“What misery is mine! … There is no cluster of grapes to eat, none of the early figs that I crave. The godly have been swept from the land… All men lie in wait to shed blood;… But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.“—Micah 7:1-7, NIV
In a famous lawsuit brought by a baker against a farmer, the baker charged the farmer with cheating.He said, “When he first started selling me butter, he gave me a true pound, but gradually he has been giving me less and less butter for the pound until now I am only getting twelve ounces but paying for a full pound!”
The farmer told the judge, “Sir, I only have a balance scale to measure the butter. So I always put the baker’s pound of bread on the scales and match it with equal amounts of butter. My pound of butter equals his pound of bread!”
If we cheat in life, trying to skirt God’s laws and hoping to get away with it, the scales will tip against us. The weight of our sin eats away at the blessings God desires and plans for us. Sin brings consequences of tremendous sorrow and sadness. The land fails, friends fail, and even beloved ones cannot be trusted in a climate of sin.
Sin is a journey to loneliness and emptiness.
In your life you can experience two pains. The pain of discipline or the pain of regret. The pain of regret is far worse. If God disciplines you, calling you back to Him, listen, respond, and take your consequences with a grateful heart, then allow Him to heal and bless you.
No matter what your sin may be or how far you have strayed—even if it’s just a little way off—repentance brings God’s forgiveness and puts the scales back into balance, causing you to overflow with God’s abundance and blessings!
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” —1 John 1:9
