Do Well

The soul is a very fascinating thing.  It's essence is a mystery, and yet, it is everything that brings a person to life.  However, it always amazes me that we all have similar motives, our lives are just our attempt to achieve our goals.  We all use different methods, therein lies our individuality, personality, attitude, successes and failures.

I believe that at everyone's core is to simply do well.  Regardless of whether we choose to acknowledge it or not, everyone's life pursuit, in one shape or another, is to please the Lord.  The human soul will never be satisfied until it is in harmony with God's will. 

When I think of the happiest times in my life, it is when I have put my desires aside, and work whole-heartedly to achieve God's will.  In the same token, when I think of the most miserable times in my life,  it was when I was frustrated, and impatient with the results I was getting doing things the right way, and as a result, I took shortcuts in my relationship with the Lord.  By taking shortcuts, my relationship with the Lord grew weak, and I just focused primarily on my own agenda, and my own desires.  We all have experienced this feeling, and sadly, most live the majority of our lives in this state of mind.

I believe this is how Cain felt in Genesis chapter 4.  We all know the story, Cain and Abel bring their offerings before the Lord, Abel brought livestock, and Cain brought fruit.  Needless to say, the Lord favored Abel.  This devastated Cain, but the Lord encouraged Cain, saying:

"If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. 

Its desire is for you, but you must rule over it.”
Genesis 4:7

He is a loving Father telling his child not to be discouraged, not to give up, and if he performed his duties well, he would be accepted as Abel was.  He also gave him a warning, that if he didn't do well, he would be vulnerable to sin.  The Lord goes on to say that we must rule over sin.  Although this picture of sin ready to devour us at any moment is terrifying, we can overcome it if we choose to.  We all know how the story ends, Cain did not heed God's warning.  In a jealous rage, he shed the blood of his innocent brother, and suffered the consequences for the rest of his life. 

Hopefully most of us will not kill anyone in a jealous rage, but there is a lot we can learn from this passage.  

Be Careful, every day, to do well.  Don't waste a moment, use the resources that God has given you to reach your life's full potential for the kingdom.  But when you mess up, rule over sin.