Everybody's Doing It

Trust God and be mature in your dealings with others. Since the beginning, we've had a tendency to do what everybody else is doing. What the immature mind 

So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate.

✙ Genesis 3:6

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"If your friends jumped off a bridge, would you do it, too?"

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I'll bet I'm not the only kid who heard that from their parents when I asked to do something by saying, "Everybody else is doing it." The problem was, when they asked me about jumping off a bridge, I thought it sounded fun. Since then, I've seen plenty of videos where it actually looked fun.

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Jumping off a bridge is overrated by children, obviously. It's actually dangerous—suicidal, even. When all is said and done, our parents were right: Jumping off bridges is inadvisable.

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Jesus told us we needed to be childlike in our trust of God. But the Bible also tells us that maturity is a good thing. It's all a matter of discernment. Whom should we trust?

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The answer is relatively simple: Trust God and be mature in your dealings with others. Since the beginning, we've had a tendency to do what everybody else is doing. What the immature mind sees as fun, the mature mind might recognize as life-threatening. In a way, this describes all the thou-shalt-nots of the Bible. There's a a lot of soul-stifling or community-killing stuff that looks like it ought to be enjoyable before the consequences make themselves known. Through intellect, prayer, and discernment, the Holy Spirit can and will still guide us through the maze of commandments and relationships that are part of being human.

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Can a blind person guide a blind person? Will not both fall into a pit?

✙ Luke 6:39

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Prayer after thinking about today's devotion:

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Lord God, creator of all things, who in your loving-kindness and care meet our human needs: with the dawn of each day help us to set our hearts and hope upon you, that we may show you in the world as the universal and eternal king.

✙ Celebrating Common Prayer

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After your own thanksgivings & petitions, close with the Lord's Prayer.

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