Tag: faithfulness

Love Letters

Old Testament Reading: Exodus 35, 36 & 37
Psalm Reading: Psalm 44
New Testament Reading: Romans 14

Happy Valentine’s Day! 

Have you ever received a mushy love letter that resulted in a permanent smile pasted on your face? My late father-in-law Rex Cain shared stories about writing love letters to his girlfriend Grace (who later became his wife) when he was states away at Oregon Bible College in the 1950s. He would save his pennies for postage stamps and brief long-distance phone calls while he anxiously awaited her letters via snail mail. 

Communication has changed a lot since then. Now we can reach people almost anytime, anywhere, as they probably carry their cell phones everywhere they go. We can video chat instantly with people from all over the world and send written correspondence lickety-split via email and text. (Call me old fashioned, but even though I am very grateful for the technological advancements that have allowed us so much more contact with each other, nothing can quite replace a handwritten letter or card from someone you love.)

I’ve heard it said that the Bible is God’s love letter to us. I also envision that many of the Psalms are the writer’s love letters to God. Psalm 44 begins as a love letter style – it might have even been put to music. The author writes about God’s faithfulness to His people in the past and renews their devotion to God. “For not in my bow do I trust, nor can my sword save me… In God we have boasted continually, and we will give thanks to your name forever. Selah.” (Psalm 44:6, 8 ESV)

Then in verse nine, this love letter turns a bit sour as the writer wonders aloud why God seems to have abandoned them. Something bad has happened to Israel, perhaps some battles that didn’t end well, even “though we have not forgotten you, and we have not been false to your covenant. Our heart has not turned back, nor have our steps departed from your way…” (vs 17,18). Israel is still faithfully serving God, but things are not going well for them. 

Here, the writer is poetically penning the collective thoughts and doubts of God’s chosen people, speaking directly to God. They need help and answers! Perhaps sometimes we are afraid to tell God what we really think, but He already knows. He created us with emotions and feelings, and I think He wants us to share those with Him. But notice how this psalm ends. It doesn’t conclude by harping on God and turning away from Him. Rather, in verse 26 we observe an optimistic plea as the author remembers how God has always been faithful in the past, and believes that He will yet again show up to help His people: “Rise up; come to our help! Redeem us for the sake of your steadfast love!”

Even in your times of doubting, don’t forget to remember God’s faithfulness. The Bible is packed with true tales of God’s provision, and if you think back hard enough into your own life, I bet you will recognize many times when God came through in your darkest moments as well. 

-Rachel Cain

Reflections: 

Pen your own psalm. In this season of life, would your psalm be mostly praise and triumph, or more lamenting and questioning? Be sure to remember His faithfulness in your life as you close out the psalm. 

Do you journal? It can be a great way to remember God’s faithfulness in your life. It doesn’t have to be elaborate; you can even do a quick bullet journal style. Journaling is a concrete way to look back to see God’s provision in your life. Jump in this week and give it a try! 

Which  part of this psalm speaks most to your heart today? 

What does God want you to know about Him?

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If You Love Your Kids, Obey God

Old Testament Reading: Genesis 25 & 26

Psalms Reading: Psalm 15

New Testament Reading: Matthew 14

Abraham was a man of incredible faith.  God made astounding promises to Abraham, and Abraham believed God – and this was credited to him as righteousness.  Abraham lived a long and faithful life of service to God, then, as recorded in Genesis 25, Abraham died.

We’re picking up the story in Genesis 26 – after Abraham was dead and gone.  Genesis 26 starts by telling about a famine in the land that was so bad that Isaac (Abraham’s heir) had to move to have enough food to eat.

Then we find this amazing encounter in Genesis 26:2-6, “The Lord appeared to Isaac and said, ‘Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land where I tell you to live. Stay in this land for a while, and I will be with you and will bless you. For to you and your descendants I will give all these lands and will confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham. I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and will give them all these lands, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because Abraham obeyed me and did everything I required of him, keeping my commands, my decrees and my instructions.’ So Isaac stayed in Gerar.”

God promised:

  • To give Isaac and his descendants all these lands
  • To confirm the oath God has sworn to Abraham
  • To make Isaac’s descendants as numerous as the stars of the sky
  • To bless all nations on earth through Isaac’s offspring (Jesus)

And did you notice why God extended all of these promises to Isaac?  “Why” is recorded in verse 5: “because Abraham obeyed me and did everything (emphasis added) I required of him, keeping my commands, my decrees and my instructions.”

