Isolationism Not Sound Judgment

Reading:  Proverbs 16 -   19
My Verse:  "Whoever isolates himself seeks his own desire,
                        he breaks out against all sound judgement" (Proverbs 18:1).

LORD God, You did not create us to be hermits!  You created us to be in fellowship with You and with each other.  You stated that when You created us.  "It is not good for man to be alone" (Genesis 2:18).

Many studies have been done that show the importance of friendship, companionship to our health.  They show that married people tend to live longer.  A Leonard Syme, of the University of California did a study on the importance of social ties.    His study found that the more isolated a person the poorer the health and the shorter the lifespan, while those with more social ties had better health and longer life.

"A friend loves at all times . . ."(Proverbs 17:17
". . . a true friend is closer than your own family" (Proverbs 18:24).
"You can trust a friend even when he corrects you . . ." (Proverbs 27:6)
"Just as iron sharpens iron, friends sharpen the minds of each other" (Proverbs 27:17).

Philippians 2:4 tells us how we are to watch out for others, ""Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others."  Galatians 6:2 tells us, "Bear one another's burdens." Paul expressed in Philippians 2 his gratitude for friends like Timothy and Epaphroditus who looked out for him while he was in prison.

Hebrews 10:13 tells us we are to "be encouraging one another."

Christian Wiman in "My Bright Abyss" speaks of how spirituality is a truly personal business and yet if a Christian remains alone and isolated this only and inevitably leads to despair.

Of course, there is need for special quiet times with You, LORD God - personal retreats.  You took Paul off to  study for three years after his conversion before he was fit to serve You.  You tell us to "Be still and know that I am God" (Psalm 46:10).

And yet, we need to be careful here.  As Calvin Miller in "Into The Depths of God" teaches, we are to avoid a "sterile fascination with God."  The key word here being "sterile."  You teach us, LORD God that we are to produce fruits in our Christian walk.  "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law" (Galatians 5:22).  All these fruits or attributes can not be done in isolation - they need relationships!

Thank You, LORD God, for teaching us how to be!   John Donne's famous quote is a biblical truth!

     "No man is an island."

Ditat Deus - God Enriches!


   
   

A Soft Answer

Reading:  Proverbs 12 - 15
My Verse:  "A soft answer turns away wrath,
                         but a harsh word stirs up anger" (Proverbs 15:1).

This simple little verse brims with immensity!  LORD God, Your word is so amazingly packed with wisdom and instruction - all with this powerful backdrop of a redeeming, complete and unconditional love!  Oh, that my lips would reflect You and have a "soft answer!"

As a child I often wondered at the nursery rhyme;

     Sticks and stone may break my bones,
         but names will never hurt me.

I truly felt that mean things  people said were very hurtful.  And once said they cannot be taken back, they enter into the permanent background of one's life and experience.  They help to color the way one goes forward, how one thinks.  Many would often laugh it off and say, "Oh, it's nothing!"  But, I would silently protest - it is!  It is something!  Or, someone may say, "I was only kidding!"  That never quite cut it for me either.

Words can create great havoc as James 3:5 says, "Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts.  Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark."

The ESV study bible states, "a 'harsh word' is literally a 'word of pain', that is hurtful."

You, LORD God know the value of words.  You know how deeply they can wound.  You teach us, in Your Word,  to be mindful of all that we say, when we say it and how we say it.

"The tongue of the wise utters knowledge rightly" (Proverbs 15:2a)
"A gentle tongue [with its healing power] is a tree of life" (Proverbs 15:4).
"The lips of the wise disperse knowledge" (Proverbs 15:7).
"The mind of the [uncompromisingly] righteous studies how to answer" (Proverbs 15:28).

James 1:26 has a most amazing warning.  "Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless."  Only the other day I was speaking with someone and in response to something I said, she swore!  I was like, umm . . don't we go to the same church?  I have heard others who claim to be Christians speak of how they hate someone, particularly in politics.  I can't help but wonder - where is Your LOVE here, LORD God?

"Set a guard over my mouth, LORD; keep watch over the door of my lips" (Psalm 141:3).

Help me to be ever mindful of how I speak.  "Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear" (Ephesians 4:29).

Thank You, LORD God, for this powerful little verse!  Thank You for the power of Your Word!

The spoken word has a huge impact on its hearers - I pray for wisdom and discretion to speak wisely and softly.

Ditat Deus - God Enriches!

Secrets Should Be That - Secret!

Reading:  Proverbs 9 -11
My Verse:  "Whoever goes about slandering reveals secrets,
                   but he who is trustworthy in spirit keeps a thing covered" (Proverbs 11:13).

