Proverbs 22

I will be honest and tell you it is very hard to read a book in Proverbs and try to limit my writing to simply one or two verses! Each verse is so good! I realize it is a good problem to want to write too much rather than not wanting to write at all. As I read Proverbs 22 today, verse 28 is the one I want to focus on a little more.

"Don't stealthily move back the boundary lines staked out long ago by your ancestors" Proverbs 22:28

I realize at the time this was written it most likely referred to physical boundaries that had been marked on the land. However, for our sakes, I want to look at it in terms of moral boundaries. I find it interesting that in the Message translation, the movement of the boundaries is described as being stealth. This is the way boundaries are moved. A society does not dramatically change their accepted boundaries through a giant transition of beliefs all at one time. The acceptable boundaries are moved a little at a time over decades or perhaps centuries. I would imagine if our great-grandparents compared the world they knew as children to the world we know today, they would hardly believe it is the same world.

It was only 50 years ago where most moms were home and able to be full-time moms and homemakers. Before I proceed with what I'm about to say, let me state I am not against women working outside of the home. What I am going to share is simply from my personal experience of working in the corporate world for 13 years and my last 10 months of being home. What happened 50 or so years ago was this: satan lied to us. He slowly convinced us that we were equal to men. He told us we didn't need to be "tied down" to the home all day and we were capable of managing and caring for our families ourselves. He lied to our men by telling them we do not really need them. These lies resulted in men feeling no commitment to their homes or responsibility for their children. He began telling us our boundaries were restrictive. This was not just in the area of caring for our home, but regarding our sexuality. He told us if men could be carefree in their exploits, then we could too. He lied to us by telling us if it feels good, then it's okay. Our society's boundaries began to move.

I watched several of the History Channel's specials yesterday about the 7 Deadly Sins. The History Channel made several references to the role of the Christian church in regards to society's view of these sins. They portrayed the church as establishing the belief of sin in order to control their society. I don't believe these were simply an invention of man. The boundaries erected by God and spoken to our ancestors were done in order to protect. Without the boundary to respect life and not murder, we would be "free" to murder at will. Without the boundaries of sex within marriage, we reap the consequences of unplanned pregnancies. These consequences are single mothers becoming "normal" in our society. The consequences are millions of unborn babies because satan has lied and told us the life we carry is not really a life. We see an outrageous increase in the spread of sexually transmitted diseases and even new diseases have surfaced in the last few decades. Millions of wounded individuals pay the price for living outside of God's boundaries.

I know within my own life I have moved my boundaries many times. At certain times I'm not sure I had any boundaries at all. The amazing thing I've learned through it all is that Jesus was not afraid to cross the boundaries in order to come get me and bring me home. During His time on earth He crossed the boundaries of His society in order to love and rescue those who had crossed before Him. The bible is full of stories of those who had crossed the accepted boundary, but returned home to be welcomed safely into God's kingdom. Think of the woman caught in adultery and brought before Jesus to be judged. Not only did He not judge her, but He rescued her for the persecution of others. Jesus crossed the boundary to visit a well and ask a woman for water. He not only asked for water, but told her about her many husbands and how the man she lived with was not her husband. Consider the tax collectors, some of the most hated people in their culture. Jesus frequently visited their homes and dined with them. The woman who anointed Jesus with oil crossed the boundary to be in His presence. The woman with the issue of blood defied the boundaries of being shunned by her culture just so she could touch Christ and be healed.

My prayer for you today is two-fold. If you have crossed a boundary in your life that has been established for your protection, please know it is never to late to come home. While there are those in your life who may judge what you have done or try to condemn you for the choices you have made, please know there is a Savior who is waiting for you and will welcome you into His arms. My second prayer is if there are boundaries on you that have been imposed by someone other than God, that today is the day you break free of that bondage. If there have been restrictive words spoken over your life, I rebuke them. Perhaps you feel God is calling you to something that is greater than yourself. I pray you seek His wisdom in how to proceed. Think of all the stories in scripture of people who broke through their society's boundaries to find their healing waiting on the other side.

Proverbs 13

There are so many great points within Proverbs, that I'm having a really hard time choosing just ONE point to write about! If you don't mind, today I'll be using a few different verses within Proverbs 13.

