God Bless America!!! I am thankful that America has been so influenced by the Word of God. Let's remember Who is responsible for the extravagant blessings we enjoy!
President Ronald Reagan, 40th President of the United States
“Of the many influences that have shaped the United States into a distinctive nation and people, none may be said to be more fundamental and enduring than the Bible.”
President George Washington, First President of the United States
“It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and Bible.”
Abraham Lincoln, 16th President of the United States, 1809-1865
“I am busily engaged in the study of the Bible. I believe it is God’s word because it finds me where I am.”
This is the fourth day of our study in Proverbs. Great blessing is promised in the fourth chapter for those who pursue wisdom and understanding. Allowing God access to our hearts is worth it.
Proverbs 4 (New King James Version)
1 Hear, my children, the instruction of a father, And give attention to know understanding;
2 For I give you good doctrine: Do not forsake my law.
3 When I was my father’s son, Tender and the only one in the sight of my mother,
4 He also taught me, and said to me: “ Let your heart retain my words; Keep my commands, and live.
5 Get wisdom! Get understanding! Do not forget, nor turn away from the words of my mouth.
6 Do not forsake her, and she will preserve you; Love her, and she will keep you.
7 Wisdom is the principal thing;Therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding.
8 Exalt her, and she will promote you; She will bring you honor, when you embrace her. 9 She will place on your head an ornament of grace; A crown of glory she will deliver to you.”
10 Hear, my son, and receive my sayings, And the years of your life will be many.
11 I have taught you in the way of wisdom; I have led you in right paths.
12 When you walk, your steps will not be hindered, And when you run, you will not stumble.
13 Take firm hold of instruction, do not let go; Keep her, for she is your life.
14 Do not enter the path of the wicked, And do not walk in the way of evil.
15 Avoid it, do not travel on it; Turn away from it and pass on.
16 For they do not sleep unless they have done evil; And their sleep is taken away unless they make someone fall.
17 For they eat the bread of wickedness, And drink the wine of violence.
18 But the path of the just is like the shining sun, That shines ever brighter unto the perfect day.
19 The way of the wicked is like darkness; They do not know what makes them stumble.
20 My son, give attention to my words; Incline your ear to my sayings.
21 Do not let them depart from your eyes; Keep them in the midst of your heart;
22 For they are life to those who find them, And health to all their flesh.
23 Keep your heart with all diligence, For out of it spring the issues of life.
This is our key verse. We want to be changed from the inside out. Old issues are going to be healed. Old thoughts of negativity, cynicism, or unhealthy comparisons will be replaced by thoughts of peace and understanding. That's the result of giving God unhindered access to our hearts!
24 Put away from you a deceitful mouth, And put perverse lips far from you.
25 Let your eyes look straight ahead, And your eyelids look right before you.
26 Ponder the path of your feet, And let all your ways be established.
27 Do not turn to the right or the left; Remove your foot from evil.
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6 comments:
Today, verses 21-23 really spoke to me. In this, we are told to keep the word of God in our heart. That is one of the very first things that I teach my kids each year in school. I tell them that we are going to hide his words in our hearts so that we can recall the words when we need then in a situation. It is important to allow God to reach into your heart and take away anything negative. That is my prayer for today-that I might give God permission to take away anything negative in my heart from past experiences or beliefs and to give him a full-access pass to help me keep a gaurd on what I allow into my heart. It is very true that if we hide his word in our heart that we will be able to defeat sin. However, once we allow any negativity at all, it grows out of control like weeds in a garden.
Amen to your comments Pastor Dave. I must confess, I have battled a critical spirit for most of my life. I don't know why, my dad is a very cynical person, maybe that is why. I use to think God was critical of me. I now know God loves me regardless. I am getting an ongoing revelation of His mercy and love. I have been on a "heart" journey for almost a year now.I know I have a long way to go, but I am not giving up! It started when my son was hospitalized last Nov and the Lord has opened my eyes to a lot of things. Bitterness I had toward my mother, which I had NO idea. Why all this revelation went on while my son was on his death bed, I don't know, but anyway, I am thankful for it. When you said you was going to do a heart study on wednesday's I was so excited. You announced that then I got very sick, almost hospitalized, missed church for almost a month. Got well, went on vacation, yada, yada, yada. This study is all in the timing of what God has been doing in my life for the last year so I am very excited about it.
To get back to the scripture, beginning with verse 20 thru 27 I think it is awesome the way everything we do in life is covered. vs 20 - what you listen to. vs 21 - what you meditate on vs 23 - character? I have to meditate on that one more. vs 24 - what you say 25-what you look at vs 26 & 27-where you go.
God Bless You Pastor Dave.
Psalm 115:15
Pr.4:18 NIV- "The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, shining ever brighter till the full light of day." God, Let America shine to the nations through your righteousness! We are Truly FREE to run, FREE to dance and FREE to live for you Lord!!
A couple of verses which stand out to me in Proverbs Chapter 4 are verse 23 that speaks of diligence and verse 26 which talks about pondering. Those two words have a much deeper meaning than thinking about something continually.
23 Keep your heart with all diligence, For out of it spring the issues of life.
Diligence: constant and earnest effort to accomplish what is undertaken; persistent exertion of body or mind. Interested and persevering application; devoted and painstaking effort to accomplish what is undertaken.
Diligence demands a sacrifice or a painstaking effort. One of the most important things needed to guarantee survival is a pure water supply. A rancher would painstakingly protect the well that provided water for his family and often for many of the animals. If the well became contaminated, the family would become very sick, and even worse, die. After 9/11, there was a painstaking effort to protect Americans water supplies. It was for PROTECTION! Diligence helps us to guard, or protect, our heart successfully. Issues of life could be addictions, social, emotional or even sickness. Healing can and will take place so that our issues will be turned into ministry opportunities, encouragement, exhortation, and edification.
26 Ponder the path of your feet, And let all your ways be established.
27 Do not turn to the right or the left; Remove your foot from evil.
Ponder: To consider something deeply or thouroughly, to estimate the worth of, or appraise.
vs. 26-27 This is pretty self explanitory. However, the depth of our consideration doesn't always take into consideration the cost of our decisions. The consequences of our actions. The choice between following good or evil. This verse reminds us to evaluate everything before taking action. If we will always look at the rewards or consequences of our decisions in advance, life will be much more constant and rewarding.
They key to this verse (at least in my opinion) is in v.20. ATTENTION! The attention givin to his word makes all of the difference in the world. That is key!!!
Ponder the directions of our paths and be diligent! Our church has been called to make a difference in this world! Grab hold of the vision and God will grab hold of us!
I am really encouraged by verse 12. When I choose to follow God's instructions, I do not have to worry about stumbling and falling. I can be confident that I will not be hindered and I will not stumble! This obviously doesn't promise that I will see everything ahead of me on the path. But it does promise that if I keep my eyes on Him, my feet in step with His Spirit, and my hand in His, then I am free to run without fear of falling. I want my relationship with Him to be this intimate!
Thanks to everyone for the great comments. It's so much easier to serve God together. One of the most devastating results of a stony heart is the isolation. As long as we are open about what God is doing in our lives, those roots of pride and distrust cannot grow. We have a long way to go in Proverbs, let's enjoy the journey!
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