Don’t try to avoid doing your duty, and don’t stand with those who plot evil, for the king can do whatever he wants. Ecclesiastes 8:3 NLT
If I’m being honest, lately I’ve recognized an area in my life that needs improving. Whether I’m home or away traveling, this issue finds a way into my psyche and when it sets in, it has been difficult to avoid.
The issues? French fries!
I really enjoy eating them, a lot, but I know I had been savoring them too much and it was starting to catch up to me. All that starch had me lethargic and large. I was avoiding my standard eating habits and it put in me in a dangerous position.
It’s too convenient to turn you back on things – credit score, health, relationships, etc.
When we avoid our assignments body and spirit, danger is an automatic by-product. Jonah and Moses, a couple of your legendary avoiders, setup up a cycle.
Assign —-> Avoid —-> Accept —-> Accomplish —-> Acknowledge
We receive our assignment, and at that moment we are operating in free will. God will not force us to do anything. So should we avoid it, the consequences are on us to carry. At some point, a shift may occur and we accept our assignment. We go forth, and we accomplish what we’ve been tasked with, we confront what was once a hurdle. And with that, that’s when we’re able to acknowledge God, how He positioned us to do something, to edify the Kingdom.
That’s where we have to keep it precise with ourselves and others. If it’s not for God, we’ll lose our way and avoid our duty.
Things commonly avoided today (and in the Bible) include:
- Truth
- Confrontation
- Social Ills
- Responsibility
Avoidance is a coping mechanism used spiritually, though it’s a non-spiritual response. For example, walking in your purpose can be intimidating if you’re not ready to serve. Yet, if you get caught up with how it affects you and not how it may impact a person or the world, then the purpose becomes trapped in your human isolation and not Godly expansion.
