Reaction to God's Grace

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever.” Psalms 111:10

 “A faithful man will abound with blessings, But he who hastens to be rich will not go unpunished.” Proverbs 28:20

“Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, For this is man's all.” Ecclesiastes 12:13

“that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” Matthew 5:45

Benjamin Franklin was a successful man in most any account.  The 15^th of 17 children, and with only two years of formal education, he became a successful businessman, inventor, influential writer, and founding father of the United States.  Most would call Franklin a self-made man, a concept engulfed in the American Dream.  The American Dream says that with enough effort anyone can become anything they choose.  We take great efforts to “better” ourselves through education, work ethic, passion, and hard work.  None of these virtues are inherently bad, the only problem is where do we leave room for God in this?

God made man with skills and abilities in His own image.  All men (saved and not) are created with abilities from God.  He does not ask us to do things on our own, yet often that’s what we do.  We take our God-given talents and blessings, and go to work.  Some people thank the Lord for them and seek to praise Him; while others hoard all they have, seeking only to advance themselves. 

I believe it is our understanding of where our blessings come from that determines many things and worries in our lives.  Below is a table, comparing our attitudes based on our dependence.  The first column is when we depend solely on our own resources, and the second when we seek the Lord, and thank him for what we have. Who are you depending on, and when did you last thank the Lord?

Our Abilities

Us – Work harder, prideful                 God – Thankful, humble
Our Assets (House, cars, etc)
Us – greed, materialistic                     God – stewards, thankful
Our Anxieties (concerns)
Us – worry, hopeless, unable              God – omniscient, omnipotent
Salvation
Us – fearful, not good enough                        God – blessed, loved