tempted.

james 1:13-14

"when tempted, no one should say, 'God is tempting me.' for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed."

often when we are struggling, we blame God for our suffering. but this verse tells us that it is not God tempting us but our own sinful desires. when things go wrong in the world, we ask God why so many things are wrong because we think it is His doing. when i struggle, i usually shift the blame towards God but reading this verse, i realize that own sinful desires are the reason why i suffer. not only do we blame God, but we blame others for our mistakes often. i think it's so hard to admit that i'm wrong. it's one of the hardest things to do, even if i know i'm wrong. i think humbling ourselves enough to admit that we're wrong is something that we do not do easily. i'm not sure the reason why other people don't like to do it, but the reason why i don't like confessing my mistakes is because i'm afraid of the consequences, whether it be being scolded or deemed unreliable. perhaps that fear of consequence is also a part of our sin?