Your Gift Doesn’t Destroy You

A statement in the second line caught my attention and got me thinking if that was the case. Have you seen it? Don’t worry, I’ll save you time: “Samson’s gift finally destroyed him…”

Really, was Samson destroyed by his gift? Perhaps some people see it this way, just as the person who wrote the devotional, but I see it differently. Samson was destroyed by his lack of self-control and inability to tame his desires.

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Samson’s gift was a blessing and not a curse. He had the strength of more than a thousand men combined – as the Scriptures recorded – and the purpose of the gift was clearly defined. The gift was channeled properly, for the most part, as Samson became the defender of the people of Israel against their adversaries.

In my opinion, what destroyed Samson were:

• He became power drunk and intoxicated by his achievements. He wouldn’t listen to his parents nor did he seek counsel.
• Lust and lack of self-control got the better part of him. A man without self-control is like a city broken into and left without walls – Proverbs 25:28.
• He forgot who he was as a vessel to be used by God, and forgot that it was not of his own making that he had all he had.
• He lost connection with God and pride took over. Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall – Proverbs 16:18.

You could think of more reasons that led to Samson’s fall from grace, but I think these are what brought him to his knees. To say his gifts destroyed him would be misplaced.

I am highlighting this point to awaken your consciousness in vetting and filtering what you consume whether it’s content of faith, psychology, or any theme. By consume I mean what you see, read, and hear.

It is easy to be misled by motivational messages. It takes a logical and knowledgeable mind with a sharpened ability to think, doubt, and question to spot errors and misinterpretations in messages and refuse to buy the idea being sold.

Having a logical and knowledgeable mind doesn’t contradict having faith. Besides, how do you distinguish falsehood from credible messages without knowledge and reasoning?

When the Scripture says “people are destroyed for lack of knowledge” (Hosea 4:6), those who are knowledgeable could also be destroyed if they don’t use the knowledge as and when it should be used.

Be vigilant, for there’s so much information in the world that we often get carried away with charming words and how they are said and presented, and we do not know when we imbibe falsehood along the way.

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You could study the life of Samson and gain several fresh perspectives on how his journey could help you make better decisions in your life. It is meaningful to say his inability to manage his gift led to his downfall, but a blanket statement that his gift destroyed him without context, now, that is a notion you want to critically analyze.

Your talent or gift doesn’t destroy you, instead, it brings you among great men when it is sharpened and used wisely. Let’s remove this part from the devotional, “Samson’s gift finally destroyed him, but he never lost it”, and the rest should inspire you to stir up the gift that is within you and live to the fullest of your capacity as God intends.