Break until the New Year.

Hi everyone, I know the postings have been off these past two weeks but I'm going to chalk that up to the holidays :) I'm going to take a break until the New Year. I've been busy and haven't been keeping up with the blog but I'm super excited to see where the Lord is going to take the blog this up coming year. I'm exciting to see how God is going to work in all our lives this year. I pray for safety for this up coming New Years and I pray for the Lord to renuin our excitement for the New Year!!!

The best is yet to come.

Wouldn't you be super excited if someone told you that one day you will be better then you ever thought? I know if someone told me that in 5 years I would be buff I would always have this happiness inside of me knowing that all the hard work of dieting and going to the gym would finally payoff. Imagine knowing that the best is yet to come, shouldn't that bring us peace, joy, and an excitement that should help us to look past our current situations? In 1 John 3:2, John writes to Christians something that encouraged them and this should encourage us too. He writes:
² Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears,we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.
Think about that for a minute, first of all we are children of God which to me is the best part of this verse. But something that blows my mind and gives me hope is the fact that what we will be is not yet known. That's mind-blasting!!! I know I gave the example of being more muscular in the future but this "new" me will be nothing like something so small as more muscles, it will be a transformation that will blow our minds. It says in the last part of this verse that we shall be like him. If you were like me, as soon as you read that you were trying to imagine what exaclty it means to be like him. I believe that no matter how glorious we might picture it, there's no way we could even come close to what it really will be like.
So I don't know where everyone is at in their lives. I don't know exactly how you're feeling or what you maybe going through but no matter what, THE BEST IS YET TO COME! I know life is hard and it's so much easier to just give up and have no hope. But I'm here to tell you that there is a hope that you can hold onto and this hope will never fail you and this hope is eternal!
So today I pray that God would restore this hope to us. I pray that we would understand that this hope has never left us but that we leave that hope. I pray for those of us that choose worry and stress instead of hope that we would come back to the hope we have in Jesus. I pray for strength and faith for us to let God be God.

Don't settle for less.

So as I wrapped up Proverbs today this last Proverb really didn't stick out to me as the other ones did. Pretty much what stood out to me was how bad I want that wife this king was talking about. The way he described her made it seem like she was the perfect girl. After reading that I started to think that there's no way that's possible. I know that view was formed from what I call my unsuccessful dating life:-) but as I started to think about all that stuff and the wife I wanted I thought why not? Why couldn't that happen to me? I believe that's how the Lord spoke to me today was saying to me why not you Gabe? It's funny how easy I forget the promises the Lord has for us. In Psalm 37:4 it says:
Take delight in the LORD,and he will give you the desires of your heart.What's so crazy about that is I say I believe that but when it comes down to thinking that it's for me then I start to doubt it. I know that it's because I go back to all the failed relationships but that doesn't mean that God isn't going to give me the desires of my heart. So many times we always look back to what went wrong or how we screwed something up and based on that, that's how we come to our conclusions that these desires of our hearts will never be fulfilled. Now I know that looking foward to marriage, finishing school, getting through hard and trying times in your life are things that consume our minds. I feel that instead of spending so much time and so much effort trying to fix these things we should know that God is at work and will take care of all these things as long as we put all our hope and faith in him.
Now the reason why the title is Don't settle for less is because I feel that we do that a lot. When it comes to all those things I listed off we just get so tired of waiting that when the slightest thing changes or when a perosn comes into your life we just say ok this is good enough. When I read Psalm 37:4 it's says the desires of my heart, not things that are close or things that I could get use to. Our God is a great and faithful God and because of that we don't have to settle for anything less then our hearts desires.
So my prayer for us today is that we wouldn't settle for anything less then our hearts desires. I pray that God would give us the courage to trust him to do this. I pray for strength and faith for us to let God be God.

It's ok to just talk with God.

