The Ripples of Rottenness

So after Micah's Mama's Drama of yesterday, how far did the ripple effects of her confusion and lack of commitment go?

The ripples of her rottenness reached her family and her nation. Micah wanted God's blessing, but he went about it his own way, not God's way. Though he was meant to be following God and representing Him to the surrounding people, Micah was caught up in doing "whatever seemed right" in his own eyes. It's not hard to see why, when we realize his mother set a standard of reacting impulsively, rewarding sin, and rejecting God. Confusion is one legacy easy to pass on. 


Chapter 17 of Judges tells how the tribe of Dan came pillaging to Micah's house. They not only took the idol and images Micah and his mother had made, they also took the pseudo-priest with them, so they could come up with worship their way. Did I mention that the pseudo-priest was a descendant of Moses? Even the line of Moses was corrupted by the implanting of the evil.  


Poor Micah. He and his mom set themselves up for disaster, but "When Micah saw that there were too many of them for him to attack, he turned around and went home" (v.26b). He was very aware that he had "nothing left."


That's not the end of the story for Micah's Mama's influence. Her son and family were empty handed, but their idols were carried on to a town known as Laish, a town the men of the tribe of Dan destroyed and then rebuilt for themselves. Rejecting their God, the tribe with Micah's blemished treasures set up the idol and created a place of worship that was "right in their own eyes."  


The idolatry, born when a mixed up mother had an image made to honor her son, became the centerpiece of a whole tribe's tainted worship for centuries. The apostasy grew, until King Jeroboam chose the perverted site, then called "Dan," to be the site for placement of none other than ... a golden calf.


Did Micah's Mama ever imagine that her confusion would spawn such corruption that it would be passed on to a whole tribe ... to infect a nation ... to invite the wrath of God? I wonder how the story would've been different if Mama would've helped Micah learn the error of his ways, decided to exalt God instead of her wayward boy, and used the money for good instead of evil.


A mama has such potential for influence ... good or bad.  God help us to know His Word and walk with Him, so we won't fall into the confusion and lack of commitment that leads to being a Rotten Mama. 

• When sin is in your household, are you more likely to hold your child accountable or soften the consequences? 
• How would your children know that you honor the Lord first in your life?
• Do you feel confused about who God is?
• How committed are you to being a godly mama?