Posts
timewithgod.blog-city.com — January 2007
Proverbs 3 -- A New Year's Resolution
Thanks for calling me to read today, God!
"Trust the Lord with all your heart, and don't depend on your own understanding. Remember the Lord in all you do, and He will give you success." That's the only real New Year's resolution anyone needs, I think.
Verses 11 & 12 also caught my attention: "My child, do not reject the Lord's discipline, and don't get angry when He corrects you. The Lord corrects those He loves, just as parents correct the child they delight in."
First, I thought about what God's discipline would include. I really wondered if I'd experienced much of it in the last year, and if not, why not. My commentary said that it isn't just punishment, but also it includes instruction, warning, encouragement, advice, correction, and chastening.... OK, I can say I did get some of those.
I thought of the discipline of an athlete -- getting up early, warming up, lifting weights, running, memorizing plays, watching his diet (both avoiding junk foods and following proper nutrition), getting enough sleep, mentally running through plays. That life takes a lot of discipline, and it's not the same "discipline" that I'd always thought about here (my idea was punishment). In effect, we could say that the Lord is "coaching" us in this life to prepare us for everything He knows we will encounter, as well as preparing us to enjoy the next life.
In the same vein, the verse said, "Don't get angry when He corrects you." This doesn't have to mean something akin to a radical spiritual chiropractic adjustment. I think of how I go through Josh and Joseph's homework, looking for errors and showing them what needs to be changed, because I want them to make 100. If I didn't love them, I wouldn't spend my time doing it, and their grades would reflect that.
God's correction, likewise, can come as gently as explaining where we are wrong in our thinking, or even revealing to us something we hadn't even considered or had forgotten entirely.
These don't have to be seen as negative passages at all. Indeed, His love is pouring out to us from them -- from a Parent who cares.
Father, thanks for "correcting" my understanding of these verses. Thanks for a great start to a new year. Thanks for calling out to me in my sleep to not skip my time with You this morning simply because it is a holiday. There's not a better way to start a new year!
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Verses 11 & 12 also caught my attention: "My child, do not reject the Lord's discipline, and don't get angry when He corrects you. The Lord corrects those He loves, just as parents correct the child they delight in."
First, I thought about what God's discipline would include. I really wondered if I'd experienced much of it in the last year, and if not, why not. My commentary said that it isn't just punishment, but also it includes instruction, warning, encouragement, advice, correction, and chastening.... OK, I can say I did get some of those.
I thought of the discipline of an athlete -- getting up early, warming up, lifting weights, running, memorizing plays, watching his diet (both avoiding junk foods and following proper nutrition), getting enough sleep, mentally running through plays. That life takes a lot of discipline, and it's not the same "discipline" that I'd always thought about here (my idea was punishment). In effect, we could say that the Lord is "coaching" us in this life to prepare us for everything He knows we will encounter, as well as preparing us to enjoy the next life.
In the same vein, the verse said, "Don't get angry when He corrects you." This doesn't have to mean something akin to a radical spiritual chiropractic adjustment. I think of how I go through Josh and Joseph's homework, looking for errors and showing them what needs to be changed, because I want them to make 100. If I didn't love them, I wouldn't spend my time doing it, and their grades would reflect that.
God's correction, likewise, can come as gently as explaining where we are wrong in our thinking, or even revealing to us something we hadn't even considered or had forgotten entirely.
These don't have to be seen as negative passages at all. Indeed, His love is pouring out to us from them -- from a Parent who cares.
Father, thanks for "correcting" my understanding of these verses. Thanks for a great start to a new year. Thanks for calling out to me in my sleep to not skip my time with You this morning simply because it is a holiday. There's not a better way to start a new year!
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Proverbs 4 -- How to start cleaning up the "thought life" stream
Our motives and desires must be guided by Christ
More and more as I read, my commentary is equating Solomon's quest for "wisdom and understanding" with knowledge of Christ, even though He had not yet lived as a man when this was written. Starting in verse 23 is probably the heart of Solomon's advice: "Be careful what you think, because your thoughts run your life."