Proverbs 30 was a Porverb that I'm not sure if I've read before or just don't remember it, but this Proverb reminded me of something that I love to do but it's something that I also forget to do, that's just talking with God. This is not a Proverb of Solomon, this is a saying of Agur. We don't really know who this guy is but one things for sure his saying made the Bible so I'm sure it's in there for a reason. As I was reading this I saw the way he would talk to God, it reminded me of how I would talk to a friend. He starts off by saying that he's weary, then he talks about things that are too amazing for him, and also just points our observations that he's made. Now I know that this doesn't sound like praying, well I believe that's because it's not. We tend to think that praying is talking to God, which is true but when we pray we are usually giving requests, concerns, needs, and all those other things. I'm not here to say that we shouldn't do that because Jesus is the only one who can do all those things and therefore He's the only one we should go to. What I'm talking about here is just talking, having a conversation with God. We know that Jesus is our King and Savior but He's also our friend. Jesus is a friend like no other. We might have really close friends that we would go to for anything and everything but the problem with those friends are that they are flawed human beings. They will fail you and let you down but Jesus will never do that to you.
I believe that we should pray all the time and that we need to submit our requests to God. I also think that it's super important to just talk with Jesus. Loving Jesus isn't a religion, it's a relationship and communication is a big part of a relationship. Some might think that Jesus doesn't want to hear all about your problems but the truth is He does. Not because they are greater then anyone's but because He loves you and cares for you. You might ask yourself why does God need to hear about our problems if He already knows what we are going through? Good questions, and the only answer I can come up with is He loves you and cares for you. Here's something I want to close with, one night my professor was talking about this subject and he asked us when was the last time we told God how we felt? When I was thinking about that I thought that God knows how I feel but then I couldn't remember the last time I told Him exactly how I felt. So I did and there was this peace that I experienced that I believe only could have happened because I was in communication with Jesus.
So my prayer for us today is that we would take some time to just talk with Jesus. I pray against any fears or concerns that might keep us away from doing so. I pray that God would meet you exactly where you need to be met. I pray for strength and faith for us to let God be God.

Fabulous Friday.

So today is a quick entry, it's sparked by things that I don't understand that's going on in my life and also a lot of people that I've talked with who don't understand why things are happening to them. Well here's my answer for all our questions to why these things are happening to us whether it be family problems, financial issues, relationship issue, health, and all those things we just can't under why, I have no idea. I really wish I could give everyone the answers they are looking for, but here's one thing that I've learned and I'm so thankful for I AM NOT GOD! I don't why these things happen, it maybe a test, attack, or it just might be something we've done but one thing I know and hold onto is that God is in control over everything. I also know that no matter what, God can turn any situation around no matter how big or small we might think it is. Here's something that helps me, I realize that these things are something that I can't control so I've stop trying to control them. I say that I believe that God will take care of everything yet I still like to try and take care of them all on my own. Here's a way to make today and even everyday a fabulous day, cast all your cares on Jesus and completely release it to him and let him take care of it. Stop trying to fix things that you have no power to, I know it's hard but it's better then worrying and stressing about all those things.
So my prayer for us today is that we release all our fears, stresses, and all that other junk that keeps us down. I pray for safety over the weekend. I pray for strenght and faith for us to let God be God. Have a great weekend!

Don't be snared.

