So the pastor was called and appraised of the situation. The pastor arrived and began to pray as follows: "O wise and righteous Father, we thank Thee that in Thine wisdom thou didst send this rattlesnake to bite Don. He hasn’t been inside the church in years and has shown little interest in You. We trust that this experience will be a valuable lesson to him and will lead to his genuine repentance. And now, O Father, wilt thou send another rattlesnake to bite Ron, and another to bite Little John, and another really big one to bite the old man. For years we have done everything we know to get them to get serious with Thee. Thank you, God, for rattlesnakes."²
 

While this illustration gave me a giggle, it also reminded me of how often we fail to make God a priority in our lives, yet expect His blessings to pour upon us and our every prayer to be answered. However, the moment we choose to neglect God, disobey His word, and live for our own desires, we step out of God’s protection and risk suffering the natural consequences to our disobedience. It may not be a rattlesnake that gets our attention, but difficult circumstances we encounter are often what we need to remind us of God’s great love. The hard times are often what brings us to our knees and resets our personal relationship with God. If you have strayed from God’s loving arms today, I encourage you to come back and enjoy the blessings that come from a life led by Him. He is good and wants only good for His children, but ultimately it is our decision to abide in Him.