Proverbs 31:4

“It is not for Kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine, or for rulers to take strong drink” –Proverbs 31:4

In my household, the phrase “Don’t do it if it causes someone else to stumble” was used more than the golden rule. This was the kind of convictions I grew up living by. My parents never drank, and I never drank, and as far as I knew, leadership around me never drank. It was this kind of lifestyle that can be dangerous. You compare the world to the standard of your parents. But, when you find that rulers and leaders that are a part of your life are drinking; when we you see beer in their fridge, you lose respect for them. I found myself as a young teenager being legalistic, and judgmental. I was holding people up to a standard to which they could never live up to because they didn’t know there was a standard. This was something I struggled with for years. There was an inward battle going on. “ is it right? Is it wrong? Is this what it means to make someone stumble because of your actions? Yeah it is, I’m right…they shouldn’t be drinking… wait, no I’m wrong, they can make their own decisions…” And on it went. It wasn’t until a couple years later, a youth pastor at a conference talked on this very subject. He stated his convictions on the matter, but also shared something along the lines of this “It’s one thing to drink ONE beer, it’s another to get drunk. It’s one thing to drink in the privacy of your own home, and it’s another to get drink in public” Now, I agree with this, and it taught me such a cool lesson, but God’s lesson didn’t end their for me. There was a bigger lesson learned. Don’t judge others by your convictions. No one will ever meet ALL your expectations. This mind set offers only disappointment.

Today I will ask God to reveal other convictions that I judge people by, write them down, and ask God to remove them.