Rev. Deb

How strong are you?

Prov 24:10

10 If you fail under pressure, your strength is not very great.
NLT

Prov 24:10

10 If you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small.
AMP

This was one of the verses that really caught my eye as I was reading Proverbs this morning.  This verse can help us with our faith in an area.  Think about different areas of your life.  Are you tempted to panic or faint when you hear bad news?

If you hear bad news for instance about the economy or about your health do you immediately get upset?  If so this lets us know that we need to shore up our faith in this area of our life.  It's important that you know that you can be strong in faith in one area of your life and weak in another.

Thank God there is a remedy for this, just find the promises of God that pertain to the area that you need to build your faith in.  Just as you've built your faith in one area you can do it for all of your life.

What kind of atmosphere are you setting?

Prov 17:1
17:1 A dry crust eaten in peace is better than steak every day along with argument and strife.
TLB
It is true that many times the wife and or mom sets the mood of the home.  So this post is mainly for my lady friends, but guys you are welcome to read along since you also have a role to play in this.

So what kind of mood are you setting in your home?  Today's Proverb reminds us that it is better to have a simple meal with peace in your home than the best meal with strife.  Many of us go to great lengths to decorate our homes.  We spend money on decor trying to get that perfect look that reflects our taste.  It's true that we should take pride in our homes and even if we can't have them looking perfect we can at least keep them clean. 

 But the main thing I want us to consider today is "What is the atmosphere in your home?  Is it peaceful or tense?  Are your husband and children happy to be there or are they walking on eggshells?  You see even more important than the perfect furniture and curtains is the atmosphere that we set in a home.  I have been in many fine homes but felt no love, in comparison I have been in homes where the love and peace was so evident that I hardly noticed the furnishings. 

These might seem like hard things for us to face, but they are important.  It is important that as ladies we set a peaceful atmosphere in our homes.  I know some of you might be saying "but you don't know what my kids and husband are like".  I do know this though, that even though I can't always change other family members behavior I can certainly change mine. These are some things that I can do:

 I can choose not to get upset when others forget and don't do everything perfectly. 

I can choose to love my family members unconditionally even though they disappoint me at times.

I can choose to be pro active that my home will be a peaceful place and refuge for my husband and family to come too. 

I am not saying that we shouldn't ask for help around the house or expect certain things from our families, but is it worth it to start World War 3 because someone forgot to hang up their coat?  There are so many good Christian resources out their today to help if you find that your home is not the peaceful place that it needs to be.   

I encourage you ladies to rise to the challenge, I know that we can do it. 

Wisdom for the Business Person

This morning I was reading my Proverb's chapter for the day and I realized it had a wealth of wisdom for the business person.  I wanted to share a few verses with you from the New Living Translation:

Prov 16:1
16:1 We can gather our thoughts, but the LORD gives the right answer.
NLT

Prov 16:3
3 Commit your work to the LORD, and then your plans will succeed.
NLT

Prov 16:9
9 We can make our plans, but the LORD determines our steps.
NLT

Prov 16:11
11 The LORD demands fairness in every business deal; he sets the standard.
NLT
I love the modern day translation who can misunderstand what is being said here.  I know recently I have been standing on verse 1 in this chapter.  I have been mulling over a  decision, collecting facts, thinking about what I should do, but I know that I don't have the right solution yet.  So I am praying and asking God for the right answer.  I know that His way is perfect and when I wait for His solution it will be the right thing.  I also have confidence that He will give me the answer because of this verse in James 1.

James 1:5-8
5 If you need wisdom — if you want to know what God wants you to do — ask him, and he will gladly tell you. He will not resent your asking. 6 But when you ask him, be sure that you really expect him to answer, for a doubtful mind is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. 7 People like that should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. 8 They can't make up their minds. They waver back and forth in everything they do.
NLT
So I know from these verses in James that when I ask not only will He answer but He is glad to give me the answer.  My part is to ask, expect and don't doubt for a minute that He will show me the answer.

Last year I taught on the book of Proverbs and the book that I encouraged everyone to read was "The Richest Man Who Ever Lived"  by author Steven Scott.  I looked at this website a few minutes ago and he has a new book out that I must get, he has categorized the sayings of Jesus.  I heard someone say one time that we have to keep reading to keep growing.  I hope you have some time to curl up with your Bible and some other good books.  

Who are you waiting for?

Prov 8:34-35
34 "Happy are those who listen to me, watching for me daily at my gates, waiting for me outside my home!
FLT
This morning as I read Proverbs 8 (you're still reading Proverbs everyday?)  I just had to stop and spend some time meditating on verse 34.  The whole chapter talks about how available wisdom is to us but in this verse it said we can wait on wisdom outside his home.