Our inward thought life -- our "inner man" -- is where God starts, then works outward. My commentary says, "The heart is first. It speaks of the inner life, the mind, the thoughts, the motives, the desires. The mind is the fountain from which the actions spring. If the fountain is pure, the stream that flows from it will be pure. As a man THINKS, so IS he."
But so often in life, we've never bothered to start cleaning up that spring, and though we may look good on the outside, we might fit the description Jesus used of the Pharisees -- like whitewashed tombs.
So how do we start? "The first step is to have motivation or determination. We get in life what we go after." So we have to make a conscious decision to draw a line in the sand at some point in our lives, saying, "From here forward, I will pursue a pure thought life, and I will work with great determination to remove the pollution in the stream of my thought life."
Because that spring in a Christian comes from God, we can't fall back and just say, "It's polluted at its source and incapable of being cleaned up. But all too often that's what Satan would have us believe --another lie.
Father, I know I often struggle with my thought life. I am thankful that by Your grace You are helping me to keep my thoughts from ever becoming actions. But still I struggle. Help me to purify the stream. Cleanse my thoughts, my motives, and my desires so that I may reach a level of wisdom and understanding that You desire me to have. Motivate me to start today. Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Our inward thought life -- our "inner man" -- is where God starts, then works outward. My commentary says, "The heart is first. It speaks of the inner life, the mind, the thoughts, the motives, the desires. The mind is the fountain from which the actions spring. If the fountain is pure, the stream that flows from it will be pure. As a man THINKS, so IS he."
But so often in life, we've never bothered to start cleaning up that spring, and though we may look good on the outside, we might fit the description Jesus used of the Pharisees -- like whitewashed tombs.
So how do we start? "The first step is to have motivation or determination. We get in life what we go after." So we have to make a conscious decision to draw a line in the sand at some point in our lives, saying, "From here forward, I will pursue a pure thought life, and I will work with great determination to remove the pollution in the stream of my thought life."
Because that spring in a Christian comes from God, we can't fall back and just say, "It's polluted at its source and incapable of being cleaned up. But all too often that's what Satan would have us believe --another lie.
Father, I know I often struggle with my thought life. I am thankful that by Your grace You are helping me to keep my thoughts from ever becoming actions. But still I struggle. Help me to purify the stream. Cleanse my thoughts, my motives, and my desires so that I may reach a level of wisdom and understanding that You desire me to have. Motivate me to start today. Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Proverbs 5 -- There's nothing like sexual content to grab one's attention
It's the thought that counts
God gives us dire warnings about committing adultery and being enslaved by lust. It's amazing how timely the warnings are for today.
My commentary summed it all up rather nicely: "It is the old story -- sin is attractive as a prospect, but hideous in retrospect." In other words, we are tantalized by the thought of it, but when it's over and we are looking back on it, we are disgusted with ourselves.
We're given safeguards to keep us from even getting near this sin. First is to stay as far away from the temptation as possible. To do this, we have to be honest with ourselves about where and when we find ourselves susceptible to it -- late at night, early in the morning, when we are very tired, in a motel room when traveling, on the Internet, while watching certain TV channels or shows, or perhaps while looking at what the world might think are normal, everyday magazines even.
Once we've seen where we are vulnerable, we need to realize that if and when we place ourselves in those situations, then we are like a deer drawn to a hunter's feeder, and we must avoid it at all costs.
My sidebar mentioned one man's solution: He made a covenant with his Bible study group that, upon checking in at any motel, he would ask the desk clerk to cut off the adult channels on the room's tv (imagine the embarrassment of calling down to the front desk, asking that they be turned back on). He'd also maintain a list of books and magazines he bought and be accountable for them, and he asked an accountability partner for permission to call him, night or day, whenever he was struggling with the temptation and needed help.
Perhaps the greatest deterrent is mentioned in verse 21: "The Lord sees EVERYTHING you do, and He watches where you go." As my commentary stated, "Secret sin on earth is open scandal in heaven."
We somehow feel and believe Satan's lie that we can sin and get away with it. But sin's consequences are inescapable. And for men, lust must be defeated by self-control, accountability, and reliance on God. We have to also buy into the belief that it's the thought that counts. There is where the seed of sin is sown.
