Proverbs - Wisdom Cries Out

Proverbs 1:20-23

 Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets:

 She crieth in the chief place of concourse,

 in the openings of the gates:

in the city she uttereth her words, saying,

 How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity?

and the scorners delight in their scorning,

and fools hate knowledge?

Turn you at my reproof:

 behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you,

I will make known my words unto you.

                        Wisdom is calling out to us throughout our day everywhere we go.  ‘Don’t buy that’, ‘Do your dishes’, ‘Sit down with your children’, ‘Make your bed’, ‘Get off of the phone’, ‘Go to the grocery store’, ‘Make those calls’, and other things that we need to hear to have our days ordered by the Lord.  If we would just turn at wisdom’s correction we would have the Lord’s spirit poured out to us and we would hear that much more readily the next time.

Knowing God - The Lord Delivers

Ps 34:19

Many are the afflictions of the righteous:

but the Lord delivereth him out of them all.

The Lord delivers.  This word delivers means; to snatch away, to preserve and to defend.  We often focus on our many afflictions but we must remember that the Lord delivers us out of them all – not some, but ALL.  We can endure afflictions much better if we look at what we is not obviously seen.  The afflictions we go through will work for us a great and exceeding glory while we consciously focus on seeing the Lord’s clever means of defending and preserving us out of them.  As we endure some incredibly difficult times, if we are His righteous, we can confidently stand on the promise that the Lord, Himself, delivers us out of ALL our afflictions.   He heard the cries of His people in Egypt, He heard the cries of His people in Babylon and He hears the cries of His people in the oppression and affliction we now face.  Thank You Lord, that we can look for Your deliverance and You want to receive credit for our safe passageway out of affliction’s entrapment.  

Proverbs - Watch Out!

Proverbs 1:10-19

            My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not.

            If they say, Come with us, let us lay wait for blood,

 let us lurk privily for the innocent without cause:

 Let us swallow them up alive as the grave;

and whole, as those that go down into the pit:

 We shall find all precious substance,

we shall fill our houses with spoil:

            Cast in thy lot among us; let us all have one purse:

            My son, walk not thou in the way with them;

 refrain thy foot from their path:

 For their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood.

             Surely in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird.

  And they lay wait for their own blood;

 they lurk privily for their own lives.

              So are the ways of every one that is greedy of gain;

which taketh away the life of the owners thereof.

                        Sometimes the enemy plants just the ‘wrong’ people into our lives.  They seem to entice us to go in directions with our lives and/or mind that are very dangerous to all that the Lord wants to do in our lives.

                        Money-making schemes are a dime a dozen and many times people will call us on the phone or appear on an infomercial or come into our home in person, via e-mail or by video or CD to get us to jump on board and get rich quick.  Sister, be careful!  The Lord warns us in 1 Tim 6:10, “For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.” and in Prov 15:27a, “He that is greedy of gain troubleth his own house...”  We must be content and seek first His kingdom and the true spiritual riches He has for us so we don’t end up caught in a trap to rob our families of the riches of a mother and wife who invest in the lives of the next generation.

Knowing God - He Loves the Children

Matt 19:14

But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.

The word ‘suffer’ here means ‘allow’.  Jesus is telling those near him that they need to allow the little children to come to Jesus.  Don’t make it difficult for them to come to Him.  Don’t make Christianity something for intellectually developed adults where the bantering over theological positions gets in the way of the simplicity of faith in Christ.  Jesus said that the kingdom of heaven belongs to the little children, not just children, but LITTLE children.  He gives us insight into the reality of a kingdom centered life.  The principles and practices that allow us to experience Jesus’ kingship on a daily basis can be implemented by a little child.  Perhaps we have complicated things a bit.  Oh Lord, help us become like these little children, drawing near and enjoying your presence more than even your answers.  

Proverbs - Parenting

Proverbs 1:7-9

                                                                   

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge:

 but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

 My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother:

For they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck

                        .For us to even begin to know anything about ourselves, others or life in general we must have the fear of the Lord.  We must be more concerned about His approval than any other’s and His conclusions on a matter more than our own understanding or this world’s conclusions.

                        Parental authority is given by God and when it is not in violation with the Lord’s commands should be submitted to prior to marriage and regarded highly as wise counsel once one has left father and mother and joined with their mate.

                        Listening to those above us in rank, not worth, will ‘accessorize’ our character just as just the right jewelry ties an outfit together.  When you hear that little voice of your parents’ remind you to get to bed, put on a jacket or get those dishes done, enjoy the parental influence the Lord is still using to be an ornament upon your life.

             

Knowing God - He is Our Refuge

Ps 9:9

The Lord also will be a refuge for the

oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble.

The word ‘refuge’ here means ‘an inaccessible place’.   Oppression speaks of being crushed and afflicted.  The Lord, Himself, wants to be that place that is accessible to us but inaccessible to that which is oppressing us.  When storms rage and flood waters rise, we should seek higher ground for safety.  The storms may continue but we will not drown.  This refuge is the Lord.  We can run into Him and be safe.  If you are going through a season where the waters are rising and your head is barely above water, stop trying to swim in the waters – GO TO HIGHER GROUND!  Go in your room, your back yard or go for a walk.  Begin to worship your refuge and trust that He wants to hide you in the shadow of His wings.  Enjoy His love.  Enjoy His protection!

Proverbs - An Introduction

Proverbs 1:1-6

 The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel;

 To know wisdom and instruction; to perceive the words of understanding;

 To receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and equity;

 To give subtilty to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion.

 A wise man will hear, and will increase learning;

and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels:

 To understand a proverb, and the interpretation;

the words of the wise, and their dark sayings.

                        These proverbs are given to us that we might know wisdom instruction.  This would lead us to conclude that we tend to not have wisdom nor be instructed in the right way in and of our own reasoning and conclusion finding.

           

                        They are also given that we might perceive the words of understanding.  This helps us know that we could have words of understanding given by others or even enter our minds and yet we might not perceive them as wise or valuable.  The proverbs will help us assess words that make sense to our lives.

                        Also they are written to give us knowledge and discretion.  Sometimes we just don’t know what to do and the proverbs were written to give us such knowledge; knowledge about money, relationships, work, child-rearing, sleep, our words and a myriad of other subjects.   Discretion is great for a woman because Titus 2:5 instructs us that young women need to be discreet.

             

                        If we are that ‘wise woman’ who builds her house rather than tearing it down we will be careful to listen to these warnings and instructions and increase in our learning that our lives would truly be built upon the rock of the Lord’s counsel and wisdom