Monthly Archives: June 2016

June 8 – Too Many Friends?

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Proverbs 16-18

Can a person have too many friends? I guess that depends on your definition of friendship. You can “friend” a person on FaceBook and be one of a million other people who are friends with them, too. Some people never turn down a friend request so they can see their own numbers grow.

I, myself, have friended people from high school, others I knew thirty years ago when they were in middle school, but would never want to hang out with them or share my deepest concerns with them. Obviously, FaceBook friends are not necessarily friends in the old sense of the word.

What about online dating and social sites? Is an online friendship the same as a hold-my-hand, give-me-a-hug kind of relationship? I guess it can be in a cyber world kind of way. But I’m old enough to prefer a friend I can sit across the table with over a cup of coffee, enjoying each other’s company and sharing our hearts face to face.

Solomon says, “a man of too many friends comes to ruin…” (18:24) So, yes, I guess a person can have too many friends. A real friendship involves investing yourself, your time. That kind of friendship depends on mutual trust and affection. If you try to be a real friend to too many people, how far do you have to stretch? How thin can you spread yourself? Solomon suggests you’ll ruin yourself if you try.

Solomon tells us there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. (also in verse 24). If you have that kind of friend, you are blessed. That person who knows you and loves you anyway, that one who will be brutally honest with you, encourage you to try something new, to put you in your place or pat you on the back. That one who defends you, stands up for you, stands shoulder-to-shoulder with you into battle. That one whose arms are your safe place.

If you have that friend you are truly blessed. If you are that kind of friend to someone, you are blessed and a blessing.

But wait! If you are a Christian you HAVE that friend. His name is Jesus. He knows you and loves you, fights for you, encourages you, is brutally honest with you, and is certainly your safe place.

Are you that kind of friend to Jesus, too? Do you spend time with Him? Do you talk to Him every day, include Him in your choices, share with Him your dreams and concerns? Do you stand up for Him, fight shoulder-to-shoulder with Him?

That friend sitting across from me over coffee is a friend I cherish, one I depend on and trust. But that person will disappoint me, will fail me once in a while. And I’ll fail her, too. We are imperfect people.

Jesus will never fail me. And His is the friendship I cherish most of all, the friendship I will nurture above all others.

I will never have a million friends. I don’t need nor want a million friends. But I will lovingly care for the few people closest to me, will spend time with them, have their backs, encourage and chastise them. We will do that for each other.

But as precious are those relationships, none can compare to the relationship I have with my Savior. That is a friendship I can’t do without. He sticks closer than a brother. And I’m sticking with Him.

 

June 7 – Guilt By Association

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Proverbs 13-15

“You are who your friends are.” Ever been on the receiving end of that hard truth? As a middle school counselor, I had to address it often. Hanging out with a bully, going along with bullying, being a silent partner makes you a bully. It’s a hard lesson for kids – and adults to learn.

You might not drink alcohol or have casual sex. But if you continue to associate with the crowd that does, people will lump you together with them. Your reputation will be the same as their’s.

Is that the reputation you want as a follower of Jesus? And don’t say, if that ‘s what they want to think about me, it’s their problem. No, dear one. What they think about you is YOUR problem.

Proverbs warns us to choose our friends carefully. 13:2 says, “He who walks with wise men will be wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm.”

14:7 says, “Leave the presences of a fool, or you will not discern words of knowledge.”

Who are the people you hold closest? Are they strong in their commitment to the Lord? Do they have reputations for being honest, kind, trustworthy, having integrity?

Solomon says if we hang out with fools, we’ll eventually become foolish. The reverse is true, too.

A thought keeps coming to mind as I write this. In this day of technology, a question we might ask ourselves is, who do we associate with online? What sites do we frequent? Who do we listen to?

And what TV shows do we watch? Does the humor, or the content agree with Scripture? Can we guard our hearts and still tune in week after week to shows that promote sin?

Solomon warns us that if we spend time with fools, and I think that could include time in front of the TV or computer screen, we will eventually become fools ourselves.

June 6 – Diligence

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Proverbs 10-12

Some of Solomon’s proverbs link together, and some seem to stand on their own. Many in these three chapters have a theme of “integrity,” “work ethic,” “honesty,” “discipline.”

You can read what God inspired Solomon to write about anger, and hope, ego, and consequences.

