Bragging On Jesus

Proverbs In 365 Devotions

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Proverbs 13:3 Whoever guards his mouth preserves his life; he who opens wide his lips comes to ruin.

Buckingham Palace

R Aylor

Yes we need to guard our mouth. I can imagine two soldiers in uniform… one at each corner of my mouth; and like the ones at Buckingham Palace… when people from the outside try to make them flench or talk back or laugh at things they don’t… I too must keep my mouth closed and not speak things that don’t have the proper clearance.

Of course the guards of my palace also guard the things that no one prods me to say… These are things that are already in my heart… They didn’t get there through the guards on my mouth but my heart let them in. And that is the problem… You see, what ever is in the heart has a way of getting through the guards of the mouth and making their way out.

Jesus said this in Luke 6:45: The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.

The things in my heart need to be set right quickly… Otherwise they will keep finding their way out of my mouth and out of all I do in this body. Jesus says it all stems from what we treasure in our heart… that’s the things that will come from our mouth and thats the kind of fruit we will produce.

Therefore yes we need guards at our mouth… even though evil has a way of sneaking through the guards… We will hopefully see it and it will show us what is in our heart… so we also need many strong guards at what gets into our heart… Because those things we treasure will either preserve us or lead us to ruin.

Pray

Proverbs in 365 Devotions

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Proverbs 13:17 A wicked messenger falls into trouble, but a faithful envoy brings healing.

Wolf! Wolf!

by R Aylor

You may remember the old children’s story how a young shepherd boy out in the field with his flock cried out: “wolf! wolf!”. Many people from the village heard his cry echo down into the town and they rushed to help him.

I can just see this young punk sitting on a rock and laughing as the townsfolk run out to help him with their shovels and hey forks. You see… it was only a prank.

Later on… that bored mischievous boy played the same joke on the people again. Not long after that, a true wolf appeared but this time when the boy cries out for real he was ignored by the townsfolk.

According to Wikipedia the earliest version of the fable says the flock of sheep were eaten by the wolf but the mischievous boy survived. The moral of this story is: nobody believes a liar after they learn his character… even when he is telling the truth!.

It's easy to understand that if someone who may not know you well questions whether you are telling the truth… once they do get to know you as someone who consistently keeps their word… you will eventually be counted trustworthy. It stands to reason they will grow to trust someone who is consistently truthful with things great and small. It would not surprise us that these individuals will be approached in times of need for honest, unbiased and sincere counsel.



How did they obtain this good name in their circle of acquaintance?



They told the truth to their own harm. They were honest with those to whom they were accountable. They kept their word when they gave it from the very small matters to the greatest. They quickly returned things they had borrowed. They were consistent in maintaining the integrity they claimed to believe in. When they failed (as all men do) they repented openly to those who may have been damaged by their shortcoming.



We are all messengers of some sort. Some cry wolf, wolf while others speak truth. Our greatest privilege is to bring the good news of truth to the world. We are messengers for Christ.

The boy in the wolf, wolf, story was not a good example unless you want to say he was a good example of a bad example… Here’s a better one.

John 10:11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13 He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. 14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. 17 For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”

Pray

Proverbs in 365 Devotions


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Proverbs 13:15 Good sense wins favor, but the way of the treacherous is their ruin. 16 In everything the prudent acts with knowledge, but a fool flaunts his folly.

Blinded By The Darkness

by R Aylor

I don’t know why anyone would want to show off their stupidity? But that's what I tend to do quite often. It should be no surprise to us how it happens because a treacherous heart like the text describes loves wrong doing to such an extent that it causes a kind of blindness to the ruin the outcome of what we are doing. We all have to fight against this treachery of pride in our life.

Whenever a person is treasuring the things of the world over the Lord, they loose focus on the things of God including the apparent destruction that their folly will bring not only to others but themselves. Our heart is deceptive for sure and we may even be deceiving ourselves more than we deceive others. Jeremiah 17:9 says: The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?

Though we’ve seen it before, time and time again… I am a slow learner… so when my own pride tricks and being blinded… I am in a position where I am more susceptible to show off and flaunt my foolishness as though it is something good.


Our own desires can create blind spots of various kinds in our life. My Mother who is now 83 told me how once as a young girl she was walking home from school and a boy in a car looked back at her and whistled... just before he ran off into a ditch.

But these kinds of things can happen in our spiritual life as well. For example:

* Even in the Church good habits and traditions if not done from the heart can chain our minds to legalism and blind us from experiencing worship and the joys of Christ.  


* We can also become less sensitive to the culture of the world around… more cozy… more agreeable…. which can give us spiritual cataracts to make us so called "political correct” which will blind us from seeing  people and issues correctly.