A secret - "something that is or is kept secret, hidden, or concealed."  This is an intriguing verse!  It implies that a secret should be kept - "he who is trustworthy in spirit keeps a thing covered."

I know in my own experience I have found there are few people that can keep a confidence.  It is most disconcerting to hear someone blithely relaying loudly to others, something that I thought I spoke to them in confidence!  As a result I have learned to be very careful of whom I trust with my confidences!  This is really a sad thing, that so few are "trustworthy in spirit."

Of late there has been this whole thing about "letting it all out."  People speak of their most intimate issues publicly - because supposedly it is "healing."  It has become especially popular with celebrities or those in positions of power.  I can't help but question this, the motives behind this kind of revealing.

I understand that one may need to talk about some deep hurts or trauma.  I understand about "talk therapy."  Yes, there is a kind of release and relief by having someone else share the burden of knowledge one is weighed down with. There is knowledge too heavy to bear alone, and these need an airing.  However, it needs be done in a way that is safe and considerate of all concerned.

Some secrets are to be secret for a time.  This may be because one is not ready for the revealing or are not capable of understanding the truth.  You, LORD God often spoke in parables for this very reason. (Matthew 13:11) Even today, You only reveal things to us when You know we are ready to deal with the truth.

Of course, there are those dark, evil secrets that desperately need the light of day!  They need Your revealing and healing light, LORD God.  (2 Corinthians 5:10) Yet, even in these You do not reveal until the acceptable time as You see best.  I am so glad that we who believe in You can rest in that, that assurance of Your love and wisdom.

You will provide us the wisdom and discretion to know what secrets we are to keep and when they are to be revealed!

"The LORD gives wisdom . . ." (Proverbs 2:6).
"If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him" (James 1:5).,

 Yes, there are secrets that we, in the wisdom and discretion given by You, LORD God, need to be "he who is trustworthy" and keep "a thing covered." 

Ditat Deus - God Enriches!

God's Wisdom Is Straight & Right!

Reading:  Proverbs 7,8
My Verse:  "They are all straight to him who understands,
                         and right to those who find knowledge" (Proverbs 8:9).

As a young child I was curious about the world around me.  I did not grow up in a Christian home.  I saw things, as I am sure many children do, that I knew weren't right. I sensed that there had to be more to my world than what I perceived through my eyes and ears.  I just felt there had to be more to me!  Then I started going to a Bible class after school.  Upon hearing the Bible stories I was drawn in by them, I sensed goodness and truth in them!  The stories and lessons I heard from the Bible I recognized to be "straight" and "right."

I didn't understand it then but now, many years later, I realize that it was You, LORD God, revealing Yourself to me!  You prepared my heart and mind to be open and ready for Your truths.  You placed within me a yearning for You!  Thank you for that!

"Does not wisdom call?
     Does not understanding raise her voice?" (Proverbs 8:1).

I know that without You preparing me LORD God, I would not have recognized Your Word as truth.  Without You enlightening me I am lost to Your wonderful truth and wisdom! Paul prayed this very thing for those he taught and pastored.  "that the God of our LORD Jesus, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe" (Ephesians 1:18).

Jesus himself said, "No one comes to me unless the Father who sent me draws them" (John 6:44).

I am ever so grateful that You, LORD God were not content to leave me in the darkness.  You brought me Your wonderful revealing light!

"For You light my lamp; The LORD my God illumines my darkness" (Psalm 18:28).

Thank You for the constant correcting of my wrong thoughts.  I know at times You do battle with me, as I try to hang onto things that only drag me down, that distance me from You!  Thank You for Your Word - for the healing and correcting it brings me!

"For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart" (Hebrews 4:12).

Thank You for enabling me, through Your Word and the Holy Spirit, to discern whether a thing is "straight" and "right."

Ditat Deus - God Enriches!

Things The LORD Hates!

Reading:  Proverbs 6
My Verses:  "There are six things that the LORD hates,
                         seven that are an abomination to him:
                    haughty eyes, a lying tongue,
                        and hands that shed innocent blood,
                   a heart that devises wicked plans,
                        feet that make haste to run to evil,
                   a false witness who breathes out lies,
                        and  one who sows discord among brothers" (Proverbs 6:16-19).

Oh, how I need to be reminded of this fact.  This fact that You, LORD God, are a holy God.  You do not and will not turn Your eye away from those that indulge in the things that You hate!  For You do hate that which tears us apart and destroys us.

