Aren't We All a Little Bit Toxic?
Photo Credit: Rebecca Trumbull
In reality, all toxic personality types, mine and yours (and don't say you have never had any of these) relate back to the sin of selfishness. Adam and Eve behaved in a selfish manner when they did the one thing God told them not to do.
“Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You[a] shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’” But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise,[b] she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.”
In a manner of speaking, weren't they displaying arrogance (the Egoist - thinking they knew better); weren't they envious (wanting what they couldn't have); didn't they become pretentious (as they could no longer walk with God unless they felt comfortable - see Genesis 3:7-13)? Obviously, toxic personality traits are not supposed to be the norm. Aren't we more civilized than that?
Think about it. Have you ever been jealous of a coworker or friend who got the raise, the marriage proposal, the new car when you didn't? What about the girl at church with the black lipstick and black finger nail polish...weren't you judging her? How about you moms? Aren't you fretting because you cannot control where your teens are or who they are hanging out with? Wives are you snipping at your spouses because he didn't call when he was going to be late at work. And let's not forget the gossiper...."But I am just sharing a prayer request." Let's face reality! We are all toxic. We are nothing but a hot mess without Jesus.
The only way I can be a good friend is to allow Christ to take me Down to the River, so I can leave changed. His living water will run over, under and through completely draining away all the poison that runs in my veins. Then He will fill me up with His pure and holy Spirit. It is then that I will bear sweet fruit for those around me to harvest. No damaging chemicals, no insecticides....just God-natural!