My Growth Mindset Journal 304

One day on a bus, I felt a surge of anger towards the driver who, after making a mistake, offered excuses so poor and ridiculous that they only deepened my frustration. Seeing someone evade responsibility, thinking they can brush off their actions with flimsy reasoning, is infuriating. Don’t I often have similar experiences? If I truly examine them, I make the same excuses if I fall short or even sin against the Lord, and they sound just as ridiculous. The Bible also mentions an example of giving absurd excuses in Genesis, chapter 16. Sarai, Abram's wife, couldn't have children; she gave her slave to Abram to have a child through her. Later, Sarai had second thoughts and blamed Abram for easily accepting her offer. As a faithful husband, how helpless was Abram when he faced Sarai's absurdity? The realization humbled me; how often do I present half-hearted justifications for my sins, believing I can absolve myself of the weight of my actions? It made me consider the anger that the Lord must feel in those moments. Yet, despite my shortcomings and the absurdity of my excuses, I am thankful. The Lord, in His infinite mercy, does not unleash His full wrath upon me. Instead, He offers grace and forgiveness.

某天在巴士上，我對司機感到憤怒，他先是做錯了事，不肯承認之餘更給出一個糟糕和荒謬的藉口，他的藉口令我十分沮喪。看到有人逃避責任，認為他們可以用站不住腳的理由擺脫自己的行為，真是令人憤怒。在那一刻，我不禁反思，我不也常有如此經歷嗎？如果我認真審視的話，當我得罪了上帝，我同樣會找一些藉口，這些藉口聽起來同樣荒謬。聖經在創世記第16章也提到了找荒謬藉口的例子。撒萊將自己的女奴夏甲交給亞伯蘭，讓她代替自己為亞伯蘭生一個孩子。後來撒萊改變了主意，並指責亞伯蘭輕易接受她的提議。身為一個忠實的丈夫，亞伯蘭面對撒萊的荒謬指控是何等的無助？這個反思讓我謙卑下來；我是否也常常愚蠢地為自己的罪辯解，相信這樣就能免除自己犯罪的責任？這讓我想到上帝在那一刻一定同樣感受到的憤怒。然而，儘管我有相當的缺點而我的藉口同樣荒謬，我仍然心存感激。上帝以祂無限的仁慈，沒有將祂全部的憤怒彰顯在我身上。相反，他給我恩惠和寬恕。