I've touched on the subject about blaming the wrong person or giving the wrong person credit for something they do not deserve. I said that sometimes I believe we blame God for things that He didn't do and we give the devil too much credit sometimes. The one thing that has really been worked on in my life is that instead of blaming God or the devil for anything bad that happens to me, I now think about if I'm the one the casued this. Many times I feel that it isn't God putting us through hard times or that it's the devils fault that we go through bad things. I'm not saying that those things don't happen because I believe they do, but after reading verse 6 in Proverbs 29 my view that I have on this matter was strengthened. Proverbs 29:6 says:
An evil man is snared by his own sin, but a righteous one can sing and be glad.
I don't believe this verse is saying that if bad things happen to you it's because you are evil. I do believe that our sin can keep us ensnared in those hard struggles and situations that we might find ourselves in. When I think of this I think about a friend that I have that is constantly surrounded by drama. When I first met this person and starting talking to them about this I just thought that this person just had bad luck. But the more I got to know this person I realized that this person wasn't unlucky, this person was surrounded by drama because they put themselves in the drama. This might be coming out of left field but that how I see this. Some many times we wonder why these things happen to us but we never stop and analyze our lives. We want God to step in and fix everything but we aren't walking righteously. Remember what I talked about yestarday, our prayers could be detestable. Also what I've been learning lately is that if I want all these blessings I need to do my part.
Now I'm not saying that bad things always happen to people because they are evil sinners, even though we all are. But I'm just saying that we need to always make sure that we are walking righteous with God and making sure we are keeping our ends of the deal up. I know the Lord tests and does things through hard situtation, but maybe a lot of those things could be avoided if we just tried to stop sinning?
So my prayer for us today is that we would repent of our sinful ways and make a stand to walk righteously for Jesus. I pray for the discernment and strength to do that. I pray for strength and faith for us to let God be God.

Is God hearing you?

Have you ever felt like God wasn't hearing your prayers? Kind of feel like He's not listening you? Here's a question I have for you after reading Proverbs 28 today; Would God ever not listen to your prayers? Now I'm not going to say yes or no because I don't know for sure if that's the case. After reading Proverbs 28:9 my view on that idea of God not listening is formed. Look what it says:
If anyone turns a deaf ear to the law, even his prayers are detestable. (Prov. 28:9)
I've never thought of my prayers ever being detestable, to be honest that's kind of a scary thougt. Now I don't believe that this is only talking about the laws that our governments put in place, I believe that it's God's laws that we are suppose to make sure we keep. I like to tell people that God loves to bless us and He's there to provide for what you need but I tell them that we need to keep our end of the deal up. All throughout Proverbs we see that there are tons of promises that we can hold onto but there's always something that we need to do in order to receive them. That's how I read this Proverb, God will hear our prayers as long as we keep his instructions. I'm not here to say that if we sin or mess up that God isn't going to listen to you, but I do believe if we continue to live in sin and never change those things in our lives then our prayers become detestable to God. I like the way the commentator in my Bible puts it; God does not listen to our prayers if we intend to go back to our sin as soon as we get off our knees.
The great thing about our God is that even though you might be in sin and haven't been serving the Lord He is there just waiting for you to ask Him to forgive you. It's not too late, and there's nothing that you could do that would keep you from the love of God. So my prayer for us today is that we would make a choice to follow God's laws. I pray for anyone one who might be discouraged because they feel that God isn't listening to their prayers I pray that they would analyze their lives to see if there's anything that would keep God from hearing their prayers. I pray for discrenment for us to realize that it isn't God that's not there but it's the sin in our lives that would keep us from him. I pray for strength and faith for us to let God be God.

What's your reflection?

Ever read the Bible and just got smacked upside the head by it? Those awesome but also convicting time when you read a scripture and you know that it's something that you need to work on. Well today as I was reading Proverbs 27:19 that happen. Here's what it says:
As water reflcets a face, so a man's heart reflects the man. (Prov. 27:19)
Talk about huge smack in the face. After reading that I started to think how I was at work this morning. Was I loving, did I acknowledge people, did I smile, did I show compassion the way Jesus would? I could answer yes to some of those questions but I couldn't to all of them. I think back to this morning when I didn't introduce myself to the new people on my route or how I avoided certain people because they bug me. If I'm not nice to people or compassionate to others then how will people ever see the love of Christ that is in me? I've blogged before about be ambassadors of Christ but how good are we doing if we walk around all day looking mad and bothered all day? I'm not here today to make you feel bad if you aren't always super excited to go to work or school, let's be real there are probably other places we would love to be. But I do think that it's super important to check our attitudes and the way we carry oursleves in our everyday lives. Remember we are representing the one who lives inside of us but if our lives tell a different story then what makes you think that the people who don't know Jesus want any part of what we got? I know life is hard at times and things don't always go the way we want them to. Just remember that we serve a loving God that is always there for you and that our hope and future is eternal. So let's make sure we show that to the people around us.
So my prayer for us today is that our lives would reflect that of who we serve, Jesus. I pray that our hearts would be filled with compassion and love for those around us. I pray for the strength to show the love of Jesus especially when we don't want to. I pray for strength and faith for us to let God be God.

