Wisdom From Proverbs

1 Dishonest scales are an abomination to the LORD, But a just weight is His delight.
-Proverbs 11:1

My pastor is doing a study on the heart and each day in July we are reading a proverb. Today's devotional really spoke to me. I couln't get past the first verse.

I know in verse 1 God is talking about fair and just business practices, but spiritually I think He may also be talking about deceitfulness, carnal thinking, etc. Honest scales will always be in perfect balance. Is our hearts honest, or our we off balance in some areas of our lives? We are studying the heart, and God measures everything by the heart, so how balanced are our hearts? Jeremiah says that the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked, who can know it? Jer 17:9

In those days things were measured with stones. That is interesting to me because, we may need to take away some stones in our heart to get in perfect balance. Then our "just" weight will be His delight.

Praise God and may He Bless His Word.

A Song of Thankfulness

1 Samuel 21And Hannah prayed, and said, My heart rejoiceth in the LORD, mine horn is exalted in the LORD: my mouth is enlarged over mine enemies; because I rejoice in thy salvation.2There is none holy as the LORD: for there is none beside thee: neither is there any rock like our God.3Talk no more so exceeding proudly; let not arrogancy come out of your mouth: for the LORD is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed.4The bows of the mighty men are broken, and they that stumbled are girded with strength.5They that were full have hired out themselves for bread; and they that were hungry ceased: so that the barren hath born seven; and she that hath many children is waxed feeble.6The LORD killeth, and maketh alive: he bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up.7The LORD maketh poor, and maketh rich: he bringeth low, and lifteth up.8He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth up the beggar from the dunghill, to set them among princes, and to make them inherit the throne of glory: for the pillars of the earth are the LORD's, and he hath set the world upon them.9He will keep the feet of his saints, and the wicked shall be silent in darkness; for by strength shall no man prevail.10The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken to pieces; out of heaven shall he thunder upon them: the LORD shall judge the ends of the earth; and he shall give strength unto his king, and exalt the horn of his anointed.

Commentary on 1 Samuel 2:1-10 (Matthew Henry)Hannah's heart rejoiced, not in Samuel, but in the Lord. She looks beyond the gift, and praises the Giver. She rejoiced in the salvation of the Lord, and in expectation of His coming, who is the whole salvation of his people. The strong are soon weakened, and the weak are soon strengthened, when God pleases. Are we poor? God made us poor, which is a good reason why we should be content, and make up our minds to our condition. Are we rich? God made us rich, which is a good reason why we should be thankful, and serve him cheerfully, and do good with the abundance he gives us. He respects not man's wisdom or fancied excellences, but chooses those whom the world accounts foolish, teaching them to feel their guilt, and to value his free and precious salvation. This prophecy looks to the kingdom of Christ, that kingdom of grace, of which Hannah speaks, after having spoken largely of the kingdom of providence. And here is the first time that we meet with the name MESSIAH, or his Anointed. The subjects of Christ's kingdom will be safe, and the enemies of it will be ruined; for the Anointed, the Lord Christ, is able to save, and to destroy.

Hey Everyone, You Don't Want To Miss This...

My pastor is doing a verse by verse study in Proverbs and he is blogging it @
www.pastordavevcc.blogspot.com

It is very interesting, and he is receiving a lot of comments. So join in, read and get blessed, and leave a comment about whatever the Lord has revealed to you about a verse. It is how we learn. God can say many different things to different people and it is good to get a wide variety of thoughts.

My prayer is that Pastor Dave will put his audio sermons on his blog page. It would be a HUGE blessing to the whole world. I have listened to many preachers around the world on the web and it is a blessing and a good learning tool. Sooooo, Pastor Dave, something to pray about!

The Prostitute in the Mirror...

Don't know who this lady is, but this teaching blew me away. It will definitely make you examine yourself to see if you be in the faith.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aloviJ1Hnbc

Best Poem in the World...

"BEST POEM IN THE WORLD"

I was shocked, confused, bewildered
As I entered Heaven's door,
Not by the beauty of it all,
Nor the lights or its decor..
But it was the folks in Heaven
Who made me sputter and gasp--
The thieves, the liars, the sinners,
The alcoholics and the trash.
There stood the kid from seventh grade
Who swiped my lunch money twice.
Next to him was my old neighbor
Who never said anything nice.
Herb, who I always thought
Was rotting away in hell,
Was sitting pretty on cloud nine,
Looking incredibly well.
I nudged Jesus, 'What's the deal?
I would love to hear Your take.
How'd all these sinners get up here?
God must've made a mistake.
'And why's everyone so quiet,
So somber - give me a clue.'
'Hush, child,' He said, 'they're all in shock..
No one thought they'd be seeing you.'
JUDGE NOT.
Remember...Just going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more
than standing in your garage makes you a mechanic or a car.
Every saint has a PAST...
Every sinner has a FUTURE...

Disobedience Rooted in Fear...

Disobedience Rooted in Fear

TGIF Today God Is First Volume 1 by Os HillmanSaturday, June 06 2009

"Then Moses said to them, 'No one is to keep any of it until morning.'" - Exodus 16:19
Have you ever seen God do something really good in your life only to find that you have abused the blessing He gave you? Such was the case of the Israelites as they were traveling through the desert on their way to the Promised Land. God was providing for them in miraculous ways. Manna was provided each day as their bread. God gave Moses specific instructions as to how this manna was to be eaten. God said each one was to gather only what he needed for that day. No one was to keep it until the next morning.
"However, some of them paid no attention to Moses; they kept part of it until morning, but it was full of maggots and began to smell. So Moses was angry with them" (Ex. 16:20). God was teaching the Israelites daily trust in His provision for them. He wanted them to trust Him one day at a time. If they tried to hoard, God put a self-destruct feature in the manna. Yet God also told them to gather two days' worth on the sixth day so that they would have manna to eat on the seventh day. Interestingly, this manna did not stink or have maggots.
For many years I gathered manna in business out of fear of not having enough. One day, the Lord decided that manna should be destroyed in order for me to learn total trust in His provision. When we operate out of fear, we can expect the Lord to lovingly discipline us in order to help us learn to trust Him. There is a danger when we seek to "insure ourselves" against calamity. If your actions are born from fear, you can expect God to demonstrate His loving reproof so that you might not live in fear.

Ten "I Will's" of Psalm 119...

"I will praise Thee..."
"I will keep Thy statutes..."
"I will meditate in Thy precepts..."
"I will delight myself in Thy statutes..."
"I will not forget Thy word"
"I will run the way of Thy commandments..."
"I will walk at liberty..."
"I will speak of Thy testimonies also before kings..."
"My hands also will I lift up unto Thy commandments..."
"At midnight I will rise to give thanks..."