In the Talmud, it states that the sin God hates the most is someone who lends money to his fellows and then charges them interest.

Personally, I can think of many worse things, and I’m sure you can as well, so why is this sin so terrible in God’s eyes?

The answer is quite profound, and is something we need to watch out for on a daily basis.

When someone sins, they know they have done something wrong, therefore they can repent. Someone who lends money with interest thinks he is actually doing a kind act; he thinks that he is a good guy, so therefore he has no thought of changing his ways. God hates this false sense of goodness and kindness; he wants us to be honest with ourselves about our behaviors and who we are.

How often do we think that the ends justify the means? How often do we rationalize our bad deeds, even fooling ourselves into thinking they are good deeds?

For that matter, how do you know when you are falsely representing yourself, fooling yourself, or rationalizing your behaviors? How do you stay accountable and honest with yourself?

I really try and ask my friends to remind me when I’m just seeking honor and I’m not behaving in a way that is becoming of my values and beliefs.

This week, let’s choose to practice brutal honesty when it comes to our personal goals, and when it comes to our motives, our behaviors, and most importantly, how we treat others.

Accountability, Community, Unconditional Love

Asher

I want to remind all of you that you can hear more on my podcast, Showing Up. We have lots of amazing shows with interesting guests on a variety of personal development topics. It would be great if you could also rate 5 stars, review and subscribe to the show. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/showing-up-with-asher-gottesman/id1489856285y

Posted in Thought of the Week