I was stopped in my tracks by 12:27 when it said, “the precious possession of a man is diligence.”

Diligence? A precious possession?

I’m not sure I can be described as diligent about many things. I do read my Bible about 99% of my mornings. And I meditate and journal on what God speaks to me about in His Word. I’m not as diligent about blogging my thoughts (as can be seen in the fact I am blogging three days worth of devotions today). Yet I guess it could be said I am diligent in my Bible reading.

However, I’ve sat here for several minutes trying to think about other examples of diligence in my life. I got nothing.

Not with music, not with writing the books I’ve started, not with investing in people, or even with cleaning my house. I’m not diligent in my prayer life.

And that’s what’s convicted me here this morning. I’m not sure why I don’t spend more time in prayer, shut away in a closet, just God and me. God seems to be asking me the same thing.

So here it is in black and white: Starting today, I want to be diligent in prayer. I’ll use the last page of the paper journal I write in before I blog, and I’ll list my requests there. Every day I journal, I’ll pray. Really pray.

If diligence is a precious possession, I want diligence in prayer to be mine.

Will you pray with me and for me? I’ll be praying for you.

June 5 – Attitude Check

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Proverbs 7-9

It’s Sunday morning and I’m getting ready to go to church. I hope you are, too.

As I read these chapters in Proverbs, God has nudged me to consider my attitude before I walk through those doors today. Solomon tells us a foolish man gets angry when faced with the truth of sin in his life. He goes so far as to say don’t even bother to reprove a scoffer, or that scoffer will hate you. It seems to be the kill-the-messenger mentality.

Solomon also says that when a wise man is corrected, he increases his learning. So when I enter the Lord’s House this morning, I want to go as one who is wise, one who is ready to hear the truth even if it hurts my feelings. I want to have the attitude that invites the Lord to convict me of sin so that I can confess, repent, restore and strengthen my fellowship with Him.

I want to walk out of church cleaner, wiser, better than I was going in. But in order to do that, I must check my attitude.

Am I worshiping today as a wise person, or an idiot?

June 4 – Phones and Ants

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Proverbs 4-6

It’s baseball season. That makes me happy. I love the game. I love watching my nephew play on his traveling team. Watching my great-nephew play t-ball is a blast. And I always have the TV turned to the Cleveland Indians’ game whenever they are playing. What can I say? I’m a fan.

When I am at the ballpark, I’m there to watch the game. But as I look down the row of parents sitting in folding chairs behind the backstop, I am astounded at the number of heads that are bowed, eyes glued to the phones in their hands. Oh, they might look up when their kid is at bat. Well, most of the time.

It amazes me how often a TV camera will span the crowd at a professional ballgame, and you’ll see the same thing. The game is going on, but people are watching their phones. My thought is, stay home! Save yourself a couple hundred dollars and play that game or answer that all-important text while you’re sitting on your couch.

How often have you been driving and had to swerve to get out of the way of someone behind the wheel, eyes down, phone in hand?

I know it’s easy to get caught up in technology. Much of our communication is texting, our connection to the world is the internet. And, let’s face it. Some of those games are fun.

And addictive. A few months back I found myself in the middle of playing several games. I might look at the clock and notice I’d been playing for hours, and I never realized how long I’d been sitting. It came to the point where I deleted all but one game on my phone and iPad. I was beginning to become a sluggard.

Proverbs 6 tells us to learn a lesson from watching an ant. An ant is always working. An ant carries its own weight, and then some.

I feel God is asking us today if we are more like ants, or slugs? Are we missing out on family time (and I don’t mean just our physical presence)? Are we neglecting what God asks us to do? Do we steal away time with God in order to make it to the next level of that game, or to read every FB post, or answer every text about what your friend had for dinner?

Put down the phone. Pick up your kid. Or the Bible. Or the vacuum, the lawnmower, visit your neighbor, or… (you know what God has brought to your mind).

Time is something you will never get back. There are no do-overs. Is what is on your phone really that important?

June 3 – Time to Grow Up

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Proverbs 1-3

The other night I watched a little neighbor girl go up to my five-year-old great-nephew, Colton, and put her finger on his shirt, then ask, “What’s this?” When Colton put his head down to see where she pointed, she flicked his nose. Took me back a few decades. I wonder how many times I fell for that myself.

