Knowing God - He Loves Us Because We NEED His Love

                                                            Deut 7:7                                              

The Lord did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people;

for ye were the fewest of all people:

The Lord sets His love on us and chooses us not because we are more in number but BECAUSE we are the fewest of all people.  He loves us because we need His love.  He cares for us because we are vulnerable, weak and outnumbered by things in this life.  God’s love is what we need to overcome those things that outnumber us.  He knows that His love, set upon us, brings a strength and confidence that far exceeds any sort of obvious strength or might.  How wonderful that His love is not contingent upon the things He sees shining in us but, as a matter of fact, is contingent on our weaknesses and inabilities!  Thank You for Your love, set upon me.  Thank You for choosing me.  Thank You that I don’t have to impress you.  You impress me with Your love!

Proverbs - He Has a Plan

Proverbs 10:28

The hope of the righteous shall be gladness:

but the expectation of the wicked shall perish.

                    The hope of the righteous is a hope that is founded in the Lord.  We look to Him to move, comfort and provide.  Our eyes are fixed on Jesus and our expectation comes from Him.  When we hope in the Lord we are glad because we know that He has a plan and the best one for the situation.  We are not looking to others to perform or meet our expectations but, rather, we are hoping in the Lord and His ability to carry out deliverance in ways that have never entered our minds.  If we find ourselves in despair or depression, we might very well have put our hope in someone or something else.  This results in disappointment and must be remedied by transferring our hope back to the rock and under the shadow of His wings.

                    The expectation of the wicked is that which moves with strict codes and performance standards.  When our wicked nature is dictating what we expect from ourselves, the Lord or others, these expectations result in perishing hope and a wasteland of bitterness, disappointments and faint-heartedness.  Sister!  We must have our hope built in the consistent, faithful character of our God!  People will inevitably fall short of the glory of God.  The Lord says so in Romans 3:23.  Our expectations are so short-sighted and lack mercy and grace.  Hope is that which can look beyond performance to the One who works all things after the counsel of His will.  Won’t you repent of any expectations you have put on another today and rather enjoy those relationships you’ve been privileged to build?   Won’t you come before the Lord today with a 

Knowing God - He Will Plead Our Cause

Ps 35:1

 Plead my cause, O Lord, with them that strive with me: fight against them that fight against me.

When people strive against us they usually have arguments, reasoning and accusations.  The Lord will plead our cause so we won’t be tempted to defend ourselves in our own strength.  He will plead our cause with people if we would just get out of the way.  When people fight against us, the Lord will fight for us.  We are not to take it on ourselves to defend, fight for or argue for ourselves.  The Lord is the Word.  He is the best defense attorney we could ever ask for.  He is the truth and He is love.  His banner over us is love.  He will help us and we can focus on forgiving, loving and, yes, enjoying those who come against us.  Even when someone doesn’t like us we can still focus on what we like about them.  If we back off and let the Lord take on the conflict we can focus on loving God and loving them.  This will fulfill the law and the prophets.

Proverbs - The Fear of the Lord Prolongs Our Lives

Proverbs 10:27

 The fear of the LORD prolongeth days:

 but the years of the wicked shall be shortened.

When we are more concerned about what God’s desires are for us than anyone else’s we are walking in the fear of the Lord.  The Lord tells us in this verse that when we are mastered by a concern to please the Lord only we will have prolonged days.  One angle of this promise is that the stresses and wear and tear of being controlled by the expectations of others or ourselves won’t be there wearing at our health and causing us to be on edge resulting in medical conditions brought on by such anxieties.

                    Another side of the fear of the Lord prolonging our days is that we won’t be making dangerous choices that have the potential for ending our lives early.  We won’t be in sexually promiscuous relationships that carry the threat of disease.  We won’t be taking in alcohol to the injury of our liver.  We won’t be controlled by food, starvation or gluttony, that could wreak havoc on our systems and torment the balance of our body.

                   If we want our days prolonged and not shortened, we need to seek to please the Lord in all we do and avoid being motivated by any other predominant relationship in our lives.

Knowing God - God is Our Guide

Ps 48:14

For this God is our God for ever and ever:

he will be our guide even unto death.

God is Our Guide

Our God is not a temporary god.  Our God is to be our God forever and ever.  When we submitted ourselves to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of our lives, we made an eternal commitment.  Our God is an eternal God.  When He possessed us by the purchase price of the Lamb of God, we became His children and His people.  Here, we are promised His guidance even unto death.  We need guidance and He is our personal guide in this existence called ‘life’.  Even when we die He will be there guiding us through the health issues, tragedy or discomfort.  He will take us from the temporal to the eternal.  Let us follow Him in life knowing He will even guide us unto death.

Proverbs - Sluggards Make People Unhappy

Proverbs 10:26

                  

 As vinegar to the teeth, and as smoke to the eyes,

so is the sluggard to them that send him.

                    When our husbands, manager or friends ask us to do something, we need to not be lazy in what is put before us.  This verse says that if we are, then we will be like vinegar to the teeth and smoke in the eyes.  Vinegar hurts the teeth and smoke makes the eyes burn and water.  Do we want to have that kind of impact on the person for whom we are doing a task?  We want to be a blessing to our husbands, refreshment to our friends and cool water to those who are in authority over us.  Next time you are given a task by someone else, do it with all your might.  Put a bottle of vinegar on your desk if you have to or on the windowsill do remind you not to be lazy in what you have been asked to do but a diligent woman who refuses to be sluggard.

Proverbs - Built with Wisdom

Proverbs 10:23-25

 It is as sport to a fool to do mischief: but a man of understanding hath wisdom.

 The fear of the wicked, it shall come upon him:

but the desire of the righteous shall be granted.

 As the whirlwind passeth, so is the wicked no more:

but the righteous is an everlasting foundation.

We are called to be wise women, NOT foolish.  We should never think it is ‘fun’ to do something that God considers unwise, sinful or wicked.  We must seek to have our lives built with wisdom.  This means, even the little decisions, must NEVER be made impulsively and NEVER to be rooted in momentary urges that compete with God’s standard of what is right.  If we hasten in our decisions we face winds and forces that will most surely shake us to the core and those things we have built according to foolishness will most assuredly be blown away and we will face unnecessary devastation and ruins. 

Rather, we are to humble ourselves, seeing our God for the righteous response in a situation.  This will result in the desires of our hearts being truly satisfied and well taken care of.  This will lead to a life that although the winds will blow, the floods beat against it and the waves crash upon us, we will stand firm, not displaced but firm and sure – a life that has a quality of steadfastness and stability.