Entitlement.
When I think upon this word, I begin to filtrate through negative thoughts such as selfishness, greed, and my personal thoughts of what I deserve. I think of how many times I have been disappointment because I thought I earned something and never got it.
I think of how I have felt so entitled to my own life and chose what I want to do, when I do it, and how I do it.
I think of the times I have felt entitled to sin because of pain that I went through.
I think of the times I felt entitled to talk about others because they talked about me.
I think about the times I felt entitled to my money because after all, I’m the one who worked so hard to get it.
I think of the times I justified not extending forgiveness because I felt entitled to an apology that never was heard.
I think of times that I had a bad day and can justify buying myself a new outfit because I felt entitled to a great day.
A multiple of things and examples fill my head as I sit here and think of this subject. Typically, when you feel entitled you are making everything self-centered and all about you.
Entitlement is often times associated with things that don’t necessarily belong to you or things that aren’t best for you; however, recently the Lord has been showing me the possible sense of entitlement to His promises, His dreams, and His plans for my life.
It started with words spoken over me about a particular thing regarding my future. The fire was fed more and more as months continued and confirmation kept flooding in through different people – some I knew and some I didn’t. It only became more real, when I felt the Lord lay it upon my heart as well. It appeared and still appears that this is a promise from God.
A promise that I have held on to.
A promise that I have stood in faith for.
A promise of God that I have confidently spoken to others about.
A promise of God that I received as my own.
A promise of God that I fully believe to be true.
This month, I found this promise occupying so much of my mind space to the point I was afraid of being disappointed so I didn’t know if I could continue to press into it. I found myself doubting, questioning, and wondering when, why, where and especially how? My circumstances, in which I had no control over, didn’t appear to be taking steps in the right direction. And it was then that I began to question the Lord’s faithfulness with, “But God, You promised.” I soon realized that I not only accepted these promises but I felt entitled, or as urban dictionary puts it: An attitude, demeanor, or air of rudeness, ingraciousness, or combativeness, especially when making excessive demands for service, to them.
In the middle of the month I decided that I would start in Genesis and read the whole bible by the end of my race. As these thoughts were captivating my every thought, I got to the part in my readings about Abraham and Isaac. This story I have always heard, but as I took in the words on the page, I obtained a new perspective on the story and it hit me in a way that was appropriate for my current struggle.
You see, Abraham had always wanted a son, his own son. The Lord promised him a son, whom became known as Isaac. The Lord placed this desire in Abraham. His son was a fulfillment of His calling, His God-given desire, and spoken promise.
Abraham was then asked to lay before the Lord, on the altar, something the Lord had given and promised Him, his very own son.
In my mind, I caught myself thinking, “God, you GAVE that to Abraham – Not only that you PROMISED that to Abraham. And further more, that was YOUR plan for Abraham. There is nothing wrong with Him having a son, that was your doing. And now you’re asking for it back?”
Many times when we think of sacrificing things and putting them on the altar for the Lord, we immediately think of bad things. For instance, come lay your sins, struggles, worries, addictions, fears, bad habits, anger, greed, and everything that isn’t Godly; however it’s not talked about much to lay down even the Godly things before the Lord. It makes little sense in human understanding to lay something down that the Lord gave to you, that is of Him.
But in this story, we see a great demonstration of the Lord asking Abraham for His promise. Abraham, during this time could’ve called God an Indian-giver. He could’ve been upset and bitter. He could’ve acted out of entitlement and refused to lay it on the altar. But instead, what a great example He was in His obedience to trust God.
We know that in the end the Lord provided a ram for the sacrifice, so He didn’t have to kill his own son. When God asks us to surrender to Him, he doesn’t mean just the bad stuff, he means EVERYTHING – to which includes the things of Him. In that there will be times where He spares those things, but what if He didn’t? Do we trust God enough with our life that even in the midst of sacrifice and surrender, we know that He is faithful to fulfill His promises? It may not look like we think it should, but that doesn’t change the fact that He is faithful to His word.
Please don’t read this blog and think that I am saying that we shouldn’t accept and believe in the promises that God has given to us because that is not at all at what I am saying. I am addressing the condition of our heart in which we receive the promises that He speaks to us. There is a way to accept a promise and not feel entitled it. Just like there is a way to accept salvation and not feel entitled to it. A sense of entitlement is a heart issue in which I think many people struggle with and don’t realize the degree at which they do.
Ultimately, we are entitled to nothing, but anything we do receive is a blessing from above. We aren’t entitled to forgiveness. We aren’t entitled to our money. We aren’t entitled to a husband, big house, or a job. We aren’t entitled to our love, our time, or our belongings – For everything in heaven and earth belongs to our Father and should be stewarded in a way that is pleasing to Him and lead by Him – on the altar, in His hands rather than our own.
It was in Abraham’s obedience that the Lord responded in Genesis 22:16,
“Because you have obeyed me and have not withheld even your son, your only son, I swear by my own name that I will certainly bless you. I will multiply your descendants beyond number, like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will conquer the cities of their enemies. And through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed- all because you have obeyed me.”
Wow, what an incredible thing. Had Abraham refused to put His dream, His inheritance, His promise, His son, Isaac, on the altar, it would’ve not only affected him, but those of all nations. You’re obedience matters and affects those around you. Entitlement robs us of our ability to be obedient, and in disobedience we are robbed of a greater blessing.
My question today is what do you feel entitled to?
A good way to answer this question is to ask yourself what are you disappointed about or what are you frustrated about? It could seriously be anything – Good and bad.
In that, I pray that you find courage to stop where you are, build an altar before the Lord and lay it down. Maybe He will spare the knife and maybe He won’t. That’s not up to you, but what is up to you is how you will choose to respond to this situation – To feel entitled or to trust the Lord.
