It all began at the beginning. Not very profound, you say? Sometimes we have to see where something began to understand its significance. Let’s go back to Genesis: “In the course of time Cain presented some of the land’s produce as an offering to the Lord. And Abel also presented an offering—some of the firstborn…
Proverbs 20 begins with this: “Wine is a mocker, beer is a brawler, and whoever staggers because of them is not wise.” Proverbs 20:1 While I could state my case for abstinence here, I digress and move on to a less controversial topic. Not out of fear or neglect, but because I don’t want to…
“King Solomon surpassed all the kings of the world in riches and wisdom.” 2 Chronicles 9:22 To understand Solomon, one of the greatest kings in Israel’s history, you have to go back to the beginning. This young king follows in the footsteps of his father, King David, who went from tending sheep to leading a…
“The fool says in his heart, ‘God does not exist.‘ They are corrupt; they do vile deeds. There is no one who does good. The Lord looks down from heaven on the human race to see if there is one who is wise, one who seeks God.” Psalm 14:1-2 “FOOLS RUSH IN WHERE ANGELS FEAR TO TREAD” More than just an…
“Strife”, “malicious talk”, “mocks”, “excessive speech”, “bribe”, “gossip”, “crude messenger”, “dispute”, “deceitful speech”… How much clearer can it be? Before you wipe your brow and say “Phew! At least I’m not on THAT list!”, I dare you to read the whole 17th Chapter of Proverbs. While it isn’t really a list, but a compilation of…
Pride says, “My way is better”; wisdom says, “God’s way is always best.” While humility has been misconstrued as weakness, pride is often seen as self-esteem or even superiority. We boast in our accomplishments as if we have forgotten that our very next breath is not determined by how healthy we are or by genetics–it…
Have I mentioned that I’m a list maker? If you saw yesterday’s post, Planning for Wisdom, you read my bullet list for Proverbs 14. What I failed to tell you is that when reading through Proverbs, I make a list of topics I see as I read through each chapter. Sort of like a scavenger…
“Fail to plan, plan to fail” I am a list maker. There is something satisfying about crossing something off a list and completing a task. While it is just a physical reminder of something I need to do, I know that by writing it down I will often remember it better. Or at least I…
Common Sense: plain, ordinary good judgment [dictionary.com] “Why do they call it common sense when it’s really not all that common?” I laughed when I heard Pastor/husband say it, maybe because the best humor is often closely related to truth. 31 Days of Proverbs means thirty-one days, reading one chapter a day of the Book…
I’ve never been good at celebrating myself. I’m not sure why, really, but birthdays have always been… Awkward. Why is that? Even when it wasn’t about my age, I never liked the attention that a birthday brings. While I should be thankful for another year–another day to be alive, I focus instead on the awkwardness…
Wealth is not just summed up by dollars and cents, but if you make more than $10K a year, you are among the wealthiest in our world. [worlddata.info] I have a dear friend that has seemed to always struggle with the thought, “Why did God bless me more than others?” She is uncomfortable in her…
One of the ways that I enjoy showing love is to give gifts. Not expensive gifts, but simple, thought out gifts that say to the person, “I love you” or “I am thinking of you.” My eleven grandchildren flock to me for that one piece of gum or the tic tac that Nana always has waiting…
Seriously. I don’t hate laundry. It’s not that it is a difficult job–for me, at least. An automatic washer and dryer, though dated, does the work for me and all I really have to do is fold or hang them when they’re dry. So why does it seem like a chore? Truth is, any mundane…
I have always had a strange fascination with doors. Especially the colorful ones. The unique ones. Doorways can represent an opportunity to enter the life of someone you love and cherish–or a threshold to something new and different. In our travels to Israel I was drawn to the colors and the variety of doors in…
When singer/songwriter Keith Green, along with his 3 year-old son Josiah and two year-old daughter Bethany were killed in a plane crash in July of 1982, it rocked my world. I was a fan. My husband was a fan. We had only been married for six months and Keith’s song, “Make My Life A Prayer…