Are you a fool?

Would you consider yourself a fool? I'm pretty sure that most of us wouldn't call ourselves fools or like it if someone called us a fool. Here's how a fool is defined by dictionary.com; a silly or stupid person; a person who lacks judgment or sense. After reading that I was like there's no way I was a fool. But then as I read Proverbs 26 today my answer changed. In verse 11 it says: As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his folly. I know that's a gross picture but I believe that illustration really brings it home. I think how stupid a dog must be to return to what he just threw up, but are we really any different? If you were honest with yourself wouldn't you say that you've return to things that you know are wrong, things that God has asked us to stay away from? I don't believe that all those things that we would return to are all sinful things. It could be a certain person you like, a job you're in, or maybe even family. We so many times return to the sinful things that our flesh desire but we also keep going back to things that bring us pain/heart break. I'll be honest with you, I've been a fool lately. 
I didn't blog today with the intention of calling people fools today but this really spoke to me today. Now instead of recognizing if we have been fools lately and either getting mad or bummed if you have been, God also gave me a sense of encouragement. Read 2 Corinthians 5:17. If you are like me and realize that you've been a fool lately there's hope for us. We don't have to be like this forever. That's what I love about the Bible, we have God's living and breathing word that shines a light on the areas of our lives that we need help in and it always speaks to us the way we need. I don't believe God was telling me that "Gabe you're a fool and I'm mad at you"! I believe it was more like "Gabe you're acting a little foolish right now, how about you let me help you get out of this funk you're going through and let's get back to living life to the fullest". I don't think that was just an ecouragement for me, it's for anyone who feels like they are just terrible because of the choices they've made and that there's no hope in store for them. Jesus died for all of us and because of that we can have forgiveness and we can have a relationship with God, no matter what we've done.
So my prayer for us today is that God would shine his light on the areas in our lives that we've been acting like fools. I pray that God would give us the discernment and strength to help us in this area of our lives. I pray for faith and stregth for us to let God be God.

Fabulous Friday.

Oh, how He loves us, oh, oh how he loves us... These are some lyrics from the song How He Loves sung by The David Crowder Band. This song or should I say version of this song is one of my favorite songs of all time. What I love about this song is that there is so much truth in this song. What I love about this song is this is a song that talks about how He loves us and not the other way around. Most of the songs we sing in church are songs that talk about how we love Him and worship Him and that's great because He is worthy of praises. When I listen to this song I can't help but feel better about myself and life in general. To know that Jesus loves me that much is incredible. We read that He loves us but to hear it in a song, and especially the lyrics that were choosen to describe his love is mind blasting! Here's some lyrics that should blast your mind:

He is jealous for me- The God of this universe loves us so much that he is jealous if we chose to love anything else more then him. I know that might sound stalkerish but to me it's so incredible that the God of all cares that much for us that he would even take the time to be jealous for us. 
We are His portion and He is our prize- Is that correct? Shouldn't it be, He is our portion and He is our prize? Yes it should because we don't deserve to be His portion, but that once again speaks to the greatness of his love for us.  
So why talk about this? Well the title of today is Fabulous Friday and I couldn't think of a better way to have a more Fabulous Friday then walking all day in the Lord's love for you. There's an unbelievable peace and joy that comes with knowing just how much Jesus loves us. Of course the true way to find out how much He loves us it to search His word and find out all He's done:-) Things might be hard or not going the way you might want them to be going, walk today knowing that you are loved by Jesus. Here's how the song talks about this idea:

I don't have time to maintain these regrets when I think about... the way... that He loves us! 

