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Let’s read this Proverbs 3:1-12 together:
"My son, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments, for length of days and years of life and peace they will add to you. Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you; bind them about your neck; write them on the tablet of your heart. So you will find favor and good success in the sight of God and man. Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones. Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine. My son, do not despise the Lord's discipline or be weary of his reproof, for the Lord reproves him whom he loves, as a father the son in whom he delights." How beautiful. When we remember our Father’s commandments to us, it will bring us healing and refreshment. We must choose His ways! If you are a saved, born-again believer, you can walk in he joys of Heaven. We could talk all day long about the goodness of the Lord, but it could be a distant fantasy if we never recognize that God designed us to live in blessing. Let’s look at the words that are used in this proverb; Verse 1 - Do not forget Verse 3 - Bind them around your neck and write them on the tablet of your heart Verse 4 - Trust in the Lord and don’t lean on your understanding Verse 5 - Acknowledge Him Verse 7 - Don’t be wise in your own eyes Each of these verses highlights the importance of us doing something to live according to the Lord’s ways to see favor and good success. Be bold and take that step to read His word daily, worship him, and watch the refreshing wake-up life within you. When we begin to remember His promises, etch them within the caverns of our hearts, and look to Him for the wisdom to carry them out - oh, what grace. Oh, what blessings. Let’s take the next step to apply Proverbs 3 to our everyday lives. Grab a paper or sticky note, or open a reminder on your phone. Write a note that will help you remember to trust in God. It could look something like this: “I trust in the Lord, lean on His understanding and wisdom, and acknowledge Him in all my ways. Thank you for an abundant life.” Find a time you regularly see this note and think about it regularly. Keep your mind set on things above (Phil 4:8), and don’t forget to wrap God’s promises around you every day.
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Have you ever received a scam call, text, or heard gossip about someone you know close that didn’t seem quite right? I’m sure in some way, shape, or form, you knew inside that wasn’t their character. You picked up the phone, instantly knew that strange voice wasn’t your friend. Within seconds, you knew inside you didn’t want to continue that conversation.
Many times throughout our days we have little thoughts that pop up in our noggins. Some remind us of things we need to do, fun creative ideas, or at times bring back a dark past. What we choose to do with those thoughts determine if that brilliant idea is materialized into the community to spark change or that spark falls asleep. Just like that scam call, we must be quick to know when to hang up thoughts that aren’t life giving. Apostle Paul writes to the Philippians to think about things that are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, or if anything is worthy to be celebrated (Phil 4:8). We must work with God, trusting in Him that when we choose not to think about worries, He will provide everything we need. We must place our hope, the weight of our lives in the hand of the Almighty. Placing our hope in God, requires us to decide not to fall into any “scammer thoughts”. You may be asking, “how do I know if that thought will scam me?” A good safe guard is to ask yourself, “If I continue to think about this, will it lead to life or death?” Make it go through the Philippians 4:8 test. Today, go through your day with an awareness of when to hang up those thoughts. Keep yourself aware of what thoughts will lead to life. Jesus said, he came so that His sons and daughters would have life abundantly (John 10:10). Keep that life giving conversation going in your head and watch life become more apparent in your day. I want to share something very close to my heart. If you have your Bible, turn it over to Acts 16. If you are new to the Bible, in Acts, Jesus was already hung on the cross, and the church is being built now through Paul.
While you are flipping there, I want to share our family's number one rule. Growing up, my family had one rule and only one rule. Our number one rule is to have fun. It made us kids perceive that following rules would be easy because there was only one rule. I remember we used to go running for sports. This one time, my dad ran behind me, repeating, “Hurry up, don’t fall back, hurry up, don’t fall back”, repeatedly. While this was difficult physically and mentally. I’m so thankful he did that. Now I know I can do difficult things, push past what I thought my boundaries were, and be disciplined. In the middle of running, it was difficult. It was uncomfortable. I was looking at all the things that made my emotions want to quit. Until I decided to push past momentary discomforts for the hope for a better future for my children. Let’s read Acts 16 now. Acts 16:16, “About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose. The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!” Isn’t that pretty cool? Paul and Silas were in a cold, dark prison, but they didn’t look at that to determine their actions or what they were talking about. The chains fell off not before they praise God. They fell off, “as” they were singing. “As” you go about tough situations, remember who’s unlocked the prison doors for you. If you are a believer, if you believe in Jesus, he’s set us free. Paul even encouraged believers to not put themselves back into bondage. It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Galatians 5:1 We must remember that we don’t have to stay in the prison. We need to remember Christ has set us completely free of all addictions, pressures, and heaviness. Paul and Silas worshipped God to remember His faithfulness. When we praise God, things will change for you. Write down something that has been keeping you bound up. Is there something in your life that is keeping you from spending your days feeling free and alive? Write it down. Begin to praise the Lord and allow God to love you. |
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