* Business… When we are obsessively busy we don’t see, or hear anything but our own agendas. We ignore others and are short with them, Our families, friends and our own bodies suffer while our relationship with the Lord deteriorates. 


* It may be that the most blinding enemy of all is comfort. While troubles can actually reset our priorities and focus back on God as our supreme treasure, comfort has the potential to blind us from realizing our need for God. If we find our comfort in Christ and not the conveniences of this world we will find contentment, joy, satisfaction and delight beyond comparison.


Father help us not to blindly follow after selfish pride flaunting our own folly to destruction, but to follow you in faith, walking in your mercy and love.

Proverbs in 365 Devotions

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Proverbs 13:13 Whoever despises the word brings destruction on himself, but he who reveres the commandment will be rewarded. 14 The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life, that one may turn away from the snares of death.

Trust God Word

R Aylor

Sometimes we may forget that Gods commandments are not only for his glory, but he has also set them up for our benefit.



From a distance we can easily see this truth in some of the more obvious sins like committing adultery, murder, theft, gossip,… keeping them is not only a good idea for others but its a good plan for our life as well. However… at the time, up close we seem to center in on ourselves and say something like but the circumstances are different for me. What I’m going through is a little different; I deserve the right to act this way. It's then that we begin rationalizing all these things like stealing, lying, even adultery and murder as being something good for us.

James 1:14 But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.



We might as well acknowledge that we will sometimes not understand how obeying God in certain circumstances will be good for us. Gods ways are so much higher than our ways.

Just as young children need to learn to obey their parents even when they don’t understand why. They don’t always know or comprehend why they shouldn’t wade too far out in the water, play in the street, stick their tongue on a frozen pole, or lick up spilt pudding off from the carpet.

Therefore, since we are all like children and prone to ignorance, we should seek truth in Gods word and godly counsel and not take it lightly. God want's us to understand much more than we do and grow in him with great wisdom. But when we do not have the answers we can still rest with complete comfort and satisfaction knowing Gods commands are for our extreme good.

Psalms 19:9 - ...the rules of the Lord are true, and righteous altogether. 10 More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb. 11 Moreover, by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward.



Pray

Romans 10:17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

Proverbs in 365 Devotions

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Proverbs 13:12 Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.

Earnest Guarantee Of Hope

R Aylor

We can all likely identify with hope being delayed in this life. Whether waiting on marriage or a job or waiting on the winter to be over and spring to come.

But in the bigger picture, here we are... strangers wandering through this broken world waiting for our hope to be fulfilled. But is our soul weary beyond measure? Is our heart sick? If our hope has been deferred like this text says can happen, and points somewhere in the future that we cannot even taste, experience or know, then why are we not depressed and downcast? Why do we not despair?



If you have ever sold a house the buyer may have given you what is called “earnest money” to guarantee the purchase until funds are transferred and the transaction is fully finalized. Even though the undertaking is not altogether finished, the earnest money has given your hope a boost that will keep your spirits high until it is completed.



There is something similar that God gives his children which gives our hope a joy much greater and surer than earnest money for a house deed. You see our hope is not all deferred. There are the unsearchable riches waiting for us to be unpacking in this life.

In Ephesians 1 the KJV actually uses the word “earnest" to convey this very truth:

Ephesians 1:13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, 14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.



Yes, the Holy Spirit is our earnest guarantee every day of our life. We see it in the fruits of the Spirit like love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Those without the Holy Spirit do not have these attributes growing in their life.



Arn’t you glad that God doesn’t defer all our hope to the end but gives us a little bit of heaven every day?


2nd Corinthians 4:16 So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. 17 For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, 18 as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.


Father as we walk in this broken world please show us more of your glory and thank you for the hope that waits before us.

Proverbs in 365 Devotions

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Proverbs 13:11 Wealth gained hastily will dwindle, but whoever gathers little by little will increase it.

Increasing Riches In Christ

R Aylor

Get rich schemes have made many a person excessively rich beyond their wildest imaginations; however their newly acquired wealth have frequently been followed with bankruptcy, divorce and or long prison sentences… even murder.


And it’s not just with get rich schemes but this same principal of "Instant Everything" applies across the board.

For example: a starvation type diet without daily lifestyle changes usually comes back along with compounded interest.

If you've ever considered politics, you know quick fixes don't solve the long term problems; i.e. the National Debt; need I say more?

Even in churches, rapidly growing congregations can sometimes implode from within because they settled back into the same old self centered mindsets that had always kept them from their mission attentiveness before. Their gain numbers quickly schemes wound up breaking them.



