25 NEVER DEFEND YOURSELF

Excuses. Excuses. Excuses. You’ve heard people try to weasel out of a sticky situation with a feeble excuse. It would’ve been better for them and everyone else if they’d just admitted the mistake and gotten on with life.

Excuses in marriage are like a tomato that has a rotten spot. It may look good, but when you pick it up, your finger pokes right through. Yuck!

Defending yourself sets the stage for attempting to excuse your behavior. That’s what an excuse is. Too often, though, the behavior cannot be excused because it was wrong!

Adam was the first recorded excuse-maker in the world when he told God, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate” (Gen. 3:12). Adam’s feeble attempt to justify what he’d done only drove him farther away from God. Likewise, when you try to excuse your actions, you are only driving yourself farther away from your spouse.

Try this: Next time you’re caught in an embarrassing situation, instead of making excuses just tell the truth. Avoid using blaming language and own up to what you’ve done. Stop trying to justify and instead begin to rectify. If you do this, you’ll be amazed at how much easier it is to get past the problem and get on with life.

If God is your sure defense, then why do a poor job defending yourself?

To You, O my Strength, I will sing praises;
For God is my defense, My God of mercy.

Ps. 59:17