The thing is, just a few minutes earlier, the little girl tried the same thing with Sara, Colton’s mommy. I’d heard Sara laugh and say, “I’m not falling for that.”

Children are naive, aren’t they? Santa Clause, the Tooth Fairy, they believe just about anything they hear – until they grow up. But you have to admit, it’s cute while it lasts.

Solomon begins the list of proverbs by talking about wisdom. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, he reminds us. God gives us wisdom, he says, if we only pay attention.

1:22, “How long, O naive ones, will you love being simple-minded?”

1:12 tells us the waywardness of the naive will kill them.

Dear one, it’s not enough to say you’re a Christian. Being a Christian involves being born again, but like a child, there is a time to grow up. Solomon tells us God will pour out His spirit on us and make His words known to us. But first God says, “Turn to my reproof.” (1:23)

In other words, accept the fact that God disapproves of sin in your life. No, he hates sin in your life. And he doesn’t want you to be naive about what sin is, or what the consequences for sin are. Saying, “I didn’t know” doesn’t cut it with God.

In fact, naivety is a death sentence. How sad is that, when there is so much wisdom available to us through God’s Word and by His Spirit living in us?

It’s time to grow up.

June 2 – Everything

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Song of Solomon

When I read Solomon’s Song I can get caught up in the flowery words between the lovers. Their’s is an intense, consuming love. But I have to admit I often chuckle at the imagery. Hair like a flock of goats? Teeth like ewes (but thankfully none are missing), a belly like a heap of wheat, and a nose like the tower of Lebanon? Not very flattering if you ask me.

If I get caught up in the details of this beautiful book, I miss the point. It occurs to me that the things the lovers used to describe each other are valuable things, expensive things. They are things needed to sustain a person, to bring comfort, to provide for every need and pleasure. The things they used to describe each other are, well, everything.

That’s what God wanted me to see today. The love these two share means everything to them. Literally everything.

God loves me like that. He loves me with every fiber of His being. He sees me as beautiful, and treasured, adored. He loves me with all his strength, nothing is held back. Not even His Son.

Can I say the same about my love for God? What makes Solomon’s Song so beautiful is that the lovers feel the same about each other. That love is the most important thing to both of them.

I am convicted as I consider what I might be holding back from God. Do I open myself up to Him and offer Him everything? Or do I hide a relationship behind my back, keep my finances out of His reach, hold on to my pride?

I want a relationship with God as intense and honest and complete as Solomon’s was with his bride.

My Loving Bridegroom, I am Yours. I recognize that You love me completely, totally, intensely. And I want to love you like that, too. So here I am, Lord. My arms are open. My heart is open. Nothing held back. It’s all Yours, and I give it with all the love I have. My family, my future, my past, my today, my finances, relationships, dreams, my health… everything I have or hope to have, everything I am or hope to be. It’s all Yours, Lord. I love you with everything.

 

June 1 -Go Ahead And Read It

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Psalm 119:89-176

It makes me sad when I hear someone say they don’t read the Bible because it’s too hard to understand. To me that’s like saying, “I quit eating because I can’t read a recipe.” Or a baby saying, “When I try to walk I keep falling, so I just won’t walk.”

Your handwriting ability improved with practice. You most likely weren’t successful riding that bicycle the first time, either. I imagine you kept trying, didn’t you?

When you realize the God of the Universe wants you to spend time with Him in His Word, that He wrote it with you in mind, that He will give you understanding, you’ll also realize you have no excuse for not reading it.

Verse 174 says: I long for your salvation, O Lord, and Your law is my delight.

Reading the Bible doesn’t have to be like taking that awful spoonful of medicine. Reading the Bible can be something you take delight in! Look forward to. The best part of your day.

I’ve read this precious Book several times, and I can honestly say I learn something every time I open its pages. God didn’t give me the ability to understand everything the first time I read it. He hasn’t given me the ability to understand everything even yet. But He gives me understanding as I am ready to receive it, and at just the right time.

If you aren’t in the habit of reading the Bible, get it out. Go ahead and read it. Pray and ask God to give you understanding (something He is eager to do anyway), then read expecting to have Him open your eyes to exactly what He wants you to know today.

This is God’s love letter to you! Let Him help you understand what He’s done for you. Let Him reveal Himself in the pages you have in front of you. I pray that you will delight in reading and re-reading God’s Word.

Beginning today.