The Devil Made Me Do It
I am so grateful for my fans aka those who follow my daily blogs. It is humbling AND encouraging that God might have used the words I share to give out the get-up and go juice to kick-start your day. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!
One of those fans aka friend sent this text: “You seem to have many great topics for your blog. In case you have an opening for a catchy title – what about something like ‘Unclassified’ or ‘No Longer Classified’. You can think of or be led to different ways to capitalize on the current ‘Classified’ documents.”
Thank you, Friend! I have given little thought to the classified documents found in President Trump’s and President Biden’s possession. Our elected officials must abide by laws and regulations put in place for times like these. They should be held accountable for their lack of responsibility. But lest I sound pious, I must own up to my shortcomings too!
Goodness! It doesn’t take but a glance at social media to see who is in trouble, who was caught in an act, who missed the mark, or who lost their way because of an incident that they’d gladly take a “do-over” if they could.
Name-calling, finger pointing and tale-telling has been around in my life since I was in elementary school. The blame game has been around since Adam tried to put the blame on Eve, and Eve tried to put the blame on the serpent.
Just about everything in my life is UN-classified. I am bold and honest to the bone, and I admit my shortcomings to a fault.
Back in the 1960s/70s, a successful comedian named Flip Wilson coined the phrase “The devil made me do it” in his Emmy Award-winning TV show. Flip would do something outrageous, then grin into the camera and say, “The devil made me do it.” The audience would howl because everyone was in on the joke.
We all knew that Flip was exploiting a bit of theology to avoid taking responsibility for his bad behavior. And we used it. All we had to do was say, “The devil made me do it,” and we got off the hook with our parents, boss, teacher, or friend.
The difference is, it was crazy comedy when Flip did it. But not everyone is kidding about this. If we can blame someone else (or the devil), no one must take responsibility. But we know the enemy of our souls looks for a little crack in our heart’s armor to rush in and “kill, steal and destroy” us and take control of our lives (John 10:10).
Flip’s devil-based theology includes an unstated message: “When I’m a good girl (or boy), we can attribute our good acts directly to us and our sterling character. But if we behave in irresponsible ways, we can just blame it on the devil and not take responsibility for our actions.”
If there’s something we’re ashamed of, wouldn’t it be nice to point across the room and say that guy made me do it. But isn’t it better to say: “I did it. I’m not proud of it, but I did it.”
From the time sin entered this world, humanity’s first instinct has been to seek ways to shift the blame (Genesis 3:12–13). But hold on! We have a loving Father Who loves forgiving us when we own up to our mistakes and ask for forgiveness (1 John 1:9).
I’m not looking for a fall-guy to come along and take the blame for something I did. I purpose to own up to my mistakes. I want to hold myself to standards that God expects. I don’t want to have to question: “Is it okay if I do this or say that?” I want to be that kid that honors her Father simply because HE SAID SO. I want to be holy because HE IS HOLY. And, when I succeed, I will say “God made me do it!”