The last verse says, "He will die because he does not control himself, and he will be held captive by his foolishness." How incredible it is that we can so easily lead ourselves right into danger!
In what one commentator sees as an extremely personal reference to who we are as men, verses 16 & 17 say, "Don't pour your water in the streets; don't give your love to just any woman. These things are YOURS ALONE, and shouldn't be SHARED with strangers."
Father, married or single, I now every man has to constantly struggle with this. Thank You for giving me an accountability partner and for software that will report inappropriate internet access to him. Help me to remember when and where I am most vulnerable to letting my thoughts wonder, and show me ways to occupy my mind with thoughts other than these. I too struggle. Help me not to be enslaved or ensnared by my thought life, Father.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
My commentary summed it all up rather nicely: "It is the old story -- sin is attractive as a prospect, but hideous in retrospect." In other words, we are tantalized by the thought of it, but when it's over and we are looking back on it, we are disgusted with ourselves.
We're given safeguards to keep us from even getting near this sin. First is to stay as far away from the temptation as possible. To do this, we have to be honest with ourselves about where and when we find ourselves susceptible to it -- late at night, early in the morning, when we are very tired, in a motel room when traveling, on the Internet, while watching certain TV channels or shows, or perhaps while looking at what the world might think are normal, everyday magazines even.
Once we've seen where we are vulnerable, we need to realize that if and when we place ourselves in those situations, then we are like a deer drawn to a hunter's feeder, and we must avoid it at all costs.
My sidebar mentioned one man's solution: He made a covenant with his Bible study group that, upon checking in at any motel, he would ask the desk clerk to cut off the adult channels on the room's tv (imagine the embarrassment of calling down to the front desk, asking that they be turned back on). He'd also maintain a list of books and magazines he bought and be accountable for them, and he asked an accountability partner for permission to call him, night or day, whenever he was struggling with the temptation and needed help.
Perhaps the greatest deterrent is mentioned in verse 21: "The Lord sees EVERYTHING you do, and He watches where you go." As my commentary stated, "Secret sin on earth is open scandal in heaven."
We somehow feel and believe Satan's lie that we can sin and get away with it. But sin's consequences are inescapable. And for men, lust must be defeated by self-control, accountability, and reliance on God. We have to also buy into the belief that it's the thought that counts. There is where the seed of sin is sown.
The last verse says, "He will die because he does not control himself, and he will be held captive by his foolishness." How incredible it is that we can so easily lead ourselves right into danger!
In what one commentator sees as an extremely personal reference to who we are as men, verses 16 & 17 say, "Don't pour your water in the streets; don't give your love to just any woman. These things are YOURS ALONE, and shouldn't be SHARED with strangers."
Father, married or single, I now every man has to constantly struggle with this. Thank You for giving me an accountability partner and for software that will report inappropriate internet access to him. Help me to remember when and where I am most vulnerable to letting my thoughts wonder, and show me ways to occupy my mind with thoughts other than these. I too struggle. Help me not to be enslaved or ensnared by my thought life, Father.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Proverbs 6 -- good advice for the workplace
diligence and honesty
We are warned about guarantying the debts of a friend or neighbor, and while some may see it as a Christian kindness to do so, my commentary makes some valid points as to why we shouldn't:
"1) You might be helping him to buy something which it is not in God's will for him to have. 2) You might be encouraging him to be a spendthrift or even a gambler. 3) If he defaults and you have to pay for something that is not your own, friendship will end and bitterness begin. It would be better to give the money outright if there is a legitimate need."
We're also reminded about being diligent in our work. God placed ants on earth to help show us this, I think, because "they get a lot accomplished without benefit of a boss, foreman, or superintendent," my commentary said. I believe this dovetails with a definition of character that I read: "Character is what you would do if you knew no one would ever find out."
In the same way, we should examine our attitude toward work -- How much work would I get done if I had no one to answer to? Would I simply do the absolute barebones minimum, or would I keep myself busy, doing what I knew in my heart needed to be done, even to the point of looking to the future by doing work now that will save time or prevent problems in the future? Perhaps an even more poignant question might be, "What would my workplace be like if everyone here worked with the same attitude and ethic that I employ?"