I'll start with verse 1:

"Intelligent children listen to their parents; foolish children do their own thing"

I read this verse and immediately thought about my own children as I fist pumped into the air saying "yeah, that's RIGHT!" Then I heard God saying....DAUGHTER......do you listen to YOUR Daddy? Oops. Often in our searching for intelligence, we overlook the one who can give us the greatest wisdom possible. That is the instruction that comes from God.

This leads me to verse 10:

"Arrogant know-it-alls stir up discord, but wise men and women listen to each other's counsel."

How teachable are you? Are you so prideful about your life or your opinions that you are unteachable? Trust me, at the moment your pride needs to be addressed, God Himself will address it if you are not willing to listen to the counsel of others. The old phrase "Pride comes before a fall" is extremely accurate. Your pride and arrogance not only affects you personally, but it also can stir up discord and conflict. This will happen in your home, work, and church. Where do you seek your wisdom? This leads us to verse 14:

" The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life, so, no more drinking from death-tainted wells!"

When listening to counsel or advice, it is imperative to check your resources. If you are seeking advice on your relationship, don't ask your single friends. Seek out someone who has been married a decade or two! They obviously will know more than someone who is single. If seeking advice on money, don't ask someone who is in debt worse than yourself. Find someone who is living debt-free or at least within their means. It is by seeking out this wise counsel that you will grow. Even the scripture here says to stay away from death-tainted wells! Who wants to drink THAT?

Verse 20 reminds us of this same principal:

"Become wise by walking with the wise; hang out with fools and watch your life fall to pieces."

I've been told many times that you can tell the character of a man by looking at his friends. This can also be said for each of us. If you examine your circle of friends, what type of influences do you see? Do you see friends who will encourage you to maintain your integrity or do you see friends who will entice you away from the plan for God's best in your life? I wonder how many people have ended up in jail because of being in the presence of a crime committed by a friend. People have driven getaway cars from robberies and never knew a crime had happened! This may be an extreme example, but it makes the point.

I encourage you today to evaluate your friendships. I'm in no way saying to abandon friends who are in need of Jesus. But, ask yourself this: "Am I influencing them more than they are influencing me?" If their influence in your life is greater than your influence in theirs, it may be time to take a step back. Are there women you know in passing, but see the wisdom in their lives that you would like to have. Ask them to get together for coffee or lunch. Most women with wisdom are glad to share what they have learned especially if it could save you the heartache of having to figure it out on your own!

Proverbs 8

"So, my dear friends, listen carefully; those who embrace these my ways are most blessed. Mark a life of discipline and live wisely; don't squander your precious life. Blessed the man, blessed the woman, who listens to me, awake and ready for me each morning, alert and responsive as I start my day's work. When you find me, you find life, real life, to say nothing of God's good pleasure. But if you wrong me, you damage your very soul; when you reject me, you're flirting with death." Proverbs 8:32-36

The person speaking in the above verse is Wisdom. In the beginning of chapter 8 we are told Wisdom stands in the middle of a busy street crying out to us. This is how desperately wisdom wants to guide us. In the middle of all the hustle and bustle and noise of our lives, wisdom is crying out to guide us. She recognizes all the other voices screaming for our attention. She knows it's often hard for us to hear her. However, she does issue a warning to us if we are unable to tune in and be guided by her.

I feel it is safe to say all the bad decisions in my life have been made with a lack of wisdom. The good I have seen played out in my life has come about as a result of seeking not only man's wisdom, but also God's wisdom. Just as the scripture here in Proverbs says, when we find wisdom it leads us to real life. Not only will we begin to see our lives lived in the way they are supposed to be, but we also find God is pleased with us!

If we do not seek wisdom, we are told we are damaging our soul. Not only has my soul been damaged by my own lack of wisdom, but by the lack of wisdom from others. Sometimes this damage was as a result of my lack of wisdom by choosing to associate with the person who eventually hurt me. Do you see the common thread here? It's the lack of wisdom!

