Consequences: We reap what we sow

My dermatologist recently prescribed a skin cream for me. I was to rub it on my neckline twice a day for two weeks so that all of that area's hidden skin cancers would surface. After four days, I lit up like the White House Christmas tree. Apparently all those years of sun-worshipping, all those summer afternoons lying on my roof lathered in Crisco had taken their toll.

Consequences. We've all had to deal with their pesky interruptions, haven't we? Proverbs 11:18 warns us that we reap what we sow. Abraham's grandson, Esau, learned that truth the hard way. After returning, famished, from a hunting trip, he asked his twin, Jacob, for a bowl of stew in exchange for his (Esau's) birthright. This was no small matter because, in Old Testament times, the firstborn enjoyed special privileges. Esau was entitled to a double share of his father's inheritance, authority over his younger siblings, and a title of spiritual leader in his family. Yet he traded in those long-term benefits for his short-term pleasure.

Esau's choice was one he learned to regret. I have done likewise. Sarcastic words. Impatient behaviors. Impulsive actions. Excuses not thought out, to justify myself. Saying "yes" when I should say "no." Saying "no" when I should say "yes." Not taking the time to weigh out the consequences. Not seeking my Father's will but gratifying my own, instead. And even though God offers forgiveness for poor decisions, earthly consequences don't just disappear. Ask my students.

In my speech classes my juniors are giving their eulogies -- tributes to something that is no longer in their lives. The stories have been heart-breaking as many of these 17-year-olds have stood before their classmates and admitted to painful choices they have made...or right ones they have chosen not to make. From cutters saying goodbye to their addiction to those trying to forgive deserting parents or abusive relatives to the many who have allowed others to influence their decisions, these boys and girls know first-hand about long-term consequences. Guilt. Reputations. Despair. Many have spoken of starting over, this time with God's guidance, as they refuse to fall prey to the enemy's bondage.

My last trip to the dermatologist showed that the prescribed cream had done its magic. It had exposed and killed dozens of "hot spots," but I was left with the warning: "There will be more." Driving home, I thought of how God uses His own kind of spiritual cream to expose and forgive our sins, but even though God's mercy and grace are ever present to preserve our relationship with Him, they will not prevent the destruction of our health or the loss of a relationship or the countless other painful effects that can result from poor decisions we make in this life. And then there is the consequence that comes from the poorest choice of all. If we fail to accept God's invitation to enter into relationship with Him, then we must face the reality of an eternity without Him. From that consequence, even the amazing grace of God is insufficient to save us.