So My prayer for us today is that we walk in the love of God. I pray that no matter what we face today or this weekend that we always remember that He loves us. I pray for those who think that they could never be loved this for those thoughts to be removed in the name of Jesus! I pray for blessing for today and for protection for this weekend. I pray for strength and fatith for us to continue to let God be God. Have a great weekend!

So yestarday I talked about how we shouldn't envy those things that we want that unbelievers have. We know that it's because unlike the unbelievers we have a hope that can't be taken away from us. After reading Proverbs 24 a new question came to me. If we see that an unbeliever's life (all those things that we are in envy of) starts to fall apart, how should we feel about that? Do you think to yourself; well they had that coming to them, or of course that would happen to them because they don't follow Jesus. I'll be real with you guys even though I feel bad that I 've ever thought like this, I knew someone that this happend to and my thought was God took it away from you because your in sin and it was only a matter of time before it happend to you. Anyone think that these thoughts are ok? Looking back and especially after reading today, I feel super crappy that I would think like this. Here's one of Solomon's wise sayings that covers this topic:
 ¹⁷ Do not gloat when your enemy falls;
   when they stumble, do not let your heart rejoice,
¹⁸ or the LORD will see and disapprove
   and turn his wrath away from them. (Proverbs 24: 17-18)
After reading this we should obviously realize that rejoicing when they fall or stumble isn't showing God's love at all. But that's not what stood out to me. Verse 18 to me seems like a warning to us. Even though it doesn't say who he will turn his wrath to I almost feel like that it's probably heading towards those who's hearts rejoice when they fall.(That's just what I feel in my spirit) I don't know about you but I don't want to be happy when an unbeliever falls. We've been called to represent Jesus and I know that he wouldn't show love that way. After reading about how Jesus healed people, whether sickness or casting out demons, I would bet that Jesus wouldn't rejoice when unbelievers fall. Remeber this as Jesus was hanging on the cross he ask the Father to forgive the people because they didn't know what they were doing, do you see anywhere in that statement where there would be a heart filled with joy/happiness when someone falls or stumbles? 
I'm not here to call you out or say that you're a terrible person if you think this way. I just hope and pray that we would have a change of heart when it comes to this area of loving God's people, whether they believe in him or not. So my prayer for us today is that we would be filled with the love and compassion that Jesus has. I pray that instead of being happy when people fall that we would be moved to love on them and lift them up in prayer. I pray for strenght and faith for us to continue to let God be God.

Have you ever been jealous at all the success you see unbelievers have that you don't? Have you ever thought, why do they get blessed even though they don't serve the Lord? After thinking like that do you ever just ask God why them and not you? I'm so guilty of this, I do this all the time. Is this wrong? I don't have the authority to say if this is right or wrong but I want to share with you how I view this. I believe that there is a fine line that we can walk in this area that could make this right or wrong. I don't believe it's wrong to want some of those blessings that people around you get. What I mean by that is wanting to have a house of your own, a wife/husband, maybe even a better job, I believe is ok. Where we can go wrong is when we start to harbor bitterness and envy. I'll share an example with you that I've asked the Lord to help me with. I have a  friend who doesn't serve the Lord and just live life the way they want to. This friend has things that are desires of my heart. My friend is married, has a family, and has a brand new house. As I saw all these things just falling into place for my friend I started to get bitter and upset and I started to ask the question why him and not me? As I started thinking like this I started to get convicted and thought to myself is this how Jesus would love my friend? Then I thought to myself, instead of being jealous of the blessings that my friend received I should pray for the Lord to continue to bless my friend. How selfish is it to only pray blessings for someone when they are less fortunate then you?
What the Lord spoke to me in this area of my life is what Solomon wrote in Proverbs 23:17-18:
¹⁷ Do not let your heart envy sinners,
   but always be zealous for the fear of the LORD.
¹⁸ There is surely a future hope for you,
   and your hope will not be cut off.
Instead of being jealous of my friend I need to focus on the Lord and grab a hold of the fact that I have a hope that will not be cut off. I'm not saying that since my friend doesn't serve the Lord that everything he has is going to be taken away, but unlike my friend my hope is in Jesus and with that comes a future of joy that nothing could ever take away. These things that we desire like marriage, family, and jobs, even though are good things they are just temporal and not eternal. I'm not saying that we shouldn't want or strive to get those things but I'm just saying that they aren't the end all be all. Unless Jesus is the center of our lives these things that our hearts desire will never be enough.  
My prayer for us today is that we wouldn't allow bitterness or anger to fill our hearts in this area. I pray that the Lord would replace those feelings and thoughts with his love. I pray that we wouldn't be so consumed with the desires of our hearts and that Jesus would be our main desire. I pray for strength and faith for us to continue to let God be God.