We flirt with death when we choose to reject wisdom. Many times God places people into our lives to speak wisdom to us. We often become so focused on what we want that we disregard the warnings God is giving to us. Do you have people in your life who are wise? Are you honest with them about your thoughts, feelings, and actions? Do you have wise counsel? Where do you go for your wisdom? Is your standard of wisdom guided by the wisdom of the world or do you have Godly women in your circle of friends who can give you advice that lines up with the wisdom of God and scripture? I would encourage you today to seek out these types of friendships. Not only seek these out, but also evaluate if there are current relationships you may need to end. I know this is a hard thing to do. We may not want to hurt anyone's feelings, yet we know their "advice and counsel" is not guided by wisdom. I am praying for you today to start a pattern of wise choices and for guidance on the relationships God wants for you and also wisdom on those He may want you to end.

Becoming Vulnerable

One of the things about the English language that often baffles me is how one word can have completely opposite meanings depending on the context in which it is used. Today in my meeting with friends, the word vulnerable was shared and used to describe how one of the women was feeling. As she began to share, most of us around the table agreed that we have had moments lately of feeling the same way.

As I continued thinking about this word, I began considering all of the implications it can have. According to dictionary.com, it can mean the following:

–adjective
1.capable of or susceptible to being wounded or hurt, as by a weapon: a vulnerable part of the body.
2. open to moral attack, criticism, temptation, etc.: an argument vulnerable to refutation; He is vulnerable to bribery.
3. (of a place) open to assault; difficult to defend: a vulnerable bridge.


Usually when we are vulnerable, it is because of an area in our lives we have left unprotected. If our full armor is not in place, we leave parts of us exposed to attacks. We are vulnerable when we put ourselves into a situation to sin. We leave our spouses vulnerable when we have disconnected from the relationship. We leave our children vulnerable when we are not attentive parents.

On a different note, when I read the definition as being susceptible to being wounded, I consider being vulnerable in the context of our relationships. By me writing on this blog and exposing my thoughts and feelings, I'm leaving myself vulnerable. Something as simple as a Facebook status leaves you vulnerable to comments from people who may disagree with you. What they have to say may attack your beliefs and possibly hurt your feelings. In sharing their opinions, they open themselves to be vulnerable to anyone else who may subsequently follow in their comments.

On the flip side of this vulnerability is that in order to establish any type of deep relationship, we MUST be willing to leave ourselves vulnerable. Without vulnerability, all you have is fake, surface level relationships. What is the point of that? I think we have all been hurt at some point in our lives by someone we trusted to never hurt us. However, as all of us being human (despite what some think about their superhuman powers), we can and will inevitably hurt those we love. Not that we do it intentionally, but we all make mistakes because none of us are perfect. This also means when we allow ourselves to become vulnerable in love to others, they will inevitably hurt us in some way. They will cause wounds. More often than not, it's not their action or words that wound. It's simply their actions or words that reopen a scab on a wound that existed prior to the current offense.

If you will allow me to become vulnerable here I can admit the greatest wound in my life has been the one of abandonment. Those who should have protected me in life never did. Those who should have stuck by me and supported me, did not. Those who knew of painful issues from my past and promised to not do the same thing to me, eventually did those exact same things. All I remember saying to them was "But you PROMISED you wouldn't do that!" For most of my life I kept people, both male and female, at an arms length away from me. My reasoning was that if I did not allow you to get close to me, then you could not hurt me. This refusal to become vulnerable left me at a place where I had become the one thing I feared the most....alone. Not only was I a single mother of two who never went on any dates, but I had no genuine female friendships either.

As God began speaking to me regarding this area of my life, He showed me why I needed to start tearing down my wall. He spoke to me by saying my wall was doing a great job at keeping the bad out, however it was keeping all the good out as well. Not only was the good on the other side of my wall unable to penetrate the fortress I had built, but the good I had inside my castle was being kept inside of me! He asked me what good was all I had experienced and learned in the process of my pain if I never shared my story, feelings, and lessons with others.

God instructed me to issue an open invitation to my home for any women who wanted to get together for coffee and conversation. I am definitely not what you would call the "hostess" type of personality. This step was a bold one for me. I did not know who would respond to this invitation or even what we would talk about. What if someone showed up and we had nothing in common? What if they got to know the REAL me and decided I was not really someone they wanted to spend time around? What if I became VULNERABLE to them and they ABANDONED me?

