Looking back now at my footprints
In the path that I have trod,
I have mostly gone the right way,
But have often sadly strayed.
Father, now in final testing,
When the goal is within sight,
Grant me grace to stay the strong course,
And the will to finish well.
I planned to improve my chances of finishing well in my old age. One part of that plan entailed eliminating sugar. But my daughter and caregiver, who knew of my plan, offered me a brownie and ice cream. Just this once. Not a big deal, I rationalized. I took the offer. So much for that part of the plan to finish well. My failure, not hers. I had to start over.
Solomon didn’t acquire his seven hundred foreign wives and three hundred concubines all at once. It started with one seemingly unimportant indiscretion. He probably had an important political justification for it. Another, coupled with another rationalization, followed that. Then there was another and another. Each time was easier and seemed less like a big deal. The downward spiral led to a habit, a fall into terrible sin, and finally, God’s judgment.
Solomon started off loving and obeying God with his whole heart. God made him the wisest man who ever lived—a person who wrote hundreds of wise sayings and whose wisdom brought rulers from all over the known world for a visit. But he ended life worshiping the detestable gods of many nations.
He didn’t start out with that intention. It didn’t happen overnight. It crept up on him little by little, wife by wife, concubine by concubine, compromise by compromise. But those were all manifestations of one besetting sin: unbridled sexual lust. He loved many foreign women, which was his real-life version of pornography.
Think of any compromises you are rationalizing that may, little by little, keep you from finishing well.
Earl C Pomeroy is a retired engineer, chaplain, wilderness camping guide, and recreational poet. Writing poetry is how he processes things. He was formerly a member of the Word Weavers International chapter in Boone County KY, but he now lives in Forney, TX, with his daughter. He has self-published a book titled More Than Finest Gold, a paraphrase of Psalm 119 fashioned as an English language acrostic. For most of his married life, he and his wife, Ila Jean, maintained a ministry of rescuing women from the street in their home. They showed the women the love of Jesus and guided them to a new life in Christ. You can contact Earl at www.mountaintopcreatives.com.