Did you catch that?  Isaac was promised that he would receive incredible blessings because his dad had obeyed God and had done everything God required.  

A couple of years later, in Genesis 26:24, we read, “That night the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham. Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bless you and will increase the number of your descendants for the sake of my servant Abraham.”

Again, God extended blessings to Isaac because of Abraham’s faithfulness.

And oh yeah, most of that obedience to God was before Isaac was even born.

We’ve heard about the blessings for ourselves if we follow God – especially eternal life in the Kingdom of God.  We don’t often think of the blessings for our descendants because of our faithfulness to God. 

When I was young, my dad would have us memorize scripture.  One of those verses he had us memorize was Psalm 37:25 which says, “I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread.”

I think the point my dad was trying to make was that we needed to be righteous, and God would never forsake us.  But I remember thinking something like this at the time: “I’m glad my dad is righteous, because in spite of my not necessarily being righteous, I will be blessed because of my dad’s righteousness.”

Now that I’m old, I recognize that the decisions I made, and the example I demonstrated had an impact (for good or for bad) on my kids.  As a result, they have picked up both some of my good traits and some of my bad traits.  I wish now that I had demonstrated more good examples and fewer bad examples – not only for my own benefit, but also for the benefit of my children.

Now let’s talk about you.  It doesn’t matter if you’re a teen, a parent, a grandparent, young, or old.  The most important thing you can do with your life is to obey God, and do everything He requires.  This will guarantee you eternal life in God’s coming kingdom, and may also give you many blessings in this life (not necessarily including health and wealth).  But in addition to your blessings, you may also pass along an inheritance of faithfulness to God to your kids – even those unborn.  And then they too can have incredible blessings.  

So, if you love your kids, obey God.

-Steve Mattison

Reflection Questions

  1. What are all the benefits/blessings you see to obeying God? Which have you already enjoyed? Which are you still looking forward to?
  2. How are you doing in the faithfulness department? Will God be able to tell your descendants that you obeyed Him, did everything He required, and followed His laws?
  3. What did God reveal about Himself to you today?
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Beauty in the Midst of Chaos

Ruth 1

March 3

One of the major themes of the entire Bible is God blessing the entire world through His people, not just taking care of His own in one particular land. This was part of the original promise to Abraham, that he would be a father of many nations, not just one (Genesis 17:4). It was also the original mission of Israel, to be a “light to the nations” and bring God’s glory to other lands outside of their own (Isaiah 49:6). That mission has now extended to the Church, as we proclaim salvation to the ends of the earth, not to just one people-group or nation (Matthew 5:14-16). With this in mind, we come to the story of Ruth, a non-Israelite who was blessed by God for her faithfulness to her mother-in-law.

Ruth’s mother-in-law, Naomi, had just lost her husband and both of her sons. I can’t even imagine the pain that she must have been feeling; no parent should ever have to bury their child (let alone two!). She was wanting to go back to Judah amongst her native people, but Ruth refused to let her go alone. Ruth followed her into a country that she didn’t know, and put herself at the mercy of Naomi’s God, YHWH, to take care of her. Because of her radical faithfulness and trust, she eventually meets the man of her dreams, Boaz, and the two live happily ever after. In fact, their family line is the one that Jesus would eventually come through (see Matthew 1:5). What’s even more impressive about this love story is that all this was happening during the tragic reign of Israel’s judges, just one book before this one. In one of the darkest times in Israel’s history, God was still working behind-the-scenes, creating beauty in the midst of chaos.

