How often do you use God’s name to confirm something you want to do without actually checking with Him?

You’re confident what you’re doing is a good thing. Surely God would approve. Surely it’s His will. Then, the rationalizations begin…

I’ve faced so many challenges, God must be teaching me perseverance.

It happened so easily. Only God could have made it happen.

I’ve prayed for this for so long. I knew God would come through.

It feels so right.

God would never want me to go through that, so He’s giving me an out.

Do you see the potential contradictions? We can rationalize something is God-approved from any angle. We try to make sense of things, yet our sense isn’t the same as God’s sense.

Yes, He might be teaching us perseverance. Perseverance is important. But so is not making the same mistake over and over again. So is getting out of a situation that God says isn’t where we need.

Yes, sometimes God’s makes something happen easily. Something seems to drop into our laps. But sometimes, God’s will requires patience and diligence.

Yes, God gives us the desires of our hearts, but sometimes those desires don’t match up to His. If we’re not careful, we’ll get what we keep bugging Him about even though it’s not what’s best for us.

Yes, God gave us and uses our feelings, but if we’re not listening well to Him, those feelings easily get distorted and lead us off track.

Yes, God delivers us out of various situations, but every door or window that opens isn’t one He opens for us.

Be careful. Pay attention to God. Listen and yield to Him. That conviction you’re so confident about might just be your attempt to control a situation. Let Him have control. Let Him convict you along the way. You won’t always know His reason. But knowing Him is enough.