"But Lord- The Devil Made Me Do It!" - Exploring Retaliation, Genesis, and Personal Growth

But Lord- The Devil Made Me Do It!

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Introduction: My Struggle with Retaliation

lk to me any old kind of way [: 00:00:36

So I went as far as like Messing with their jobs, families, credit, you name it. I know it's sad, but if I had access to get you back, I was, I had it. I had the access or I could get it. And you know, I guess the devil made me do it.

Genesis and the Blame Game

book of Genesis, Eve was the [: 00:01:12

And you basically was going to get in trouble anyways. So we've all been through it.

Personal Experiences and the Power of Choice

Christina: And recently my husband he's been working on, and he's been working hard to try to pay off my credit cards and, or just pay them down, you know, a bit, get them, get me good. And he's doing a great job, but Instagram told me to use one of the saved credit cards on file to make several purchases.

So I went ahead and did it. [: 00:02:24

The Impact of Mood and Emotions on Actions

, I'm Christina. I'm calling [: 00:03:00

She is not trying to help you. So what you do, you go from being super nice to basically cussing her out because that's what she deserves. Right? I mean, she made you do it. She changed your mood. You went from happy to, oh, okay, we about to have some problems here. Okay. And so, but we can't really, you know, we should kind of try to get away from that.

You know, I know like [: 00:03:36

So if I see that they're not going to say nothing, if they're getting super close to me where I see that they're going to pass by me without saying, excuse me, I don't care if it's an adult or a kid, they getting tripped. I'm tripping them. Cause I went from being [00:04:12] nice and all of a sudden they changed my mood.

So you know what? Guess what? You bout to either fall or you bout to almost fall and I do not discriminate.

The Journey of Personal Growth

Christina: I can honestly say that there is some growth that is very obvious to me in my life. You know, I know some other people think I have not changed, but I know that I've changed because Those things that I told you I used to do. I don't do those no more. I don't do those things anymore. I Actually think and pray before I make action.

ay that. I just said there's [: 00:04:48

The Struggle with Sin: A Biblical Perspective

Christina: So let's read Romans chapter 7 verse 20 through 25 It says I decide to do good, but I don't really do it I decide not to do bad, but then I do it anyway. My decisions, such as they are, don't result in actions.

ent I decide to do good, sin [: 00:05:24

They take charge. I've tried everything and nothing helps. I'm at the end of my rope. Is there no one who can do anything for me? Isn't that the real question? The answer, thank God, is that Jesus Christ can and does. He acted to set things right in this life of contradictions where I want to serve God with all my heart and mind, [00:06:00] but I'm pulled by the influence of sin to do something totally different.

That's the story of my life. I'm telling you, I used to want to do good. You know how you just want to do good and then you just don't, you know? You try your best but then something happens where you just snap and you just can't do it, you know? Roll Rage. You know, you say, okay, I'm going to, I'm going to be good next thing.

ling out a gun, but it was a [: 00:06:36

And he was just so appalled, you know, he was so just like, mom, you do not do things like that. But yeah, but.

The Power of Intention and Relationship with Jesus

out and make an intentional [: 00:07:12

It's like those, the actions that I'm taking in the morning or throughout the day to actually spend time with him and to take in his word. It's like it protects me later on from doing the things that I don't want to do. That voice had come into my head a lot quicker to say, Hey, Christina, don't do this.

Do [: 00:07:48

And sometimes you don't even want to do better, but you do it anyways. And I've been there where I'm just like, I didn't want to do that. And I cried because it wasn't what I really wanted to do. I wanted to do the bad [00:08:24] thing. And then moments later, it was just like, thank you, Lord. I know you were with me because I didn't do what I would have done.

do it. Yes, we all have sin [: 00:09:00

We are born a sin, okay? It's in us, okay? It's deep in us. However, we have a choice to make.

The Importance of God's Word in Decision Making

Christina: And in order to make the best choice, you have to fill yourself intentionally with God's Word.

Practical Steps: Using the Bible App

e app I don't I have a Bible [: 00:09:36

Just Go to home. It's stuff already there as soon as you hit home. There's the verse of the day Look at the verse of the day [00:10:12] Read it. If you want to get deeper, you can go deeper. If not just read that, take it in and move on. Okay. But make it an intentional habit so that you will have that defense, that protection during your day to stop you from making bad decisions, bad choices, because ain't nobody to blame but yourself.

Okay, ladies.

Assignment for the Week: Putting it into Action

I would like for us to do is [: 00:10:48

Whether it's work, family, all these people out here shopping for the holiday. Pause and listen to that voice telling you to chill, okay? That voice might tell you to Say something nice to that person, even though they were just rude to [00:11:24] you. That voice may tell you to pay for that person's item at the store, even though that person didn't even smile, even though that person may not say thank you.

something positive during a [: 00:12:00

We're going to all do that. Okay. I hope y'all join me because today I know because I'm speaking it out loud, I'm going to have some challenges today and my challenges are going to be at work.

Closing Prayer and Farewell

u created me to be. In Jesus [: 00:12:36

You ladies have a wonderful day and enjoy the rest of your week. Bye![00:13:12]