-Talon Paul

Questions to Consider

  1. Do you trust that God is doing wonders outside of your native country? Do you consider believers of other countries to be brothers and sisters? Will you pray for them today?
  1. When people are going through a difficult time, sometimes the best thing we can do is simply be there for them and walk with them through it. Have you ever had a friend be there for you when you needed them most? Are you willing to be that friend to someone else? Sometimes people don’t need advice; they just need a shoulder to cry on.
  1. If you are in a dark season of life, God is still working out something beautiful, even if you can’t see it yet. Will you continue to trust God when life seems bleak? Will you remain faithful to Him, even when it seems like nothing is going right?
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Heartbreak

Hosea 1,2

      Have you ever had a broken heart?  Perhaps, your first experience with a broken heart was as a child.  That first crush was a “crushing” experience.  You gave your true love a note: “Do you like me?  Check yes or no.”  The answer was “no” and you were devastated.  Your heart was broken.  However, broken hearts are not just for kids or teens. (How many of you parents had to console your teenager who was just dumped?)  Broken hearts are for big girls and big boys too.  I remember hearing the story of a woman.  Her husband came home from work one day and simply announced, “I want a divorce!”  There was no warning or reason given.  His mind could not be changed.  She was devastated.  I also had a friend who arrived home to an apartment that appeared ransacked.  He discovered that his wife had taken all her stuff and anything else that was valuable and left without a word.  A few days later he learned that she had actually moved to another state.  The divorce papers arrived in the mail.  It is no wonder that there are so many country songs about heartbreak.  In heartbreak, it is not only the pain of separation.  It is also the message that you are not loved, that you are not good enough, and that you are not valuable to the one that you love.  It is a personal injury and It hurts… bad!  Did you know that God feels heartbreak?

     Hosea was a prophet.  Hosea had a message for the wayward people of Israel.  However, his message did not merely take the form of words.  Hosea’s message was found in his tragic life of heartbreak.  God commanded Hosea to marry a wife of harlotry.  In other words, Hosea was to marry a prostitute!  He married Gomer, however, it was not marital bliss.  Gomer was not a woman who was in the habit of being faithful.  She pursued other lovers.  In fact, Hosea had reason to doubt if the children born into marriage were even his.  Eventually, Gomer ran away and became enslaved. The names of their children not only reflect the tumultuous relationship between Hosea and Gomer, but they also represent the strained relationship between God and Israel.  The children are named “Jezreel” (a place of a massacre and symbol of the violence in Israel), Lo-ruhamah (No compassion) and Lo-ammi (not my people).  The relationship between Hosea and Gomer was a parallel to God’s relationship with Israel at the time.  For Israel had been an unfaithful wife to the LORD.  The nation of Israel had forgotten their one true God and went off in pursuit of idols.  They had broken God’s covenant by indulging in all sorts of immoral acts and by embracing violence and by allowing injustice.  God was heartbroken.  Hosea, in his sorrow, could see the heartbreak of God.

    Now, if Hosea and Gomer were your next-door neighbors, what advice would you give to Hosea?  You would probably sympathize with Hosea.  You would say, “Forget that woman.  Move on with your life!”  However, the surprise in the book of Hosea is that God commanded Hosea to seek Gomer out and rescue her from her enslavement.  In a strange twist of fate, Hosea “redeemed” or bought his own wife out of slavery and brought her back home.  In the same way, God has not given up on us sinners.  He seeks us out.  He has sent His son to die on the cross for our sins that we might be redeemed.  Also, we begin to appreciate the hurt and sorrow that God feels over the human race.  For we have broken His heart.  Yet, God still loves you.

-Scott Deane

Today’s Bible reading plan passages can be read or listened to at BibleGateway.com here – Hosea 1-2 and 1 John 2

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Pray Like This

Psalm 132-133

This morning, we are reading Psalm 132-133. The author of these Psalms calls upon God to remember David, his afficitions, his praise, and the promises that God gave him. We get a taste of David’s endurance and God’s faithfulness to him and the people of Israel. 

I read these scriptures as a prayer. This author is intimate and transparent. They desire for God to rise up for them. And he is specific about it. He asks God to remember the promise he gave to David and to keep going. Wow. I admire the spiritual confidence of this author. 

The idea of calling upon God in this way is tricky. We should never go to God with demands and tell him what to do for us. “Okay, God. You WILL do this.” Nah… I don’t think that will get us anywhere. We can never forget the privilege it is to be able to sit at our Father’s feet and pray to him. We can thank the Messiah for that–along with so much more.

However, I think this Psalmist is doing something right. He is praying in a way that we likely don’t do enough. We praise God for what he did, what he’s doing, and what he WILL do. 

The LORD wants us to remember. Hebrews 1 is another amazing biblical example of this idea. The author of Hebrews exclaims the faithfulness of so many of those that came before him–all to the glory of God. 