Thirdly, there's a list of things that God hates and can't stand. The last one seems to have special significance: "Someone who starts arguments among families". It doesn't matter whether the family is a biological family, a workplace family, or even a youth group family. The person who does this is thought no better of by God than is a murderer or a liar.
One last thing caught my eye in regard to pride (another of those things on the list of what God hates). My commentary had a powerful definition of it: "Pride is dust deifying itself." That should put us in our place....
Father, Your timing as always is impeccable. With everything going on at work, these are words I needed to hear. Please help me to share them with others -- even my customers who might consider guarantying a loan. Use them to build up wisdom in my customers, those I work with, and me. Help me to have more diligence in what I do.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
"1) You might be helping him to buy something which it is not in God's will for him to have. 2) You might be encouraging him to be a spendthrift or even a gambler. 3) If he defaults and you have to pay for something that is not your own, friendship will end and bitterness begin. It would be better to give the money outright if there is a legitimate need."
We're also reminded about being diligent in our work. God placed ants on earth to help show us this, I think, because "they get a lot accomplished without benefit of a boss, foreman, or superintendent," my commentary said. I believe this dovetails with a definition of character that I read: "Character is what you would do if you knew no one would ever find out."
In the same way, we should examine our attitude toward work -- How much work would I get done if I had no one to answer to? Would I simply do the absolute barebones minimum, or would I keep myself busy, doing what I knew in my heart needed to be done, even to the point of looking to the future by doing work now that will save time or prevent problems in the future? Perhaps an even more poignant question might be, "What would my workplace be like if everyone here worked with the same attitude and ethic that I employ?"
Thirdly, there's a list of things that God hates and can't stand. The last one seems to have special significance: "Someone who starts arguments among families". It doesn't matter whether the family is a biological family, a workplace family, or even a youth group family. The person who does this is thought no better of by God than is a murderer or a liar.
One last thing caught my eye in regard to pride (another of those things on the list of what God hates). My commentary had a powerful definition of it: "Pride is dust deifying itself." That should put us in our place....
Father, Your timing as always is impeccable. With everything going on at work, these are words I needed to hear. Please help me to share them with others -- even my customers who might consider guarantying a loan. Use them to build up wisdom in my customers, those I work with, and me. Help me to have more diligence in what I do.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Proverbs 7 & 8 Contrasting a life without wisdom and one with wisdom
Wisdom is Christ
Chapter 7 shows the effects of a lack of wisdom on the part of a man, while chapter 8 shows the value of wisdom to us.
My commentary said this about 7:3 -- "This verse says to let the Word of God control all that we do (bind them on your fingers) and become a matter of unquestioning obedience (write them on the tablet of your heart)."
Part of this wisdom includes staying busy in constructive, worthwhile activities, it says through 7:8. "There is real protection from sin in a life sold out to God." When I look at my own times of temptation, were I doing something to occupy my mind, I would never have noticed the temptation.
It continues: "The awful moment of danger approaches when the temptation to sin and the opportunity to sin coincide. We should pray constantly that these two should never come together in our lives."
Flattery boosts our pride and that pride often suppresses what wisdom wants to show us.
Chapter 8, speaking of wisdom, can and is often applied to Christ, my commentary says. But any references to Him being "created", such as verse 23, have to be understood to describe "His existence and His personality being distinct from that of God the Father, since He was never created but has always been."
Verse 30 talks about how we should marvel that God, in His great delight for His Son, should ever have sent Him to die, and how, with His own personal delight of God, Jesus would have ever left Him to come to earth to save us!
That should lead us all the more to search out for Him and His wisdom, and to use it to lead us closer to God's heart.
Father, help me to ever be seeking Your wisdom and a life just like Your Son's. Help me to use that wisdom to avoid temptation at times when the temptation to sin and the opportunity to sin coincide. I don't ever want to be seen as a fool by You.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
My commentary said this about 7:3 -- "This verse says to let the Word of God control all that we do (bind them on your fingers) and become a matter of unquestioning obedience (write them on the tablet of your heart)."
