. . . (The LORD God said) "Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?" The man said, "The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate." Then the Lord God said to the woman, "What is this that you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate." Genesis 3:11b-13

Amy Ullock had decided to get a tattoo on her arm.

It was to be a beautiful tattoo -- literally. Ullock wanted the word "Beautiful" tattooed on her arm. The tattoo artist typed the word into his computer, got a sample copy of it, showed the copy to Amy, traced it on her arm, and tattooed away.

Only when he was done, Ullock noticed the word Beautiful was written "Beatiful."

Ullock was upset; the tattoo artist was upset and, naturally, there was a fight. It was a fight that eventually took both of them to a Nova Scotia small claims court.

Ullock blamed the artist; the artist blamed Ullock.

Eventually, the judge ruled Ullock couldn't blame anybody other than herself for the mistake. It was her fault if she didn't catch the error before it became permanent.

People do like to blame others for their errors, don't they? Look at Adam and Eve. After God had confronted them about their eating from the forbidden tree, Eve blamed the snake for tempting her.

And Adam? Adam took the blame game to another level. First, he tried to pass the guilt to Eve, but he also implied God Himself was at fault, maintaining to Him that the woman You gave me, she's the one who is responsible.

Over the centuries the Lord has heard countless souls make countless excuses. So predictable are we in excusing ourselves that Jesus says on Judgment Day the lost are going to try and justify themselves by saying, "Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help You?" (Matthew 25:44)

We just don't like to admit we are at fault, do we?

That's sad because the Great Physician really can't do much for those who think they're healthy and whole. You remember Jesus' parable. It was the tax collector, who confessed, "God, have mercy on me, a sinner," and then went home forgiven" (Luke 18:13b).

Of course, John said it better than I ever could. He wrote, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His Word is not in us" (1 John 1:9-10).

THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, I confess I am a sinner. My thoughts, my words, my actions are not what they should be. Today I give thanks that Jesus came into the world to save me and everyone. Send Your Holy Spirit to every sick soul so they may admit their need and find forgiveness at the cross of Calvary and the empty tomb. In Jesus' Name, I pray it. Amen.

In Christ I remain His servant and yours,

Today's Bible Readings: Judges 16-18    Luke 15:11-32

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