Suffering the Consequences: From the streets to the pulpit

By Reverend Pernell R. Trent, Sr.

I began to reflect on my life and ask the following questions: 1) Why am I not happy or satisfied? 2)Why can't I be happy, love, and trust anyone at the same time? 3)Why am I so uncomfortable around a lot of people? 4)Why don't I have anyone to confide in or get advice from? The more questions I asked, the more painful it became. I spent nights crying and wondering if God had forsaken me. I honestly had to map out my life to get some clarity.
When we plan a trip to a place unknown, we use a map or a navigation system for directions. To follow the directions of these tools, it requires a good starting point and a good ending point. As we try to live according to the bible, most people fail to obtain a good starting point or a clear ending point. We tend to have a generic outlook, becoming a paratrooper, landing anywhere possible. The purpose of this book is to help you find your starting point. Some religious leaders place in your spirit a starting point without ever getting to know who you are, your spiritual maturity, your knowledge of Christ, Holy Spirit, Sin, etc., leaving you confused and still wondering why you're struggling.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Jan 13, 2021
• ISBN: 9781098358402

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Conclusion

Establishing Your Starting Point

Everyone goes through problems, trials, and temptation in their lives. When they arise, we take it out on everyone we assume is the cause. Have you ever experienced a really bad day? At work, it seems like everyone and everything is not going your way. When you arrive at home, the children’s chores are not completed. On any other day we may have let it slide, but instead, we lash out at the kids. We just don’t question the chores; we begin to talk about how we work all day, how they have one job, how they need to show some responsibility, and so on and so on.

We have mistrust with our spouses and sometimes we do not even know why. Our friends begin to talk about others who have cheated and got caught and they’re looking at you as they talk. Now, that seed is planted, and the mistrust is elevated. Suddenly, nothing your spouse does is right. The mistrust didn’t start while talking with friends. It may have started weeks, months, or decades ago. Until we sit back and reflect on where it all began, the wrong person will always be the one to catch the wrath. We must come to a starting point to help us understand why we’re suffering the consequences.

The best place to start is the creation story and work our way to the present.

Genesis 2:15-17, KJV: "And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. ¹⁶ And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: ¹⁷ But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die."

Let’s begin by examining this event that took place at the very beginning. We focus our attention on other parts of the text (we debate the type of fruit, whether the fruit has seeds or not, the type of tree, who ate first, did they both eat at the same time, etc.) and miss the principle that does not change through time (timeless principle).

The text shows that God gave a choice and a command!

Choice –verse 16 "And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:"

God, in this text, gave Adam a choice. In other words, Adam, I bless you with all kind of trees bearing fruit. You may eat from any of these trees. If you don’t like that fruit, I don’t mind; if you want to eat only this fruit, it’s cool with me! I planted all of this for you my son, Adam.

Command - verse 17 "But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die."

Our relationship with God as Creator and Father should leave no doubt of our obedience. We are expected to be obedient to His word. If His command says, DO NOT EAT, then our response should be, "You are God my Creator and Savior; You know what is best for me, therefore I will be obedient and not eat.

Adam’s Defense

Why do some children behave better than others? One reason is that they know the consequences of misbehaving. Some parents will discipline their child as soon as they are disobedient. So, when a child begins to act up, the parent gives the look and immediately they straighten up because they know the consequences of their actions. Sometimes the parents wait until they get home or days later and the child tries to forget or has forgotten about the incident, but not the parent. When this happened to me, I began to rewind in my mind. If this punishment is for Monday, and I was bad Tuesday through Friday, I must have gotten away with it. As an adult, I now find myself suffering the consequences of my actions I thought I