Get lost in Jesus!!!

This blog entry is a product of a heavy heart. At the end of Proverbs 22 Solomon start to write what they title Thirty Sayings of the Wise. Now I'm not saying that I'm wise or have the authority to give a wise saying, but here's a saying that I've been telling people and a saying that I've been living my life by; GET LOST IN JESUS! Durning these past four months or so I've been dealing with areas of my life that God has been refining and I'm so thankful for that. During this time I've just been getting lost in Jesus. Now that things aren't as bad as they were, the idea of getting lost in Jesus is still in my mind but it's something that I haven't been doing as much as I was before. How easy we forget the things, or in this case the person who has brought us out of our struggles and is always there to take care of us. I was reminded of this because yestarday and today was a day that I just started to question why God would allow things to happen. First of all my friend Trevor's dad passed away yestarday, my friend in class his dad is in critical condition, and this morning I got a message from my best friend/brother that our dad(he's like a second father to me) is in the hospital with atrial fib(a heart condition). As all this started to sink in I started to think about how my family is in perfect health but we are so torn apart. I started to wonder why God is doing this or allowing these things to happen. The more I think about this, the more upset and confused I get. 
When I start to do this I think about the way Job got the smack down by God, the where were you scolding. Instead of questioning God's motives and trying to figure out the answers that God only knows, I needed to just get lost in Jesus. We don't get lost in Jesus to forget about all the bad things that are happening around us, we get lost in Jesus because by doing so we get reminded of how great he is and how he has everything in control.  
I want to end with this, getting lost in Jesus isn't something that we automatically have this is something that we need to do. Getting lost in Jesus doesn't mean that all your problems will just go away. But by getting lost in Jesus we have a new sense of comfort and peace because the one with power over all is the one that is going to be the one that is going to handle everything for you. Like I always say and have been reading about in Proverbs, we need to keep our end of the deal up(walking in righteousness).
So my prayer for us today is that we get lost in Jesus! I pray that instead of getting lost and worrying about all the stuff around us that we would focus on our heavenly father and we would let him work everything out for his glory. I pray for strength and faith for us to continue to let God be God.

What are you pursuing?

