RESPONSIBLE ME



We all know what it is to turn over a new leaf; we’ve each done it a thousand times. The fact is, we need more than just a new leaf. We need to take responsibility for our lives. It begins with coming to grips with who you are and what you do. It begins with, “God, I am a sinner. I hurt people close to me. I do things that are wrong. There are times when I only care about me. I give no thought to the wants and needs of anyone else — it’s just all about me.”

Every person who follows Christ has made this admission – and we have each received absolute, total and complete forgiveness. Not because we deserve it, but because God is loving and merciful and forgiving. He wants to forgive your sins, and he wants to help you get over them. He wants to help you get past them, to abandon them, to become a better person, to become more like his Son, Jesus. In order for this to happen, you’ve got to take responsibility for who you are and where you are in life. "Take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ." (2 Corinthians 10:5)

Frankly, this goes against our nature; it’s so much easier to place blame. For example: “I have an explosive temper because my father used to yell at me, and my life today is so stressful, and besides, I’m surrounded by idiots. So wouldn’t you be angry, too?”

When you hear yourself saying this sort of thing, you need to realize that it indicates that you’re not taking responsibility for your life. Instead, you’re placing blame. As long as you’re blaming others, you will continue to make excuses for your own behavior and your own situation, and you will continue to avoid taking responsibility for what’s going on in your personal life. The result is that your life never gets better, your situation never gets better, and you never get better.

Taking responsibility for your life means that you abandon forever the shelters of placing blame and making excuses. Taking responsibility means saying, "I'm in control of what I think, what I say and what I do – I will use each of these for the glory of God and for the benefit of others. I will not wait until someone does it for me, I will not wait for a moment of luck to save the day, and I will not complain that it's not as easy as I would like for it to be. Instead, I will control my thoughts and my words and my actions. I will take responsibility for my life by learning what I need to learn, preparing as I need to prepare, and doing what I need to do, without waiting to be compelled."

Each of us has dropped the ball at some time or another in life. And, to be sure, there have been times when someone came along and knocked the ball out of our hands. The question is: Will we spend our time complaining about the ball being on the ground, or will we pick it back up and start running with it? Take responsibility for your life. Take action today.

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