they deserved it. We sometimes even pray for them to fall or fail. [That's witchcraft in case you didn't know.]

God tells us to forgive those who have used us. We are still holding a grudge against Melvin's brother Sammy because he made fun of us when we were in 5th grade. [Unforgiveness will lead to physical disease - you better stop]

History confirms it over and over again. Corruption comes where there is no accountability.

The Old Testament is filled with rules to follow. It has so many rules that obeying one can lift you into pride which is an act of disobeying another. And, as pure as those laws were when they were given, over time, those laws became instruments of control by certain groups.

Again, if you let people walk in power too long without holding them accountable, you will get corruption and a "hot mess".

Kindergarten rules are simple. They may have seemed hard when we were learning them, but that is because we had to think of others first; we had to put our selfishness behind us. When we did follow the rules we had a good time in Kindergarten.

God's rules are simple too. Like Kindergarten rules they may seem hard as we are learning them, but over time following them become a part of our everyday life

When asked what was the greatest commandment, Jesus said that the whole of the law was summed up in these:

1. Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
2. Love your neighbor as you love yourself

(I think part of the problem is that we don't know how to love. - 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 will help you)

Never mind how others act. Let them do what they do. Let us check ourselves and make sure that we get a Happy Face or a gold star at the end of the day, today.

Be Blessed [1 Corinthians 13:4-7]