In the 7 months since I opened my home, I have become close friends with a dozen or so women who mean the world to me. Most of them I knew only in passing by seeing them at church on Sundays. Some of them I had not had more than two conversations with until they showed up at my house. What I found in our little community is that all of them were in a similar place as myself. They all longed to have real, genuine friendships with other women. As much hurt as we had all experienced, we all longed to be vulnerable again. To tell you there were some DEEP wounds in this group is an extreme understatement. However, what we all found through our vulnerability is that it is possible to allow ourselves to be open to hurt, yet find love and acceptance instead. Just as the caterpillar becomes vulnerable within it's cocoon and knows it could be facing it's end, we too can find ourselves breaking free, sprouting wings and flying because of our vulnerability.

Proverbs 5

What kind of a woman are you? I'm asking this as a serious question. If you've spent any time in church you have heard of the Proverbs 31 woman. She is described as the epitome of what a godly woman should be. As I read Proverbs 5 today, I was reminded of the woman men are instructed to avoid. I'm not sure about you, but she is definitely NOT who I want to be!

"The lips of a seductive woman are oh so sweet, her soft words are oh so smooth. But it won't be long before she's gravel in your mouth, a pain in your gut, a wound in your heart. She's dancing down the primrose path to Death; she's headed straight for Hell and taking you with her. She hasn't a clue about Real Life, about who she is or where she's going." Proverbs 5:3-6


Ouch! These are pretty strong words! Consider the "lips of a seductive woman" description. Maybe it's just me, but everything in our culture encourages us to be seductive. Everything from lipstick to our shoes are supposed to be sexy! Men admire us in high heels because of the seductive way it accentuates our calves. We can take lessons on applying sultry make-up. You only need to glance at the headlines on magazine covers the next time you are at the grocery store to see how much of a focus seduction is in our society. The next time your favorite television show goes to commercial, take note of how women are portrayed or how the ad is selling their product. However, scripture tells us we are to be different!

The seductive woman is compared to gravel in your mouth and a pain in your gut! That is definitely not a description I want attached to myself! Not only is she headed down the wrong path, she's dancing her way there. We are told here that a woman focused on seduction knows nothing about real life, her identity, or her future. When I read this I think of the woman I used to be. You see, I was most definitely her! I found my value in the attention and relationships I had with men. When I look at my life then, I can see how I was lost and wandering through life. I had no real purpose. I had no goal or vision for my life.

I praise God for delivering me from the confusing life I was leading. I praise Him for revealing to me who I am as HE made me to be! I am thankful for His direction in my life. There is no more wandering around and being easily tossed about in the wind. If you are feeling in need of direction in your life, I pray you will turn to the one who longs to seduce YOU! I pray there we no longer be a need for earthly seduction in your life, but only the seduction of heaven and the love of our Savior!

Proverbs 4

In keeping with my Proverbs reading, today we are looking at the verses in Proverbs 4. Today we will focus on verses 20-27:


"My son, pay attention to what I say; turn your ear to my words. Do not let them out of your sight, keep them within your heart; for they are life to those who find them and health to one’s whole body. Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. Keep your mouth free of perversity; keep corrupt talk far from your lips. Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you. Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways. Do not turn to the right or the left; keep your foot from evil"


These verses follow advice on seeking and guarding wisdom. The words we are to heed are the words of the wise. Wisdom is found in the scriptures are we are to keep them in our sights and carried in our hearts. The Bible is not about legalistic rules, but about wisdom to guide us through life and to protect us from evil. Most of us, at some point, have made choices that did not line up with the instruction of scripture. Often when we make those choices they lead to pain and heartbreak. They almost always lead to some form of consequence. There are aspects of my life I could complain about, but I do not because they are the results of my choices that were disobedient to the wisdom of scripture.

Interesting to me in these verses is the phrase "above all else". There are several commands here, but the command to guard our hearts is stated to be the MOST important. It is true that everything we do, say, and think is a result of what is inside of our heart. If we do not guard out hearts we can become ineffective in our lives. If our guard is down, we leave ourselves open to the enemy. It is within our hearts that bitterness, offense, jealousy, fear, prejudice, and a myriad of other emotions can take root. Our heart is also the wellspring of joy, compassion, love, caring, tenderness, and mercy. If we are not careful to protect the gate of our hearts, any of the above can enter. We must remain vigilant to ensure only those things of God are allowed to plant and grow within our hearts.

