Proverbs - The Heart is a Mirror

Proverbs 27:19

As in water face answereth to face, so the heart of man to man.

Water serves as a mirror.  When we look into the still water we see a reflection of who we are.  Our heart serves as a mirror as well.  When we have time to sit and still our hearts we will find out who we really are.  Have you ever just taken the time and allowed yourself to realize the motives and intents of your heart?  Have you ever read a scripture and asked the Lord to send it into your heart and show you the deepest roots of anything that might be off or even that which is line with His heart?  Our hearts are at the center of who we are.  As we think in our hearts that is how we are.  When an ugly motive surfaces, take a good look at it and fix it.  Bring it before the Lord and seek Him to cleanse your heart.  Consider what God says about it and think on His truth concerning it.  Let the mirror of your heart give you a good look at yourself and trust Him to perfect that which concerns you.

Knowing God - God Will Judge Everyone

Isa 26:5

For he bringeth down them that dwell on high; the lofty city, he layeth it low; he layeth it low, even to the ground;

 he bringeth it even to the dust.

No matter how well known or respected a person is in society, they are still humans that were created by God for His purposes and they will give account.  Every celebrity faces death and no matter how beautiful the flesh is, it will still decay and corrupt after the life of the person departs.  All flesh shall perish together, and man shall turn again unto dust (Job 34:15). The glory and fame of man pale in comparison to the fame and glory of our God.  Are we more star struck with those whose faces appear on a screen than we are of our God who inhabits eternity?  When we enter into worship do we realize that the Lord is over all and we are privileged to know Him, talk with Him, be provided by Him and that He is waiting for us to dwell with Him in person forever? Let us not be so easily impressed with those who dwell on high.  Let us not look at the homes on the hill with some sort of inordinate reverence.  If we see someone we admire that is highly esteemed by man, let us not stop with a glance of admiration but lift that person who will inevitably be dust to the Lord seeking Him to touch their lives and soul.  Let us look up to the One who treats all men the same and is willing that none should perish but all should have everlasting life through faith in Christ.

Proverbs - Serving Masters - Eating Fruit

Proverbs 27:18

Whoso keepeth the fig tree shall eat the fruit thereof:

so he that waiteth on his master shall be honoured.

Our master is Jesus Christ and we wait upon Him and do what He asks us to do.  If we are married, our husband is over us and we should put his requests above ours.  If we are employed, those who we work for should be served by us.   If we are in a ministry, our overseer should be a priority in the carrying out of our duties.  When we see ourselves as servants and want to wait on those who are over us, we will be honored.  As we tend to the things we are given, we will eat the fruit of it.  Sometimes our plights may be a result of a lack of diligence and servitude.  Ladies, let us wait on our masters and tend to whatever fig tree we find in our care.  We will be honored and we will eat the fruit thereof.

Knowing God - He Wants to Touch Us!

Jeremiah 1:9

Then the Lord put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the Lord said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.

                                                                     

Jeremiah was having a dialogue with the Lord.  God was calling him and Jeremiah was working through his own doubts and concerns.  As they continued interacting, the Lord put forth his hand and touched Jeremiah’s mouth.  He touched his mouth, not to heal it, but to place His Words in Jeremiah’s mouth.  Oh, how we need to have His Words for His calling in our lives!  This came by Jeremiah positioning himself in a place where he could sense the hand of God touching his mouth and the voice of God could be heard explaining what had been done.  It is often difficult to have this kind of interaction in our busy days but vital to be effective in all that the Lord has called us to do.  I remember when I had small babies the best time for this was nap time.  When I single, it was at lunch time off to the side at work.  Now, it is first thing in the morning after the kids go off to school.  No matter what time you meet, make the time.  We need the touch of God and to hear His voice explaining a bit of what He is doing.  God wants to touch us and God wants to talk with us.  Be in a place to be touched and hear.

Proverbs - It is Wise to Have Friends

Proverbs 27:17

Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.

Friendships are healthy.  The body of Christ is made up of many members.  One part supplies what the next part needs.  To sharpen a knife or a pair of scissors, another piece of metal is rubbed against it bringing back to its optimum performance and removing the natural dulling time brings.  Ladies, we will dull if we isolate ourselves and just have our husbands and children as influences.  We need to be around other sisters and trust that they will sharpen us and we will sharpen them.  When was the last time you spent some time on the phone or went out to lunch with another sister?  If you are a woman who tends to isolate, you meddle or interfere with wisdom.  Get close to some great gals and watch some of your dullness fade away!

Proverbs - Women Can Be Drips!

Proverbs 27:15-16

A continual dropping in a very rainy day and a contentious woman are alike.

Whosoever hideth her hideth the wind,

and the ointment of his right hand, which bewrayeth itself.

A continuous dripping is something very annoying.  There is a rhythm and a constancy of noise that just grates on one’s nerves.  This is what we are liking when we are contentious.  We move away from being a rain that refreshes and waters and become a drip.  A drip comes from a collection of water that releases in a systematic dropping that cannot bring refreshment or cleansing to anyone or anything. Could you imagine being thirsty and having to hold a cup under a dripping faucet?  Sure the water is there but it is being released in a frustrating way.  We can be like that, giving our opinion here and there with the intent to provoke and frustrate those who hear us.   When a man tries to cover for her it is like trying to hide the wind.  We should never place our husbands in such an awkward place as to cover the phone or excuse our comments.  We were meant to be helpers and blessings.  We should be women who seek to serve and not be served.  We should be women who are clouds with water intended to refresh and water those around us, not contentious drips who are troubling those who surround us.

Knowing God - He Feeds Us with His Faithfulness

Psalm 37:3

                                                                     

 Trust in the Lord, and do good;

Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.

NKJV

Feed on His faithfulness – this is an interesting command.  This means that God’s ability to take care of us and be absolutely consistent in His concern towards us is something we can actually taste and be nourished by.  Feeding has to do with taking something in.  It is not looking and admiring something.  It is consuming it and enjoying it.  It is chewing, swallowing and digesting it.  Many times we chew on the unfaithfulness of others or even ourselves.  We analyze, surmise and criticize.  We become the restaurant reviewers of people and their ways.  Here we are instructed to pass those dainties by at the buffet of experiences and rather serve ourselves heaping portions of God’s faithfulness and character.  Are you so well acquainted with the offenses and failings of others or yourself that the very texture, taste and after effects still linger in your being?

Throw it up if you have to.  Confess this to the Lord and start today taking bites and chewing on all God has done for you to prove His faithfulness.   Start at the finished work of Christ and move on from there.  God’s very name is Faithful and True.  Bon Appetit!