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 28:25-26 (KJV): 25 He that is of a proud
heart stirreth up strife: but he that putteth his trust in the LORD shall be
made fat.
26 He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool: but whoso walketh wisely, he
shall be delivered.
Proverbs 28:25-26 (AMP): 25 He who is of a greedy
spirit stirs up strife, but he who puts his trust in the Lord shall be enriched
and blessed.
26 He who leans on, trusts in, and is confident of his own mind and heart is a
(self-confident) fool, but he who walks in skillful and godly Wisdom shall be
delivered.
Thoughts for the Day:
These verses
from Proverbs tell us that at the root of strife and
self-confident foolishness is pride; however, those who trust in God and walk in
His Wisdom will be delivered and prosper.
Verse 25
tells us that those who are prideful will stir up strife and
controversy. The pride spoken of in this verse is referring to one being
arrogant and haughty. If two people are unyielding and arrogant when
they disagree about something, it will always produce contention and
strife. If we desire to get along with others, we must humble ourselves,
and not take the opinion that we are better or smarter than others.
This verse says that if we are well advised, we will act in wisdom
toward others. We will not act defiantly or condescendingly to others.
As God's children, we must
always act the way He would want us to act. This is not saying that we
are to always take the position of being a "door mat." Sometimes the
harder thing to do in a situation is to speak the truth in love,
instead of trying to avoid a situation because we dread conflict. When
we find ourselves in a situation of disagreement with others, we should
seek God as to how He would have us to respond, in spite of how we might
feel about the situation. If we feel we are being treated unfairly, the
best way to see justice in our behalf is to love, forgive and do unto
others, as we would have them do unto us. When we take this position and
pray good prayers toward others, then God will defend us. We should
never pray evil prayers toward those who oppose us. These kinds of
prayers are not coming from the heart of God, but from our own flesh.
When we are blessing others with our prayers and our thoughts, we are
overcoming evil with good.
Verse
26 tells us that we are to lean on God and not rely on our own
abilities. Certainly we are to use the gifts and abilities God has given
us, but not outside of God's guidance. When we are "born again," we are
given spiritual eyes to see things and understand things that otherwise
we could not discern without the Holy Spirit. When we are submitted to
the Lord, He then begins to guide and lead us by His Spirit; we follow
Him in faith, knowing He will not disappoint us or lead us astray. We
must learn to obey Him, even when we do not see or understand how He is
leading.
If we want holy guidance, we must study
the word of God and find out what God has to say about life and human
experience, so that we can be guided by His Word. Neither my opinion,
nor anyone else's opinions, are sufficient to solve the problems of
humanity. The answers can only be found in God's Word. He is the Creator
of all things, and He has the answers for His creation. He is the Judge
and final authority on every subject. By keeping His Word and His
commandments, we will not stumble, but will have light on our pathway of
life; therefore, we should make it a priority to understand His ways
and learn of His wisdom.
Since God requires us to walk in faith
and trust Him, the only way to receive faith is through surrender to
Him, and the only way for our faith to grow is by hearing the Word of
God. When we hear from Jesus (Who is Faith) then our faith grows. We can
hear from God in many different ways, but one of the main ways is by
reading the Bible and listening to His voice when we pray.
Romans 10:17: So then faith cometh by
hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
We must have faith in
God to please Him. The Word of God states that "whatsoever is
not of faith is sin" (Romans 14:23b). Some people refer to
Christians as having "blind faith," but our faith is not a blind faith;
it is faith in a very real person, Jesus Christ. We were blind before
our eyes were opened to His love and forgiveness, but now we see Him and
a new life and world belong to us. When the Holy Spirit leads us, there
is never a "dead end" street with God, even if it might look like that
from our perspective. Because God is God, He can take us around
any obstacle; if not around it, He will take us over it, under it, or
through it. Nothing is impossible with God! Remember His specialty is
MIRACLES! We are limited, but He is unlimited! We only limit
Him when we do not trust and obey Him.
Proverbs 3:5-6:
5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own
understanding.
6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
Prayer for the Day:
Dear Heavenly Father,
You are such an awesome God! Lord, help me to remember all the things You have
done for me in the past, when I am tempted to doubt in my present difficult
situation. Help me to daily walk in faith and to always trust You, and not lean
unto my own understanding. Deliver me from pride and fear, as these twin
evils are aimed at destroying my faith. Give me a love for reading the Bible and
open my understanding to the things You desire to reveal to me in Your Word; and
then, Lord, give me the grace to obey all that You speak to me. In Jesus name, I
pray. Amen.