We are also instructed to not allow perverse and corrupt words from our lips. I see this as a continuation of guarding our hearts. Our words and conversations are an overflow of the state of our hearts. I know in my life I have heard myself say something and then immediately think; "where did THAT come from?" I have had to step back and evaluate the reason for my tone, choice of language, etc.

Without focus, we can become easily swayed. Even thousands of years ago the world was vying for our attention. The author addresses this by telling us to neither look right or left, but remain focused on what is before us. Giving careful thought to the paths of our feet means we are intentional in what we do and where we go. We don't suddenly find ourselves in a bar. In the same way, we don't suddenly find ourselves in church. We have a choice to make and we must seek wisdom before we make those choices.

My prayer for you today is for wisdom to prevail in your life. I pray you will seek guidance if you are struggling with guarding your heart. Maybe there is a television show you need to stop watching. If could be a friendship with the opposite sex that could lead you to the "right or left" and you need to back away from that relationship. Each of us have our own area of distraction. I pray God will speak to you on what your area is and will give you the strength and tenacity to protect your heart at all costs!

Proverbs 1

I have decided to go through the book of Proverbs. I am going to give my elaboration on a few verses, but I recommend you read all of the first chapter today, since it's the first of the month. In preparing for today's message I read several different translations. I have decide to go with The Message translation since it's written in "today's" language.

"These are the wise sayings of Solomon, David's son, Israel's king— Written down so we'll know how to live well and right, to understand what life means and where it's going; A manual for living, for learning what's right and just and fair; To teach the inexperienced the ropes and give our young people a grasp on reality. There's something here also for seasoned men and women, still a thing or two for the experienced to learn— Fresh wisdom to probe and penetrate, the rhymes and reasons of wise men and women. Start with God—the first step in learning is bowing down to God; only fools thumb their noses at such wisdom and learning." Proverbs 1:1-7

I think it's important for us to start at the beginning. These first few verses explain the reason for this book of the bible. I have often heard people state they wish life came with an instruction book or a manual. The reality is, according to what we just read, life does come with a manual. Most of everything we need to know about how to live can be found within the book of Proverbs. This is our reference guide for life. Whether you are young and inexperienced or older with years of life under your belt, the Bible is still needed to learn and grow. There is infinite wisdom found within just this one book alone. As the verse above states, "there is FRESH wisdom to probe and penetrate." The word becomes alive when we take the time to examine and allow God to speak to us. When we dive deeper, they are no longer simply words on a page. They begin to breathe and pulsate with the heartbeat of God. They dance around us and even when our time of reflection is over, they continue to sing over us. When we take the time to breath in the fragrance of God's inspired word, we find the beautiful scent lingers on us as we go throughout our day. This is the perfume that fills us when life becomes stinky!

It is key that we do not overlook the command given in verse 7. I want to take this verse by itself for contemplation:

"Start with God—the first step in learning is bowing down to God; only fools thumb their noses at such wisdom and learning"

Everything we do is pointless if we do not start with God. We can do a myriad of great humanitarian efforts or give away millions of dollars, but none of it matters if we have not first started with God. Not just in learning about Him, but in bowing down to Him. I know atheists who have prolific knowledge of scripture. They have studied more about God than I probably ever will in my life. However, their head knowledge about God amounts to nothing. They have their knowledge because they are seeking wisdom in their flesh, but until there is a bowing and submission of their lives to God, nothing will make sense. It is only through God that we can begin to gain true wisdom. God wisdom is the wisdom that confounds the world. It's the ability to love someone the world says we should hate. God wisdom is forgiving the "unforgivable" because we recognize how much God has forgiven us. God learning is when we recognize the patterns in our lives that are unhealthy and we learn to choose differently. God learning is when we hear His voice and act in a way that seems irrational, but after the action is taken, we see it all made perfect sense.

If there is only one thing you takeaway from this today, I pray it's that you would recognize the need for bowing and submission in your life. Are there areas you are holding onto that God is asking you to release? He is waiting for you to bow at His feet and lay that area at the altar. Only after this can we receive the wisdom and learning we so desperately need.