By the author asking God to remember David, the author is expressing to God that he believes, relies, and wholeheartedly trusts in him to work and move. The author is expressing that he is right where David was–open and available to God. 

I want to pray like this. I want God to know that I am excited for him to fulfill the promises he made to the men and women who walked with his Son, our Lord Jesus first. I want him to know that I am making him my resting place as they did. I will always remember. 

Our God never fails. He is faithful. He is true. And he always will be. 

Today’s song is Faithful Now by Vertical Worship.

-Leslie Jones

Read or listen to today’s Bible reading plan passages at BibleGateway.com here – Psalm 132-133 and Ezekiel 43-44

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2 Chronicles 28 & 2 Kings 16-17

Storing up treasures in heaven is greater than receiving momentary glory and recognition.

Wishing blessings to everyone this week and all the time. Watching quizzing at FUEL on Tuesday was always a joy, and I always would feel the adrenaline on the edge of my seat watching many friends compete for the championships. At the end of the night watching brothers and sisters in Christ hoist up their trophies and see their hard work come full circle inspired me to want to know the word better and to celebrate them in their accomplishments.  

 

Looking at 2 Chronicles and King Ahaz, we see a young man become king when he came into a place of power. He angered the Lord because his deeds were for his own self and never gave glory to God nor sought the Lord’s guidance in his actions. Ahaz wanted glory for himself and provoked the Lord. He built alters and offered sacrifices that disgraced the Lord.

As humans we want to be known and want some of our deeds to bring us our own glory and recognition. Ahaz came to power when he was only twenty. He did not follow in the steps of his father, David. Sometimes we want to do things that honor us and get us recognized in front of our friends and others. It feels good, makes us feel worthy. Even when Ahaz tried to make amends, the Lord gave Judah over to those lands surrounding it. It continued with Hoshea as his deeds were evil in the sight of the Lord (2 Kings 17). God calls us to rely on him and give the glory to him for through him we accomplish all good deeds. God gives and he can also take away. God gave the Israelites what he promised them in the promised land. However, because of their disobedience and pride, God took it away.  2 Kings 17:12–13 explains why God let Israel fall as they turned from him. God wishes for us to seek and give glory to him and perform services in his honor. Doing such deeds brings more delight to him and feels you with spiritual delight than any earthly recognition. Storing up treasures in heaven is greater than receiving momentary glory and recognition. God has called you; do not forget these things as we read about others who forgot who their deliverer was. 

Right now, even though we aren’t close to one another, we can still celebrate the accomplishments and the deeds of our friends scattered around the US. This isn’t normal for us right now, but I want you to know I cannot wait for the time to celebrate, laugh, worship and hug everyone glorifying the Lord once again in the future and especially when the kingdom comes. 

“For all things are for your sakes, so that the grace which is spreading to more and more people may cause the giving of thanks to abound to the glory of God.” ~ ‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭4:15‬ ‭NASB‬‬

~ Evan Grant

 

Today’s Bible passage can be read or listened to on Bible Gateway – 2 Chronicles 28 & 2 Kings 16-17.

Tomorrow, we continue reading more about the history of Israel in Isaiah 13-17 – as we continue the 2020 Chronological Bible Reading Plan

 

 

The Purpose of the Wilderness

Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls; All your breakers and your billows have swept over me. Psalm 42_7 (1)If you are not in a wilderness period now, chances are you will probably experience a time like this in the future. It’s the moments where we are spiritually thirsty and hungry for God. It can be puzzling when we are in these moments because we begin to doubt and question God. If there was a word that could be used to define these moments, I would say that it would be “Why.” Why do I feel like this? Why am I in this desert? Why does God seem so far from me? Why won’t he return to me?

Though it can seem presumptuous to ask God these questions, we can find the psalmist asking these questions as well. In Psalm 42, the psalmist says, “Why am I so depressed? Why this turmoil within me?” (v. 5, 11) Later on, he writes, “I will say to God, my rock, ‘Why have You forgotten me? Why must I go about in sorrow because of the enemy’s oppression?” (v. 9) It’s natural to question God during these moments, and even Jesus on the cross asked God, “Why have you forsaken me?” (Matt. 27:46). Sometimes, we know the purpose of the wilderness, as Jesus did when he asked God that question. Other times, we may not know in this life why we have to experience the things that we do.

