BBD 05.11.05 The Backfire Effect
Posted by: wrather <wrather@...>
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The Burning Bush Devotional
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05.11.05
The Backfire Effect
He made a pit and dug it out (a trap), And has fallen into the ditch which
he made. His trouble shall return upon his own head, and his violent dealing
shall come down on his own crown. I will praise the LORD according to His
righteousness, and will sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High. -
Psalm 7:15-17.
Though his hatred is covered by deceit, his wickedness will be revealed
before the assembly. Whoever digs a pit will fall into it, and he who rolls
a stone will have it roll back on him. - Proverbs 26:26-27.
Intr.v. back·fired, back·fir·ing, back·fires meaning to, "produce an
unexpected, undesired result." I believe this is a frequent, unwanted
occurrence in the living of life. Take for example the two brothers in
Nevada who came home to find that a burglar had broken into their apartment.
They did what most people would do; they called the police to report what
had happened. However, when law enforcement arrived to investigate they
found some marijuana, along with psychedelic mushrooms, cocaine, handguns,
an assault rifle, and drug paraphernalia. The call to report a burglary has
backfired on the brothers, as they are now the ones in jail.
In another example, a woman tried to make her adult daughters leave her home
by setting the house on fire. The woman, Belinda, 47 years old, wanted her
daughters to give her money to buy cocaine. A spokesman for the Sheriff's
Office, James Hartman, said that Belinda "had returned home after an
all-night drug binge and insisted they give her money to acquire cocaine."
Instead of forcing her daughters to give her money, she has ended up in
jail. She knows what it is like to have something backfire on you.
The Bible indicates that the backfire effect is exactly what people are up
against who plan evil, who plan to hurt others, and who plan to cheat
others. You see it happen over and over again. Just this last Sunday a man
was arrested in Iowa for trying to sneak into a house by going down their
chimney but instead he got stuck and arrested. I have lost track of the
number of times this happens - it must be almost once a month. I wonder if
anyone ever succeeded in doing that?
Instead of planning to cheat, steal, deceive, or some other evil thing what
should we do? We should act with honesty and integrity with not just our
interests being considered but also the interests of others being considered
as well (Philippians 2:3-4). We should obey the second great commandment
which Jesus says is, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew
22:39)."
To keep things from backfiring on you do what the apostle Paul says in
Ephesians 5:8-10, "For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the
Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all
goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the
Lord." Paul gives us a good example to follow in Act 24:16, "So I strive
always to keep my conscience clear before God and man."
Remember if you set a trap for someone, you may just end up experiencing the
"backfire effect."
Copyright © 2005. Ed Wrather. Permission is given for use of the devotionals
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