Part of this wisdom includes staying busy in constructive, worthwhile activities, it says through 7:8. "There is real protection from sin in a life sold out to God." When I look at my own times of temptation, were I doing something to occupy my mind, I would never have noticed the temptation.
It continues: "The awful moment of danger approaches when the temptation to sin and the opportunity to sin coincide. We should pray constantly that these two should never come together in our lives."
Flattery boosts our pride and that pride often suppresses what wisdom wants to show us.
Chapter 8, speaking of wisdom, can and is often applied to Christ, my commentary says. But any references to Him being "created", such as verse 23, have to be understood to describe "His existence and His personality being distinct from that of God the Father, since He was never created but has always been."
Verse 30 talks about how we should marvel that God, in His great delight for His Son, should ever have sent Him to die, and how, with His own personal delight of God, Jesus would have ever left Him to come to earth to save us!
That should lead us all the more to search out for Him and His wisdom, and to use it to lead us closer to God's heart.
Father, help me to ever be seeking Your wisdom and a life just like Your Son's. Help me to use that wisdom to avoid temptation at times when the temptation to sin and the opportunity to sin coincide. I don't ever want to be seen as a fool by You.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Proverbs 9 -- Not Setting Ourselves Up To Fail
Never say "It will never happen to me."
This chapter sure boils it all down regarding wisdom and foolishness, and verse 6 lays it out for us: "Stop your foolish ways, and you will live; take the road of understanding." Yet even as I read it, I hear the devil's taunts from Genesis in yesterday's sermon: "Surely you won't die!"
Why is it there always seems to be a tinge of regret when we hear something like that? I imagine everyone who reads it immediately can think of what "foolish way" God is speaking to them about. It's probably their besetting sin. So stopping doing it goes against the "comfort" we feel in our sin. It represents change, and the thought of life without that "comfort" is tough. I imagine that it would be somewhat akin to what a smoker feels knowing he needs to quit, but feeling the tug for another cigarette all the same.
But as my commentary stated: "Those who come are expected to part company with foolishness, and show that a moral change has taken place in their own lives."
I think our main problem lies in what my commentary said: "When fallen human nature is forbidden to do a certain thing, that prohibition stirs up the desire to do it all the more." But what sin always fails to disclose are the consequences. Sin looks SO ENTICING, but it fails to highlight the fine print at the bottom.
My sidebar mentioned a man who'd firmly stated that the one are he'd never have trouble in was his personal relationships. Yet a few years later, "a chain of seemingly innocent choices" had destroyed his world on that very area he thought himself the strongest in.
"Where we perceive ourselves to be the strongest is where we're least likely to be prepared for a spiritual battle." I still remember Michael Felkins saying, "I never say 'that will never happen to me', because when I do, I am setting myself up for failure in that area."
Father, You know my areas of weakness better that I do. You know what foolishness I stubbornly hold onto. Help me in those areas to just give up rather than fight You on them. Help me see through Satan's lies and be able to see the consequences as clearly. Remove any sense of entitlement I might have to nurse a pet sin. Lead me to a fuller knowledge of You, which is true wisdom.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Why is it there always seems to be a tinge of regret when we hear something like that? I imagine everyone who reads it immediately can think of what "foolish way" God is speaking to them about. It's probably their besetting sin. So stopping doing it goes against the "comfort" we feel in our sin. It represents change, and the thought of life without that "comfort" is tough. I imagine that it would be somewhat akin to what a smoker feels knowing he needs to quit, but feeling the tug for another cigarette all the same.
But as my commentary stated: "Those who come are expected to part company with foolishness, and show that a moral change has taken place in their own lives."
I think our main problem lies in what my commentary said: "When fallen human nature is forbidden to do a certain thing, that prohibition stirs up the desire to do it all the more." But what sin always fails to disclose are the consequences. Sin looks SO ENTICING, but it fails to highlight the fine print at the bottom.
My sidebar mentioned a man who'd firmly stated that the one are he'd never have trouble in was his personal relationships. Yet a few years later, "a chain of seemingly innocent choices" had destroyed his world on that very area he thought himself the strongest in.
"Where we perceive ourselves to be the strongest is where we're least likely to be prepared for a spiritual battle." I still remember Michael Felkins saying, "I never say 'that will never happen to me', because when I do, I am setting myself up for failure in that area."
