...And I Turned Out Just Fine!

There is such an emphasis on ourselves in this generation, that catch-phrases like "me time," "listen to your heart," and "believe in yourself" regularly assault our ears, maybe even causing undetected hairline cracks to our foundational belief systems. I am flabbergasted as I think about the many seemingly innocent phrases that are built upon downright lies presumably meant to destroy any semblance of concrete truth! The goal seems to be to further drive a wedge between God and man by selling people dogma like: disciplining your children is cruel; divorce is better for me and the kids than fighting parents; I'm too selfish to ___________(fill in the blank); people first need to learn to love themselves before they are any good to anybody else. The list is certainly not exhaustive. But what I was thinking about is a far more subtle phrase, the effect of which can be dangerously erosive, and I too, am guilty. Because of our constant self-focus, we use ourselves as the standardized reference point, walking around like little gods, our experiences, the purveyors of truth. It is a subtle justification that we use, as we rationalize away our reasons for doing what we do by saying, "...and I turned out just fine!"

A few examples of this faulty logic: "My parents yelled at me all the time, and I turned out just fine;" "I tried a few drinks before I was 21, and I turned out just fine;" "I never read my Bible, and I turned out just fine;" "I used to eat three chili dogs a day, and I turned out just fine."

Barring an analysis of the word "fine," there are hazardous lies loaded in statements that typically revolve around "and I turned out just fine." The phrase seems to excuse us from any need to evaluate our positions and methods, because tradition is tried and true, based only on the outcome: ME! And often, the person claiming to have turned out just fine, is genuinely that- just fine. But rather than understanding that it was God's grace and not the faulty method that brought about that outcome, the person perpetuates the dubious cycle. If you don't believe me, you should read First and Second Kings!

I certainly cannot be perfect, but in my pursuit of holiness, I hope that I don't have compartmentalized praxes, off-limits to and unfiltered by God's Word because "I turned out just fine."