Smoke Screen

Moreover, from the time that I was appointed to be their governor in the land of Judah, from the twentieth year to the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes the king, twelve years, neither I nor my brothers ate the food allowance of the governor. The former governors who were before me laid heavy burdens on the people and took from them for their daily ration forty shekels of silver. Even their servants lorded it over the people. But I did not do so, because of the fear of God.
Nehemiah 5:14-15 (ESV)
 
Does the fear of the Lord motivate me? Would I pass up something to which I am entitled? Would I pass up something that others have taken, that others have "deserved," and that I also "deserve," for the sake of the people I am serving and my love for God?
 
It is effortless to get into the mind frame of entitlement. We can even look at it through the lens of teaching others to be responsible for their behavior and make it about us. Often, it's a "smoke screen," and I am only concerned with myself.



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