Father, You know my areas of weakness better that I do. You know what foolishness I stubbornly hold onto. Help me in those areas to just give up rather than fight You on them. Help me see through Satan's lies and be able to see the consequences as clearly. Remove any sense of entitlement I might have to nurse a pet sin. Lead me to a fuller knowledge of You, which is true wisdom.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Proverbs 10 -- Protecting Ourselves from our own mouths
Guarding our speech shows wisdom and relies on God
Guarding my speech seemed to be the focus of what God pointed out to me today. Some of the verses I noted were:
"Smart people speak wisely ...
The wise don't tell everything they know, but the foolish talk too much and are ruined...
If you talk a lot, you are sure to sin; if you are wise, you will keep quiet....
A good person says wise things, but a liar's tongue will not be stopped."
My commentary said, "The more we talk, the greater is the probability of saying something wrong. Compulsive talkers should beware. The lust for incessant conversation often leads to exaggeration, breaking of confidences, and associated sins. Trying to top someone else's joke often mushrooms into off-color stories. The man who exercises self-control in his speech is wise. He saves himself from embarrassment, apologies, and outright sin."
Wow! How very true. I've heard myself exaggerating as I retold an event, when there wasn't any need to exaggerate! Why did I do it? Usually to make myself look bolder in my own eyes, and that's probably not what I looked like in the eyes of others. It truly is a lust.
Father, please engage my brain and filter my thoughts as they work their way to my tongue. Help me to not sin by my speech. I don't want anything I say to reflect poorly on You.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
"Smart people speak wisely ...
The wise don't tell everything they know, but the foolish talk too much and are ruined...
If you talk a lot, you are sure to sin; if you are wise, you will keep quiet....
A good person says wise things, but a liar's tongue will not be stopped."
My commentary said, "The more we talk, the greater is the probability of saying something wrong. Compulsive talkers should beware. The lust for incessant conversation often leads to exaggeration, breaking of confidences, and associated sins. Trying to top someone else's joke often mushrooms into off-color stories. The man who exercises self-control in his speech is wise. He saves himself from embarrassment, apologies, and outright sin."
Wow! How very true. I've heard myself exaggerating as I retold an event, when there wasn't any need to exaggerate! Why did I do it? Usually to make myself look bolder in my own eyes, and that's probably not what I looked like in the eyes of others. It truly is a lust.
Father, please engage my brain and filter my thoughts as they work their way to my tongue. Help me to not sin by my speech. I don't want anything I say to reflect poorly on You.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Proverbs 11 & 12 and the inscrutable Yul
Watching what we say and how we say it shows wisdom from God
I'd once said that reading these passages was like opening a case of fortune cookies -- nothing much seemed to fit together. But this time, God seems to point out common threads running through them, and here's what kept popping up:
"Pride leads only to shame; it is wise to be humble....
People without good sense find fault with their neighbors, but those with understanding keep quiet...
Fools think they are doing right, but the wise listen to advice....
Fools quickly show that they are upset, but the wise ignore insults....
Careless words stab like a sword, but wise words bring healing....
Wise people keep what they know to themselves, but fools can't keep from showing how foolish they are...."
My commentary added: "A man of understanding nows that it is better to say nothing if he can't praise or edify."
I'm reminded of Yul on the latest edition of Survivor. Except for one or two private conversations, he said little, but absorbed much. And when he did speak, he carefully framed every word so as not to insult. He was a picture of studied wisdom and understanding.
Father, I want to be wise in Your ways, and too often I fail in this very area. Help me to guard what I say and to not harm others with brutal honesty. Help me to display compassion even by what I choose not to say. Guide me to think before I speak.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
"Pride leads only to shame; it is wise to be humble....
People without good sense find fault with their neighbors, but those with understanding keep quiet...
Fools think they are doing right, but the wise listen to advice....
Fools quickly show that they are upset, but the wise ignore insults....
Careless words stab like a sword, but wise words bring healing....
Wise people keep what they know to themselves, but fools can't keep from showing how foolish they are...."
