From Snowflakes to Being Taken for Granted!

Do you ever consider snow flakes?  They are really lovely. And they are all different...our God is so amazing and loving towards us.  Aren't we blessed?
I know that my snow flakes aren't anything compared to the ones that God makes, but they bring pleasure to me  and to most of the people that see them. So I will continue to make them.
God is the maker of us all...not just snowflakes but all of us and all the critters that roam this earth as well as the ones in pastures and the ones that swim under the water and the birds and insects that fly in the air.  Every living thing!  And it doesn't stop there!  Our God has not only created all of us but he has also created us with the ability to build and make things from the products and materials that are here on this earth like cars and computers and roadways and buildings and everything that we take for granted.

Have you ever been taken for granted?  If you are a parent I would have to say you probably have been taken for granted, perhaps it wasn't for very long, but I am sure that it has happened.  How did it make you feel?  I can bet it didn't feel very good.  I think that when we take someone for granted, not only do we make them feel poorly, but we also end up feeling terrible ourselves. Perhaps not right away...but we will feel terrible eventually.

We can allow this to become a bad, a horrible, a nasty habit if we don't deal with and resolve this unpleasant behavior as soon as it is recognized.

Are you married?  Then it is possible that you have been taken for granted by your spouse or that you yourself are the culprit and the one taking your spouse for granted.  Anyway you look at it, this is a very unkind behavior.  And one that hurts our loved one terribly.  God has made us for relationships, however it is up to us what kind of relationship that it turns out to be.  Will it be a kind and loving relationship or will it be one that is full of strife and discord?  When we are dealing adult to adult; that is one thing, however if it is adult and child, especially if it is one of your own children or a grandchild this can be very interesting.

A child will generally not take anyone for granted, unless, they have learned how to do it.  So if your spouse takes you for granted, then there is a good chance you children will learn this behavior...and welcome to the wonderful cycle that someone will have to develop a very firm backbone to break.  It won't be a fun process but with the help of a good counselor (my choice would be the Lord), it can be done.  The really hard part is to get the people who are the ones taking others for granted to realize that this is what they are doing. You may need to get some help with proving this out, but once the culprit has taken responsibility for their behavior that will be more than half the battle!

When someone does take someone else for granted, there is great sadness in the heart of the person who is being taken for granted.  And please realize that this can be very quiet and insidious.  You may not even realize that you are doing it.  What I would really like for all of us to do is to think about this...do you take Jesus, or God, or the Holy Spirit for granted.  Do you go to church on Sunday at which point you behave as a Christian should.  But then you go home or out to eat with your family.  And slowly the mask comes off and you start to behave as you do on Monday thru Saturday.  If this describes you then you are totally taking our Savior for granted...If you feel like maybe you are a different person on Sundays, perhaps you need to ask the Lord to show Himself to you in a more active way during the days other than Sunday.  And maybe you should spend more time looking for Him and talking to Him.  If God knows that you are actively seeking Him, He will show Himself to you in great and wonderous ways.

So it is one thing to take your spouse and or your children for granted, but remember this, the tables will slowly be turned on you and you will soon be the one on the receiving end.  Not necessarily from your spouse but from your children, because you have been their teacher.  This won't be fun being on the receiving end.  But perhaps you will open your eyes and correct the problem. 

God will not be taken for granted in the long run, He will get your attention some how and my guess would be that you are not going to like it!  So if this does describe you, just remember that God is the Father of us all, and all that we have is on loan from Him, it is not ours, we are only care-takers and we had better do things right...just read the story of the talents...Matthew 25:13-30

Which would you rather have said to you, "Well done, good and faithful slave! You have been faithful in a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master."  Or, "Evil and lazy slave! So you knew that I harvest where I didn’t sow and gather where I didn’t scatter? 27 Then you should have deposited my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received my money back with interest! 28 Therefore take the talent from him and give it to the one who has ten. 29 For the one who has will be given more, and he will have more than enough. But the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. 30 And throw that worthless slave into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth’”

So are you investing yourself in the things of God or in the things of man?  Do not take either for granted, because if you take one for granted, you will surly take both for granted.

So go and be a blessing to someone, anyone today, and you may find that the person that you bless today may be a person who has been severely taken for granted.  What a awesome blessing you just might be....