Pride,  proudness is setting oneself above others.  Doing this is to make oneself a little god - how truly sad and despicable!  I Corinthians 8:1 says, "Knowledge puffs up. . ."  Use of the word "puff" indicates that it will quickly be blown away - it does not last!  Proverbs 16:18 sums up the fate of the prideful. "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall."

A lying tongue confounds the liar.  Jesus said, "You are of your father, the devil, and it is your will to practice the lusts and gratify the desires of your father.  He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him.  When he speaks a falsehood, he speaks what is natural to him, for he is a liar and the father of lies and of all that is false" (John 8:44).  How perfectly dreadful to lie so much that it becomes natural!  LORD God guard over my tongue!

The news is most depressing -  so much shedding of innocent blood.  How   to deal with this?  How to put into proper perspective?  LORD God, You hate it more than we -  You are the creator of all life. Help me to trust this to You, knowing You will deal with those "that shed innocent blood."

"A heart that devises wicked plans" is truly hateful.  To purposely plan evil has to mean one is so very far from You, LORD God.  I tried to watch this TV show, finally giving up because that was all it was - constant manipulating of one another, it was awfully depressing.  I fear for and  pity those who live this way.

This is a sad one - when we are far from You we tend to "run to evil."  Our desires are for all the wrong things - things that drain away our very life!  LORD God, only You can save me from myself and place within me proper desires. "Delight yourself in the LORD, and He will give you the desires of your heart" (Psalm 37:4).

The news has highlighted several individuals who spent numerous years in jail for crimes they did not commit, because of false witnesses.   False witnesses were used to condemn You, LORD Jesus to the cross.  The ninth commandment states, "Thou shall not bear false witness against your neighbor."

Anarchy is such a strange and evil thing.  I was visiting my niece and her boyfriend in Seattle and they spoke of how a group that call themselves "Anarchists" have a day of, well, of anarchy.  They simply go about the city creating as much havoc as they can.  It is now a tactic used by what we call terrorists.  You, LORD God, are a god of order. "For God is not a God of disorder but of peace - as in all the congregations of the LORD's people" (I Corinthians 14:33).

Thank You, for this LORD God.  The news can be so depressing, but You bring me comfort by reminding me of all that You meant for us.  Thank You for reminding me of Your goodness, Your holiness!

"And one called to another and said; "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory" (Isaiah 6:3)!

"No one is good - except God alone" (Mark 10:18).

Ditat Deus - God Enriches!

Our Ways Are Ever Before the Eyes of God

Reading:  Proverbs 5
My Verse:  "For a man's ways are before the eyes of the LORD.
                        and he ponders all his paths" (Proverbs 5:21).

Oh, if only all men lived with this truth ever before them!  What a different world we would live in!  LORD God, help me to keep this ever before me - not as an admonition to behave but as an assurance of Your great, unconditional love for me.

I know that when I remind myself of Your constant presence I am calmed.  My soul is quieted within me. I breathe easier.  Life takes on a totally different feel - a good feel.  My anxieties seem to flutter away.  The problem for me is to keep that thought ever before me!

It is the tyranny of the present world with all its urgencies crying out at me, demanding my attention, my worry - dragging me down into  a miasma of fretting and anxiety; that place where many of us spend far too much time!

We want to complicate things, but really it is self that demands this.  Complicating things allows us to rationalize our excuses for not submitting to Your desire for us to leave it all at Your feet.  (Psalm 55:22)  We rationalize our way into misery, into anguish of our souls!  Is this why LORD God, You tell us to have the faith of a child - completely and totally without guile?

"Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 18:4).

"Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein" (Luke 18:17).

This Proverb starts of with a wonderful direction to us.

"My son, be attentive to my Wisdom [godly Wisdom learned by actual and costly experience], and incline your ear to my understanding [of what is becoming and prudent for you].

That you may exercise proper discrimination and discretion and your lips may guard and keep knowledge and the wise answer [to temptation]"  (Proverbs 5:1,2).


This proverb is an incredible warning, it spells out what happens if we follow You and if we don't!

"The iniquities of the wicked ensnare him,
     and he is held fast in the cords of his sin.
 He dies for lack of discipline,
     and because of his great folly he is led astray" (Proverbs 5:22,23).

This does not need to be!  You will, You want to free us from such a tragic, misery - a life of constant seeking for something to appease the soul.   You want us to have that goodness that is You in us.  You want us to live with that ease that can come only when Your goodness washes over us, cleansing away the bitterness of unbelief!

Thank You for this reminder of Your constant presence in my life!

Ditat Deus - God Enriches!