Shouldn't . . . Can't ... Won't

Shouldn't . . . Can't ... Won't

Three interesting words that went through my mind very early this morning. All three impact the choices we make in our lives. Yesterday we looked at the downward cycle in the lives of the children of Israel:

They forgot His works
They forgot their Savior
They did not believe His word
They grumbled
They did not listen to His voice

And as I read further in Psalm 106 today, I add to more to the list:

They provoked Him to wrath . . .
They became unclean in their practices.

What a downward spiral. If we are not careful -- we can follow the same downward path. And if we are honest with ourselves . . . At times, haven't we been there because of wrong choices we have made?

I have been on this journey with my weight loss for several years now and have been stuck. I know what I SHOULDN'T eat . . . I know what I CAN'T eat. But until I resolve that I WON'T eat the wrong things -- I will live in defeat.

All of us face temptations and those sins in our lives that the writer of Hebrews said are "besetting sins" -- "the ones that so easily entangle us." You know exactly what I am talking about because just now the Holy Spirit placed His finger on that area of your life. Think about that area -- Have you found yourself saying -- "I know I shouldn't do that" -- but you do. Then the conviction comes from the Holy Spirit and we tell ourselves -- "I can't do that again" and we promise ourselves, and often God, that we cannot go there again.

The Apostle Paul faced a similar struggle . . . "For I do not understand what I am doing, because I do not practice what I want to do, but I do what I hate . . . For I do not do the good I want to do, but I practice the evil that I do not want to do." (Romans 7:15, 19)

What the children of Israel couldn't get is what we need to remember. We need to move from I SHOULDN'T and I CAN'T to I WON'T. That is only possible THROUGH Christ. He gives us the power to make those choices.

I know what I need to do with my eating. I need to resolve today that WON'T eat those things that I KNOW are going to cause me to go backwards and fall. It is the same with those things I struggle with. I need to move from I SHOULDN'T . . . I CAN'T . . . To I WON'T.

I was reminded of an old hymn that I was taught as a child:
I am resolved no longer to linger,
Charmed by the world's delight,
Things that are higher, things that are nobler,
These have allured my sight.
Refrain
I will hasten to Him, hasten so glad and free;
Jesus, greatest, highest, I will come to Thee.
I will hasten, hasten to Him, hasten so glad and free;
Jesus, Jesus, greatest, highest, I will come to Thee.
I am resolved to go to the Savior,
Leaving my sin and strife;
He is the true One, He is the just One,
He hath the words of life.
I am resolved to follow the Savior,
Faithful and true each day;
Heed what He sayeth, do what He willeth,
He is the living Way.
I am resolved to enter the kingdom
Leaving the paths of sin;
Friends may oppose me, foes may beset me,
Still will I enter in.
I am resolved, and who will go with me?
Come, friends, without delay,
Taught by the Bible, led by the Spirit,
We'll walk the heav'nly way.
So what is it this morning with you? Is there an issue that you have been saying, "I SHOULDN'T?" Have you found yourself yielding to it and then saying "I can't do this again?" Purpose today . . . Resolve today . . . By God's grace you CAN say "I WON'T."
Hope my ramblings this morning made sense. Dialog with me about it if you'd like. I always enjoy hearing from you. Have a good day.