Proverbs - Consider the Answer to Your Prayers

Proverbs 30:7-9

Two things have I required of thee; deny me them not before I die: Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches;

feed me with food convenient for me:

Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the Lord? or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.

This is a precious prayer of a servant of God.  He is asking the Lord to remove from him empty things and lies.  He doesn’t want his mind filled with lies nor his life filled with empty pursuits.  He doesn’t want to be a person who has his identity in his financial status.  He is hoping for middle ground that would lead him to be content and protect him from sinning against the Lord.  When we pray and ask the Lord for things how many times do we consider what would produce maturity in us?  It would be a healthy take on our prayer time to bring different answers up before Him, considering what sorts of temptations they might bring into our lives.  The prudent man will foresee evil and hide himself

Proverbs - Friends that Steal

Proverbs 29:24

Whoso is partner with a thief hateth his own soul:

he heareth cursing, and bewrayeth it not.

This verse is telling us that being friends with someone who steals can put you in a difficult situation.  You might hear his plans to commit a crime and won’t speak up when there is an investigation.  You bring on yourself torment and a moral dilemma by being exposed to wicked and evil plans and then having to reconcile betraying your friendship.  The book of Proverbs is primarily written to young people.  This particular warning is about the type of company one keeps.  We should pray that our children do not hang around thieves or find themselves privy to information too heavy for them to process.