My commentary added: "A man of understanding nows that it is better to say nothing if he can't praise or edify."
I'm reminded of Yul on the latest edition of Survivor. Except for one or two private conversations, he said little, but absorbed much. And when he did speak, he carefully framed every word so as not to insult. He was a picture of studied wisdom and understanding.
Father, I want to be wise in Your ways, and too often I fail in this very area. Help me to guard what I say and to not harm others with brutal honesty. Help me to display compassion even by what I choose not to say. Guide me to think before I speak.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Proverbs 13 -- A Remarkable Convergence of Events
God's timing is perfect as always
There seems to be a remarkable convergence of teaching and prayer requests the last two days. Yesterday, my quiet time spoke to me about guarding my speech. Then last night at youth, Russ was mentioning Bible study and suggested Proverbs as a perfect "chapter-a-day" Bible study due to the 31 chapters and its wisdom.
Then in small group time, we were asked what one thing we would want to change to be more like God and what was standing in the way of doing it. Remarkably, to a person, the guys in my group mentioned their speech. And the thing standing in their way was the fact that their friends cursed and that seemed to just egg them on to maintain their problem.
Now, in this morning's quiet time, I first read, "Those who are careful about what they say protect their lives," and my commentary added, "The man who guards his speech controls his whole life. The one who exercises no self-control is in for trouble." That follows right along with that first small group question/answer. The amazing part has to do with the second question/answer about what's standing in the way of accomplishing their goal. "The lazy will not get what they want, but those who work hard will." My commentary said, "The wish without the exertion is useless." In other words, you can't just wish a besetting sin away. It's going to take work.
"The wicked do shameful and disgraceful things." What hit me about that verse is that underlined portion at the first. If we can fill in our name in the blank, then we are really synonymous with "the wicked" when we do those things. Sometimes we have to learn to call a spade a spade in our own lives to see what we're really doing! We have to recognize sin for what it is and ourselves for what we are WHEN we sin.
Back to the comment about the wish without the exertion being useless, verse 19 says: "Fools hate to stop doing evil." The commentary puts it: "Fools hate to give up their sin." God is saying that when we don't put forth the effort and exertion of self-control to rid ourselves of sin, we are in effect fools.
As to what the guys said about their friends helping to egg on their sin, verse 20 says, "Spend time with the wise and you will become wise, but the friends of fools will suffer." My commentary added: "We should seek out the companionship of wise men; they will lift us up. Evil company corrupts good habits (1 Cor. 15:33)."
In His perfect timing, God has once again shown how relevant and timely His word is in our lives, and how He speaks through circumstances, through His word, and through other believers to those He wishes to influence for good.
Father, more importantly for my life, thanks for speaking to me about the need for diligence in overcoming sin, about the need for self-control, and that great phrase, "The wish without the exertion is useless." Thanks too for reminding me that all sin is wickedness before you, and there is no excuse for allowing it into my life. Thanks for getting in my face and calling me a fool whenever I hate to stop doing evil. You know me better than I know myself, and I need Your instruction and direction for my life.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Then in small group time, we were asked what one thing we would want to change to be more like God and what was standing in the way of doing it. Remarkably, to a person, the guys in my group mentioned their speech. And the thing standing in their way was the fact that their friends cursed and that seemed to just egg them on to maintain their problem.
Now, in this morning's quiet time, I first read, "Those who are careful about what they say protect their lives," and my commentary added, "The man who guards his speech controls his whole life. The one who exercises no self-control is in for trouble." That follows right along with that first small group question/answer. The amazing part has to do with the second question/answer about what's standing in the way of accomplishing their goal. "The lazy will not get what they want, but those who work hard will." My commentary said, "The wish without the exertion is useless." In other words, you can't just wish a besetting sin away. It's going to take work.
"The wicked do shameful and disgraceful things." What hit me about that verse is that underlined portion at the first. If we can fill in our name in the blank, then we are really synonymous with "the wicked" when we do those things. Sometimes we have to learn to call a spade a spade in our own lives to see what we're really doing! We have to recognize sin for what it is and ourselves for what we are WHEN we sin.