Hi everyone, sorry I haven't posted anything these last 4 days, I was in Arkansas, yes I said Arkansas:-) But it's good to be back. So as I was reading chapter 21 of Proverbs and a sharp contrast stood out to me today. Solomon talks about two types of people, one who pursues righteousness and one who pursues pleasures/earthly things. Here's how Solomon puts it:
¹⁷ Whoever loves pleasure will become poor;
   whoever loves wine and olive oil will never be rich.
²¹ Whoever pursues righteousness and love
   finds life, prosperity^[c] and honor.
After reading these two verses I want to be the one who pursues righteousness and love but I had to step back and ask myself, which one am I? I can honestly say that this is probably the biggest thing that the Lord has been working on me in this season of my life. In verse 17 this is someone who pursues pleasures and material things. I'm not saying that it's a bad thing to want these types of things but we need to be careful about how much energy we put into getting these things and if we put these things in God's spot. One desire of my heart is to get married and have a family. I've always wanted this since I could remember. As I started getting older I started to add this unnecessary pressure on myself to make this happen. Once again I'm not saying that wanting to get married is a bad thing, but in my case I wanted this more then anything. I put my pursue of this before God and his plans for my life. I always felt that once I get married and all that good stuff then life would be great and everything would be great. But what I've found out in this season of my life is I don't need anything except God to make life great. All I want is to pursue righteousness and love, and by doing this I will find life, prosperity and honor. Even though those other things are good things they will never fully satisfy my hearts desire. Only Jesus can do that.
Remember I'm not telling you that you can't desire those things because I still desire those things. I'm just saying that we need to make sure our priorites are to love the Lord our God with all our hearts, souls, and strength, pursue righteouness and love and let God take care of all that other stuff. Here's something to hold on to:
 ³³ But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.(Matt.6:33)
In this chapter of Matthew Jesus is telling us not to worry about the stresses of life because our heavenly father will take care of us as long as we keep our ends of the deal up.
So my prayer for us today is that we pursue righteousness and love and not the pleasures of this earth. I pray that our focus would be on God and that we would trust him with all our hopes, dreams, and our futures. I pray for strength and faith for us to continue to let God be God.

Make sure you're blaming the right person.

I've touched on this subject before but after reading Proverbs 19 today this subject came back into play. The idea of putting the blame or another way you can look at it is giving undeserved credit to someone or something. Are you blaming the right person? Who's getting credit for something that they do not deserve? When it comes to this topic I get reminded of the responses people give or tell themselves when it comes to trials and hard seasons in their lives. So many times we think because we are going through a rough patch of life that it's either God testing us or the devil is attacking us. I'm not saying that doesn't happen, but many times we might be giving the credit or blame to the wrong person and we forget to blame the person who's probably the one to blame, us. The reason why I feel this way is because this is the journey that I've been on and after reading today it's only strengthen my belief in this thought. Solomon puts it like this:
 ³ A person’s own folly leads to their ruin,
   yet their heart rages against the LORD. (Prov. 19:3)
Now I know that the Bible talks about being tested by God and that when we suffer for God our character is being built (Rom.5), but that doesn't mean that every little trial that comes our way is a test from God. I know I'm guilty of this. Also we like to say that we are under attack from satan. Now I know that satan does attack us but he's not as strong as we make him out to be. He can't attack you unless God allows him to,(Job) and he can't be everywhere attacking people at the same time, he's not omnipresent like our God! Solomon pretty much says that it's our own folly that leads to our ruin.
Recognizing that God isn't always to blame is very important. The reason for this, I believe is because when we do this we are attacking/bashing the character of God. Our God is the God of love and compassion and we are his children who he loves and takes care of. If we always blame God for "putting" us through these so called tests we will start to think that he's just a cruel God that just wants to show his love by discipline and not compassion. Even though God will allow us to be disciplined I believe he would rather show us his love by compassion and blessings, not trials and hardships.
I want to close with this, we need to start taking blame and stop blaming God, also we need to stop giving credit to the devil. I believe we do this because it's a lot easier to blame someone then to take responsibility for our own actions. Many times we aren't sure why things are happening the way they are but that's ok. What I mean by this is we waist so much time worrying about why things are the way they are instead of having faith and trusting that God is at work. It's not our job to take care of everything, that's our Heavenly Father's job :)
So my prayer for us today is that we repent if we are always blaming God for all our hardships. I pray that we would release any anger or bitterness that we might have against God. I pray that God would give us the discernment to recognize who get's the blame or credit for things that happen in our lives. I pray for strength and faith for us to continue to let God be God!