a study in proverbs.
1. a heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones. this one is huge for me. i am slowly working on it- trying to learn how to overcome an inherently jealous heart. trying to be content, be at peace, with whatever God has for me (or doesn't have for me) right now. proverbs 14:30.
2. one who is slack in his work is brother to one who destroys. basically, i need to do my best. duh. but if i really think about it, i need this reminder all. the. time. how would my home be different if i were fully faithful in every job i do? this quote from elisabeth elliot always pops in my head when i'm hanging the towel in my bathroom: "if you do a thing at all, do it thoroughly: make the sheets really smooth on the bed, sweep all the corners and move all the chairs when you sweep the kitchen, roll the toothpaste tube neatly and put the cap back on, hang your towel straight on the rod.." such small, simple things! i need to be faithful to my tasks, and be faithful in the little things, because it is in the little things that my character is revealed. proverbs 18:9.
3. if you falter in times of trouble, how small is your strength! indeed. and what if i falter in times that are even just the tiniest bit difficult? (which i do.) i am so weak! i am praying that my heart will be more deeply rooted in Christ, more trusting in His wisdom and care for me, and that He will be everything to me. i pray that i will stand firm in the faith and not be shaken, no matter what happens. proverbs 24:10.
4. like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self-control. scary. how fiercely i need this fruit of self-control. to guard and protect me from giving in to whatever sounds good, from being indulgent, from being lazy, from wasting money, from wasting my life. proverbs 25:28.
5. fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe. yes, fear of almost anything will prove to be a snare. one of my biggest revelations this summer was that i have fear. it's like a disease. it was lurking along quietly, i didn't want to acknowledge it, but now i'm finally owning up to it. (and i think it might be a disease that everyone has, in some form or another.) i'm figuring out that fear does and will continue to control my life, unless i do something about it. i need to fill my mind with things that are true, watch what thoughts i let dwell in my head, and keep on praying without ceasing. proverbs 29:25.
thank you, Lord, for lessons learned and all the lessons i have yet to learn.
9 comments:
Wow! I needed to read this so bad. I just started reading Proverbs. I'm looking forward to reading more. Thanks Summer!
@ kaitlyn.. my pleasure, kaitlyn! i hope you enjoy it as much as i have been! i love how there's no end to its wisdom and relevancy. every time i read it, i get more out of it!
Oh how wonderful of a post. I have my Bible open and am underlining as I read. I absolutely love Proverbs and I think lessons can be learned over and over. Thanks for sharing.
Thank You Summer.
I really needed to hear all of these things, especially today.
As a new mommy, and going from two incomes to one, there have been a lot of adjustments in our life.
Instead of trying to live like we used too - over indulgent, self focussed and want driven... I need to reevaluate my values - want less - live more.
Blessings to you.
These are all lessons that I need to work on. Thanks so much for sharing this. It is very timely.
thought provoking and encouraging. i've been pondering and working on self control, the fear (fear=lack of trust in God=sin...yikes), and the faithfulness in little things for a while now, and this was a timely and excellent reminder.
Oh, and yes, living in contentment is way up there on my spiritual to-do list too...
wow, good reminders. so many things to practice. thanks for the encouragement!
I love these!