Back to the comment about the wish without the exertion being useless, verse 19 says: "Fools hate to stop doing evil." The commentary puts it: "Fools hate to give up their sin." God is saying that when we don't put forth the effort and exertion of self-control to rid ourselves of sin, we are in effect fools.
As to what the guys said about their friends helping to egg on their sin, verse 20 says, "Spend time with the wise and you will become wise, but the friends of fools will suffer." My commentary added: "We should seek out the companionship of wise men; they will lift us up. Evil company corrupts good habits (1 Cor. 15:33)."
In His perfect timing, God has once again shown how relevant and timely His word is in our lives, and how He speaks through circumstances, through His word, and through other believers to those He wishes to influence for good.
Father, more importantly for my life, thanks for speaking to me about the need for diligence in overcoming sin, about the need for self-control, and that great phrase, "The wish without the exertion is useless." Thanks too for reminding me that all sin is wickedness before you, and there is no excuse for allowing it into my life. Thanks for getting in my face and calling me a fool whenever I hate to stop doing evil. You know me better than I know myself, and I need Your instruction and direction for my life.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Proverbs 14 and how not to react when provoked
Our minds must be transformed by God.
I see God speaking to me today about growing in my ability to not react in an ungodly or foolish way when I am provoked or when I feel frustrated. Some of the verses I found were:
"Fools will be punished for their proud words, but the words of the wise will protect them....
A wise person will understand what to do....
Fools don't care if they sin, but honest people work at being right ...
The wise think about what they do....
Wise people are careful and stay out of trouble... S
omeone with a quick tempter does foolish things, but someone with understanding remains calm...
Patient people have great understanding, but people with quick tempers show their foolishness."
My commentary added: "The righteous man is guided by what he knows will please God. The perverse man doesn't care what God thinks, and thus reveal his contempt for Him.....
Every departure from God's path is a pitting of one's will, and a backing of one's judgment, against His; but the contempt which it spells is too irrational to acknowledge....
A quick-tempered man acts foolishly. In anger, he does things without stopping to consider the consequences. He slams doors, throws whatever is handy, yells curses and insults, breaks furniture, and walks out in a rage....
A man who is patient under provocation shows great insight. He who is impulsive promotes folly and hold it up for public view..."
That ought to about do it, Father. As I've read this over and over, You've replayed in my mind many scenes from my life where, in anger and frustration, I've done these very things. Once again, I'm reminded of the inscrutable Yul on the just-concluded season of Survivor, and how wise he was to not react as he might have. Please keep that picture before me. When I find myself getting frustrated and even boiling mad, help me to channel those emotions in a godly way and not in the way I've always done them. It goes along with something my sidebar said: "The emotions are essentially a product of how the mind chooses to think and interpret life's events." So transform my mind, Father.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
"Fools will be punished for their proud words, but the words of the wise will protect them....
A wise person will understand what to do....
Fools don't care if they sin, but honest people work at being right ...
The wise think about what they do....
Wise people are careful and stay out of trouble... S
omeone with a quick tempter does foolish things, but someone with understanding remains calm...
Patient people have great understanding, but people with quick tempers show their foolishness."
My commentary added: "The righteous man is guided by what he knows will please God. The perverse man doesn't care what God thinks, and thus reveal his contempt for Him.....
Every departure from God's path is a pitting of one's will, and a backing of one's judgment, against His; but the contempt which it spells is too irrational to acknowledge....
A quick-tempered man acts foolishly. In anger, he does things without stopping to consider the consequences. He slams doors, throws whatever is handy, yells curses and insults, breaks furniture, and walks out in a rage....
A man who is patient under provocation shows great insight. He who is impulsive promotes folly and hold it up for public view..."
That ought to about do it, Father. As I've read this over and over, You've replayed in my mind many scenes from my life where, in anger and frustration, I've done these very things. Once again, I'm reminded of the inscrutable Yul on the just-concluded season of Survivor, and how wise he was to not react as he might have. Please keep that picture before me. When I find myself getting frustrated and even boiling mad, help me to channel those emotions in a godly way and not in the way I've always done them. It goes along with something my sidebar said: "The emotions are essentially a product of how the mind chooses to think and interpret life's events." So transform my mind, Father.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
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