In these times, it’s incredibly important to remind ourselves of two things: (1) we can trust that there is a purpose for the wilderness, and (2) in the wilderness, we can rely on the goodness of God to carry us through. As we think about the ‘why’ behind our wilderness wanderings, it’s first important to ask ourselves how we got to this point. Sometimes, our wilderness comes from forces outside of us, whether that’s circumstances, conflicts with others, or the adversary like we discussed yesterday. We can look at the examples of Elijah and Jesus to see wilderness experiences that were due to the fallenness of the world, not their own failings. Yet, at other times, the wilderness can be caused by our own actions, like in the case of the Israelites.

During these times, we have two options: We can turn toward God or away from him. It’s this choice that will determine whether or not the wilderness experience will help us to grow or to be destroyed. In this devotion, we won’t be able to come to a definitive answer of why bad things happen to good people. But, we can answer the real ‘why’ behind our wilderness experiences. During this time, we have the option to lean on God and learn what it means to walk hand in hand with him. To experience complete dependence on God. The wilderness may be difficult, but it’s also in these moments that we experience more deeply the salvation of God. Going back to the Psalmist words in Psalm 42, we see that our wilderness experiences can make our recognition of God’s love more real and vivid when, after asking why, he says:

mthermon1
Mt. Hermon (2,814 m – 9,232 ft) on the northern border of Israel

“Put your hope in God, for I will still praise Him, my Savior and my God. I am deeply depressed, therefore I remember You from the land of Jordan and the peaks of Hermon, from Mount Mizar. Deep calls to deep in the roar of Your waterfalls; all Your breaks and Your billows have swept over me. The Lord will send His faithful love by day; His song will be with me in the night – a prayer to the God of my life” (v. 5-8).

We can pray to the God of our life. In these times in the wilderness, trust in your creator, and he will send his faithful love to you.

~ Cayce Fletcher

Submit Your Ways to God

Faithfulness-Instagram copy

Do you ever find yourself thinking “I’ll believe it when I see it?”  It’s easy to slip into the mindset of doubt. We live in a broken world, and we may have gone through painful experiences that cause us to lose our trust in others.  For this reason, faithfulness, a fruit of the Spirit, can be a challenging trait to possess. Faithfulness comes from a place of trust and loyalty. Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now faith is a confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”  As a Christian, it is important to be faithful to God. It is one thing to simply believe in Him, but another to be faithful to Him. When we are truly faithful to God, this shapes the way we live. Faithfulness requires us to submit our ways to God.

Proverbs 19:21 says, “Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.” We are to be faithful to God, because He is faithful to us.  In the Bible, the story of Abraham demonstrates the importance of faithfulness. Abraham and his wife Sarah struggled to trust God, but learned the value of faithfulness when they submitted to Him.  For example, Abraham and Sarah waited many years for God to fulfill His promise of giving them a son. Because of her lack of faith, Sarah insisted upon Hagar, her maid, giving birth to her son. This resulted in pain and conflict. However, when Abraham and Sarah put their faith in God, Sarah was able to give birth to Isaac despite being past childbearing age.  Ultimately, the story of Abraham shows how God blesses those who are faithful and trust in His plans.

So, how do we grow in our faithfulness?  We can grow in our faithfulness by having a personal relationship with God. If we are truly faithful to Him and obey His commands, this will be evident in our lives.  My challenge to you is this: Think about the ways you show your faithfulness to God. Are there things that are getting in the way of your faithfulness? What areas of your life have you not given over to Him? Through spending time in prayer, ask God to make these things clear to you, so that He can grow you in your faithfulness.

-Katie-Beth Fletcher

Sinking in Our Circumstances

matt 14 27

Matthew 14:22-33

Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. 23And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, 24but the boat by this time was a long way from the land, beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them. 25And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea. 26But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” and they cried out in fear. 27But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.” 28And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” 29He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. 30But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.” 31Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” 32And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. 33And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

After sending his disciples into the boat to go to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, and after dismissing the crowds, Jesus goes up onto the mountain alone to pray (vv. 22-23). The disciples were attempting to sail across the sea but were having trouble because they were facing a head wind and waves (v. 24). In the “fourth” watch, which corresponds to our 3-6am, Jesus came walking to the disciples on the water (v. 25). This is Roman reckoning of time as they divided the night (6pm-6am) into four watches while the Jews divided it into only three. As the scene is set, it is the middle of the night and the disciples are in the middle of the sea, and Jesus comes walking on water in the middle of the storm.