As for a spiritual application; the Bible teaches us that salvation is not a box that we check off and then go on about our old life, seeking our same old delights.Our desire has completely changed. We don’t taste and savor the awesomeness of Jesus and then go back to our old eating lifestyle of the worlds junk food.

Psalm 63:5 My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food, and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips,

Some people are out for a quick fix with salvation but salvation is not a fix, it’s a change. Our life style changes because why? because we are a new creation in Christ Jesus.

Listen to how the Psalmist describes their new way of life. It’s not a one time thing that allows us to return to finding our worship in the things of the world.

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Psalm 119:164 Seven times a day I praise you for your righteous rules. 


Psalms 105:4 Search for the LORD and for his strength; continually seek him. 


Psalm 16:8 I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken. 


Though instantaneous, salvation is not a quick fix it is a work in progress. We are made righteous with Christ righteousness immediately but practically is is always working on us.

Philippians 1:6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

And so as we first turned back from the path of sin and now follow Jesus, every day when our heart has failures we take up our cross to die to that old lifestyle over and over as we grow in Christ.


In Luke 9:23 Jesus talks about it being a daily thing: And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.

Father as this text today speaks of wealth and says that whoever gathers little by little will increase it. We trust you are doing what you said you would do in our life. You are the greatest treasure in the Universe and as we see more of your glory your word says in 2nd Corinthians 3:18 we are transformed… Please increase our wealth as you being our treasure day by day as you complete your work in us.

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Proverbs in 365 Devotions


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Proverbs 13:10 By insolence comes nothing but strife, but with those who take advice is wisdom.

Yes You're Right

The Sky Is Aqua Today

Robin Aylor


I remember a discussion with a friend from Europe a while back… about human behavior. He grew up in India from the highest of the upper class. He had the impression that Americans in relation to other countries were much more ashamed to ask others about things they did not know. His opinion was that most Americans would rather stay dumb and appear superior than to admit they were ignorant on a subject.

Were his insights in relation to Americans true? Perhaps... More than other peoples?... I do not know. But I do believe some form of pride is always on the heels of every one of us.

About the insolent person in the text, he is a rude and disrespectful human being. We have all met a few and have have likely been one ourselves from time to time.

It seems to gradually come over me after I am feeling a little down and when I make what i think is an insignificant mistake on something and someone corrects me...

And at those times it seems that when it rains it pours and I feel like I am corrected by someone about every little thing I say or do. I might innocently comment: “The sky is sure blue today” and hear in reply: “NO NOT REALLY, IT IS AQUA”. One wrong answer after another on topics from the weather to politics to theology.



Then something snaps and I begin being that person  in the text that is insolent. I begin interrupting and talking over people and backing up my statements almost equal to the oracles of God. I try to appear superior and yet humble, but I will be right, I will make my case, my life is valid, I am credible. Come on people, acknowledge my intelligence. I will get the last word. I am the counselor. I can’t hear you! Give me an attaboy!



Father please humble me to see my depravity, open my ears to hear your wisdom, enlighten me to understand your ways and quicken me to follow your truth from good godly counselors.

Proverbs in 365 Devotions

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Proverbs 13:4 The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.

Slugger Or Sluggard?

R Aylor

When Solomon refers to the soul of a sluggard he is not talking about Babe Ruth, Hank Aaron, Willie Mays… or any other baseball player who is famous for hitting home runs. No a sluggard here is one who is compared to a slug or a snail… someone who is slow to act… a lazy person who takes little responsibility and has hardly any accountability in life with any other person.

My sister works with the homeless and we have talked about this deep issue of the soul among many though not all of them. A great number of homeless have no incentive for getting out of bed or going to look for work. That is the reason for some of them being homeless. They have no desire to be involved in serving the community or being a constructive citizen. If there is a flood or tornado or wild fires that have hurt others and their property not many donate what they do have… namely their time. They rarely go help a friend build a fence or feed cows or shovel snow or anything else that is beneficial to a neighbor.

Speaking to Believers who were able to work Paul said this: 1st Thessalonians 3:10 For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. 11 For we hear that some among you walk in idleness, not busy at work, but busybodies.

One thing Paul did not want us to do among fellow believers is to enable sluggards. However; our society has evolved into, even elevating and praising this way of thinking. For some it starts early on. In our culture many parents are not discerning in how they discipline their children. When they are annoyed or bothered by their children they might hit them or spank them or curse them… and at other times they let them run wild without any discipline at all.

Then as these children grow into adulthood, they wear this complex that they have been unfairly mistreated. Yes their parents did show them anger wrongly by being unkind to them for being an irritation instead of disciplining them for their own good out of love…

And now these coming of age adults rebel against many forms of structured order in society preferring to be on their own like when their parents let them run wild rather than being disciplined to be a good and responsible citizen who is accountable to their spouse and to their boss and even mutually to their neighbor and friends.

