NIV Once-A-Day Bible Men And Women Of The Bible DevotionalSample

THE BLAME GAME

The labels we affix to people become a lens through which we view everything. The names we use can distort your judgment and eventually give us reason to think that wrong is all right. This is an age-old strategy of tyrants: demonize opponents and blame them for whatever problems arise.
Ahab had leadership potential, but his moral lens had become completely distorted. Wrong was right; right was whatever he wished. Elijah, the key person who could show Ahab his problem, was, in Ahab’s mind, the nation’s chief troublemaker. Ahab’s lifeline to God was thin and fraying. By placing on Elijah the label “troubler,” Ahab was cutting the cord altogether.
When friends confront us, we may call them disloyal. When parents urge us to mend a bad habit, we may call them conservative or out of touch. When a pastor counsels change, we may dismiss it with terms like meddler or holier-than-thou. These labels may be hatchets whacking at the lifeline — ​God’s towrope to keep us from floating adrift.
We would be wise to put away the hatchet, quit labeling and start listening. Accept Christian counsel whenever it’s given. Remain open to the corrective judgment of people who love you — ​you may be surprised by what you learn from them. And, of course, listen always to God’s Word.

PRAYER
Lord, I am listening. . .

READ
Ahab’s story is told in 1 Kings 16:28 — ​22:40 and 2 Chronicles 18:1 — 19:3. He is also mentioned in Micah 6:16.