Daily Devotional
Betty Miller shares her daily devotionals which are based on the book of Proverbs in the
Bible.
The Wisdom of God
Verses for the Day:
Proverbs 2:16-20(RSV): "You will be saved from the loose
woman, from the adventuress with her smooth words,
17 who forsakes the companion of her youth and forgets the covenant of her God;
18 for her house sinks down to death, and her paths to the shades;
19 none who go to her come back nor do they regain the paths of life.
20 So you will walk in the way of good men and keep to the paths of the righteous."
Thoughts for the Day:
These verses are given as a warning to young men who
desire to walk in the wisdom of God. The verses above this tell us that if we hide the Word
of God in our hearts and we obey Him, then when we are tempted, we will not fall into a
trap of the enemy. These words are as timely today as the day they were written.
Many men have ruined their lives by having affairs with loose women. If their
lives are not ruined, they still have a stain upon it that remains all the days of their
lives. Even though God can and does forgive illicit love affairs,
most people are not as forgiving, as they still remember them. We have seen this not only in
political leaders, but religious leaders as well over the past number of years. It has
left the nation and the church weakened and our young people have been disillusioned by
dishonorable role models.
The verses above describe loose women as those that
run around on their husbands and forget their covenant with God. They become ensnared
with lust and the devil uses them to flirt with men and lead them astray. These verses
refer to her house as one that sinks down to death and shady paths. This refers to
sin that leads to death or carries the death principle (which means anything that
eventually leads to death). Sin always brings a curse. Our nation today is cursed
with many painful and incurable sexually transmitted diseases. Statistics show that more
than one in five Americans are infected with a viral sexually transmitted disease. This is
not including AIDS. Aids ranks as the ninth leading cause of death in the USA.
Men and women who are unfaithful will find it hard to return to the paths of
righteousness without the help of God. The warning above for men to stay pure is
applicable to women also who would be tempted by lustful men. We must pray for our young
people and our nation to return to the Biblical virtues of virginity and chastity before
marriage, and faithfulness to the marriage vows after wedlock. Divorce, fornication and
sexual sins are not only dividing our homes, but are destroying the very heart of our
nation.
Prayer for the Day:
Dear Father, Forgive us in this nation for the
many sexual sins that are committed daily. Lord, give us grace as your children to
stay pure in a world of filth and sexual perversion. Help those that are struggling with
pornography and other sexual sins to break free from the bonds of those sins.
Restore the marriages that have been wounded through unfaithfulness. Give a
forgiving and merciful heart to those that have been violated in this way. Give those who
are in affairs the strength to break free of unholy relationships. Restore each
marriage with the love they once had for each other. Cause those that are living together
outside of marriage to recognize this sin, and either marry or leave this unbiblical
union.
Deliver us, your people, from lust, perversion,
pornography, and all other sexual sins. Let us hide your Word in our hearts so that
we will not sin against You. Cleanse our nation of its sexual perversions and
deliver our young people from the devil's temptations. Heal those that have
repented, not only emotionally, but also of any sexual disease they may have contracted
before they found You. Give us pure thoughts and deliver us from the evil of our
day. And Lord, if we are not guilty of any sexual sin, help us not to be critical of those
who are. Let us help others by praying for them and believing for them to be set
free. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.
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