I recently heard in the news about a county Sheriff who was found guilty of embezzling department funds to use for personal expenses.  When I heard the name of the Sheriff, I was surprised to hear it was someone I knew from high school.  There is little doubt that this will most likely result in the end of his law enforcement career.    

I was reminded of the words from the Bible which say “we reap what we sow.”  Whatever led him to make this awful decision, he will have to deal with the fall-out from his decision.  But there was a positive twist in this story.  I was encouraged to hear that one of the reasons he chose to admit to his guilt was because he wanted to set a good example for his son on what to do when someone makes a bad decision.  One of the pillars of living a life worth living is making a difference with our lives.  While the decision to embezzle funds was clearly wrong, he made the right decision to come clean and deal positively with whatever punishment is given.  I believe that God allows situations into our lives in order to teach us and help us become better human beings.  As the Bible says, “all things happen for our good.”  The good in this situation won’t be just for a former Sheriff, it will also be for a son who will now be able to learn that with authority comes responsibility and when authority is abused there are consequences.  I just wish that more people in authority could learn this lesson!