The reason this made such an impression on me is because when I was younger I would wait outside my uncle's cabin for him to take us on a nature walk.  I would get up early get dressed, eat breakfast and head to his cabin and wait outside until he came out to take us walking.  I wasn't the only one who was eager for these walks there were other kids who would gather outside and we would play and talk until he came out.  The reason I liked going so much was what I would learn on these walks, he reads a lot and he would teach us about rocks, trees, plants, just nature in general.  Sometimes he would find a birch tree and we would chew on the sweet bark to brush our teeth.  I wasn't one of the kids who ran ahead or lagged behind playing with others, I wanted to be close enough to him to hear what he was saying.  I still remember until this day many of the things he talked to us about.  I find a lot of the things he taught us in the Word and it brings back memories of those warm summer morning hikes.  We don't get an opportunity to walk with him as much these days, but "hey Uncle Carlton if you're up for a walk I'll be ready".

Scripture taken from New Living Translation.  If you don't own this Bible you can read this version on-line.   www.BibleGateway.com

I'm Gadget girl

I am Gadget girl but I'm not a geek.  I like all the latest toys and I enjoy playing with them to learn all the features.  What I don't care about is how they work, I just want them to work and make my life easier and more fun.  So the other day when I mentioned to my husband that my computer was realllllllllllllllllllly slow he suggested that I dig the Portable Hard Drive that he bought me months ago out of the drawer.   When he started looking at my laptop it was so obvious to him what the problem was.  It was overwhelmed especially with my large ITunes file.  So he sat down and started getting files moved for me (yeah my hero).  While he was doing that he explained to me in terms that I could understand what was going on inside my laptop.  Do you ever feel overwhelmed?  I know that I have recently. Before I took time off I remember confessing being overwhelmed on a regular basis.  It seemed like there was no room in my brain for another thought and no time in my schedule for anything else.  At least that was the preception I had at the time.  When I had to take a few weeks off to heal a disc in my neck I realized that things could actually get done without me and that people were glad to help.  The amazing thing is that now I don't feel overwhelmed anymore, I can actually think clearly again.  I was trying to do everything by myself before and I was not good at delegating.  During this break I have had sometime to evaluate what I need to focus on and what I need to let others do.  Wow, this feels so different I feel like I can breathe again. Hmmm I bet my laptop is saying the same thing. 

Proverbs 5

This morning I was reading Proverbs 5 in the New Living Translation, I like this translation most of the time because it puts the Bible in modern day English.  This chapter in context is about being faithful to your spouse in marriage but I  wanted to pull out the questions that this person ask because we can use them in any area of our life.

Prov 5:12-14
"How I hated discipline! If only I had not demanded my own way! 13 Oh, why didn't I listen to my teachers? Why didn't I pay attention to those who gave me instruction? 14 I have come to the brink of utter ruin, and now I must face public disgrace
NLT
I am sure that all of us have ignored good counsel at some point and gone our own way.  I know that I have done this many times and looked back and wished that I had listened to those who were trying to give me godly counsel.  I have had two different types of people in my life that have given me counsel those who loved me and just wanted the best for me and others who had a personal agenda and wanted to manipulate me.  I have had to discern between the two and when I understand that someone truly wants the best for me and has no hidden agenda I need to seriously consider the advice they are giving.  Along with considering the advice others are giving we need to make sure that it follows the Bible and that we have peace about it.  This comes from learning to be sensitive to the Spirit of God.  This is a big topic and there is a lot written about it.  I want to be that person who benefits from godly counsel, follows the Spirit and can look back without regrets.   

The Fool

Earlier in the year we did a series onProverbs at VWC and during this time we talked about the importance of reading a chapter of Proverbs every day.  As we are faithful to continue making Proverbs a part of our daily Bible reading we will begin to see the wisdom of God develop in us more and more.  One way wisdom can be defined is this - the ability to look ahead and see the consequences of our decisions.  Wow! this is great news for us, when we truly understand and can see the consequences of our decisions ahead of time we can make better decisions for our future.  So as I was reading Proverbs 26 this morning I noticed it started out with the theme "the fool".  No one wants to think about themselves in this way, but what was Solomon really saying here?  

Prov 26:12
12 Do you see a man wise in his own eyes?
There is more hope for a fool than for him.
NKJV

If we think we are wise in our own self, Solomon says we are worse off than the fool.  

Ps 53:1-2
The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity: there is none that doeth good.

2 God looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, that did seek God.
KJV
Now look at this verse in Psalms, when I use to read this I just thought that the fool was an atheist, someone who doesn't  believe that there is a God.  Let's look at verse 2 though it says that God looked down at man and saw that they didn't understand and seek Him.  It is so important that we continuously make sure that we are seeking out His wisdom for our lives.  Are we taking time to get into the Word everyday and having some quiet time to listen?  Our Father loves us and has so much wisdom that He wants to share with us.  This wisdom from above will cause us to prosper in every area of our lives and save us a lot of time and grief.  The good news is if we are spending time in His Word and listening that we will have the wisdom that we need for everyday.  It won't come overnight but it will come as we need it.  Have confidence in that, confess that you have the mind of Christ and the wisdom of God. He has great things in store for us!

Got Wisdom?