The terror of the disciples is immediately noted as they thought Jesus was a “ghost,” meaning an “apparition” (v. 26) The Master speaks calmly to them and reassures them that it is indeed he who they are seeing (v. 27). Peter, wanting to know if it truly was the Lord, requests that he be allowed to join Jesus upon the water (v. 28). Jesus’ simple response indicates the simplicity of the request: “Come” (v. 29). However, once outside the boat, Peter’s perception of the wind and the waves caused him to falter in his confidence and desperately cried out for the Lord to help him (v. 30). Jesus reached out his hand and picked Peter up, entered the boat, and calmed the storm (vv. 31-32).

What is surprising is that Jesus reached out his hand to help his sinking disciple rather than giving him verbal exhortation or encouragement. Jesus’ address to Peter comes in the form: “O you of little faith” (v. 31). What we see in this record is Peter allowing the surrounding circumstances to affect him and his focus upon the Lord. Peter exited the boat and began to walk toward Jesus. But when he looked around and saw the wind and the waves, his progress was impeded, for he began to sink.

I think that this illustration is quite comparable to what we encounter in our lives. We have our eyes fixed on Jesus (Hebrews 12:2) and are serving him in the kingdom, but at times we look around and become more focused on what is happening around us and allow that to affect our perception of ourselves so that we begin to sink. We lack that confidence and assurance that we once had as we were walking toward the Lord. But the good news is that the Lord has not left us helpless and is not far from us. He will reach down and help us if we will but call out to him. Jesus isn’t looking for perfect disciples, but faithful followers. And faithfulness means a continued reliance and trust in the one who we call our Master.

-Jerry Weirwille

Imbedded Wisdom – Proverbs 6

The Memory verse for this week is Proverbs 9:10:

 “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.”

The book of Proverbs is a genre of literature known as wisdom literature.  Along with Job and Ecclesiastes, Proverbs looks at the world in a slightly different way than the historical books of the Bible or the prophetic books.  In the wisdom books, the sages find information about God throughout the world of nature.  Where God reveals himself directly to Moses and Israel in Exodus and he reveals himself in visions to the prophets Ezekiel and Daniel, to the sages who write in Proverbs God often reveals himself in the created world and by observation of human behavior.

Ant Image

In Proverbs 6:6 he writes: “go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise!”  An ant is a comparatively small and very weak creature when set alongside a human being, and yet, ants are industrious and hard working.  They plan and prepare for the winter by working hard and gathering up their provisions in the summer time.  There is wisdom in hard work and preparation.  The wisdom writer uses this as a way to admonish the person who is lazy and refuses to do the hard work of preparing for winter.  So the wisdom lesson here is “don’t be lazy, work hard to prepare in advance and you will be much less likely to suffer adversity.”

We could then apply this to other areas of life.  For students this means, don’t wait until the night before your test to begin “cramming” for the test.  Work hard at your studies each day in your preparation.  Read your assignments, do your research.  Then, when the harvest comes (the test) you will be successful because you worked hard and prepared.  That’s wisdom applied to life and that’s the value of Proverbs.

Later in Proverbs 6 wisdom is applied to relationships and to marital faithfulness.  He gives a stern warning against the sin of adultery.  He compares adultery to scooping a fire into your lap and expecting not to get burned or trying to walk across hot coals without burning your feet.  As Forrest Gump would say “sometimes things just don’t make no sense.”  Thinking that you can play around with fire and not get burned is foolish… and thinking that you can cheat on your spouse or with someone else’s spouse and not get burned is just plain foolish.  “A man who commits adultery has no sense.”  Instead of the ant, the author uses the jealous husband as the example from nature “he will show no mercy when he takes revenge.”

One doesn’t have to look far to find wisdom.  God has imbedded it in all of his creation and we just need to pay attention- whether it’s the wisdom of the ant in working hard to prepare for Winter, or the wisdom of not fooling around with someone else’s wife or husband, we need to pay attention to God’s wisdom that’s revealed all around us.

prov 9 10

~ Jeff Fletcher

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