Without this heart for responsibility and accountability, even though these people are not homeless their personalities will show aspects of sluggardness in different areas of life. Oh yes though many have had to fact the fact they have to work to have a place to live when they get home they switch back to the sluggard mentality.

Look, if we listen to our body when it says stay in bed or stay on the couch, keep benging, watch another episode… keep eating, keep charging your credit cards on the shopping network… keep ignoring your children… keep being lazy… If we are a sluggard we will not fulfill the purpose God has for us in life. Our life will show like a book that we are not motivated by Gods Spirit. We are in the flesh. We need hope. We need a reason to look forward to life and love our neighbor and family as we ought. A reason to get out of bed. That hope is Jesus Christ.

Pray

Proverbs in 365 Devotions


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Proverbs 13:9 The light of the righteous rejoices, but the lamp of the wicked will be put out.

Treasure Of The Eye

So what is Solomon referring to here? Is he really talking about lanterns? Can the lantern in the house ofd a righteous person jump for joy? And will the lantern in the wicked household damper down and fizz out?

In the New Testament I think Jesus sheds his light on this verse.

In Matthew 6:22 he says: “The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, 23 but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!

It seems Jesus words as well os Solomons are not our normal way of talking… They might be a little difficult to understand. They require pondering I think… and that’s good. Pondering means asking the Lord for help and thinking about the parts of this scripture that we do understand and possibly seeing what truth is being unveiled.

Ok, so Solomon talks about the lamp of the wicked and also he refers to the light of the righteous. I expect the Jews in Jesus day who studied and memorized the scriptures were familiar with this proverb of Solomon. And now Jesus has come and says that the lamp of the body is the eye. He says how if you have a good lamp or eye your whole body will be full of light… Solomon said that light will rejoice. Jesus said if you have a bad lamp or eye, your whole body will be full of darkness… whereas Solomon agrees saying the lamp of the wicked will be put out.

Alright, so now we can see some commonalities between these verses and also some extra information I believe because Jesus has said this lamp which either shines light or darkness depending on whether a person is in wickedness or righteousness… this lamp is they eye.

I think we can get more insight from the verses surrounding Jesus words we read in Matthew 6:22-23…

In verse 21 Jesus had just said: For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

This indicates that it is the thing that we set our eye on that defines what we treasure. You see, it is our hearts desire that determine if it a bad eye or not.

Then in verse 24 Jesus gives another example of a healthy and bad eye.

24 “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.

We actually could go back to the previous chapter 5 verse 14 where Jesus said: “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.

So in todays text Proverbs 13:9, Solomon has told us: The light of the righteous rejoices, but the lamp of the wicked will be put out.

What does this mean for me?

If your eye is set on Jesus as your treasure, then you are going to be full of joy! If your eye is not healthy but bad and it is set on the treasures of the world then you will not find joy but your light will be put out.

Whats your treasure? What does your eye go to?

In Matthew 13:44 Jesus said it like this:

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

Pray


2nd Corinthians 4:6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Proverbs in 365 Devotions


Proverbs 12:9 Better to be lowly and have a servant than to play the great man and lack bread.

R Aylor

It’s probably easy to read this verse and all of a sudden hone in on how Solomon says it’s better to have a servant… and start making inferences and judgments against Gods word while missing the truth.

To have a servant in an acceptable way biblically can be found a number of ways. Heres a few:

* A servant who works as an apprentice. (Elisha to Elijah) In this situation the servant would have a desire to show respect to their mentor.

* A servant who is working off a debt.

* A servant might have been someone who had no land in Israel and was willing to be hired out as a servant to have a place to live and food to eat.

* In all these examples the one who has a servant does so because he was gracious to the one who serves him. The text calls him lowly… He is a humble person.

* We see this in the first example as a mentor in teaching his apprentice.

* The second by letting someone work off a debt instead of putting them in jail.

* And the third in hiring someone who needs a place to live and food to eat.

This verse is strange in one sense. It says the one who has a servant is the lowly one… You might think the lowly one would be the servant. But from the examples given for good reasons to have a servant we see that the master of the house is the one who is willingly and intentionally making himself lowly. He is the real servant here. In his case to have a servant is to be the real servant.

As I read this text, I am reminded of Jesus… the King of Kings, Creator of all things… the one who holds the fabric of the Universe together by the word of his power… He came as the lowest of servants, even to the giving of his own life on the Cross.

Matthew 20:28 ...the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”


Though he was the greatest of all men he did not play the “great man” like our text says some people do. The Master came to serve and he gave himself as our example.

Philippians 2:5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant,  being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

pray