Proverbs 28 ~ Faithful

God's Not Dead, Like a Lion ~ Newsboys

You have to love the Word of God.

The Bible is like the Vineyard the Vinedresser told us about. 
You have to dig and you have to look with gratitude. 
We have had so much rain here, rain, rain. The sun has begun to shine and we work to shake off the rut of illness, inside during Texas early summer.  Skin cancer in Edward's ear  popped up and was aggressively moving to the cartilage .  Today, wonderful Scoop Cat - the cat for 19 years suddenly, suddenly became quite ill. Today, making one of those life decisions to take a Homeowner's Disability Deduction and making a trip to get papers - knowing real change has hit your life.

And the season has changed again - delighted to have our Baylor graduate home again with his college friends returning home and making noise.

Working to find gratitude. Like Edward does in finding his body is changing. Making a determination to turn exercise into joy and fellowship. Being so grateful to the people who emailed and emailed to find the prayer news - what was to be a 5 hours surgery - after the biopsy - we took photos and that  thing that appeared so suddenly shrank - requiring only two hours and not reconstruction. Remembering with Edward, in 2003 his surgery where he was allergic to the barbiturate anesthesia and that is a life ending event from 2003.

Edward is not taking it all just passively - he researches brain injury and gets outside for a few hours every day.

Proverbs 28

 

The wicked flee when no one pursues,
but the righteous are bold as a lion.

To make changes in life - you have to be very honest about not accepting when things are not working for you. Putting up, with a little halo, can mean saying yes to paths better not traveled at all. We have to say no to the no' s to say yes to the Yes's.

And Einstein was Wrong. If you keep practicing - you can win a gold medal. My son Alexander says - you have to accept what the facts are and work with that. Boldly accept an established fact.

Easy to be down, bring issues to fear and concentrate there - time to stand up.

3 A poor man who oppresses the poor
is a beating rain that leaves no food.

In the United States, we are working harder and harder to be allowed to have fewer luxuries - like houses our grandparents paid for in cash. Or a car. Or a college education. My Texas A & M college cost about the cost of a new VW Jettta thirty years ago. Some of the same professors are there. It's astonishing we now would pay that car - per semester. Not acceptable. Mortgages - our grandparents didn't know the word. The Amish build nice houses and they are paid for. We need a new more workable system. The Bible says a 7 year debt is the largest we should carry.

4 Those who forsake the law praise the wicked,
but those who keep the law strive against them.

We need a new way for The United States Congress to process the vast, new technologies of our times. Senators say, to the media, that complicated bills have 10 people explain to the Senators to nod or not. A Lobbyist told me he explains the the politician why this is necessary - this is a good man. What if he was not? The US Congress could use a judicial system set in place with technical people Congress can rely upon and monitor their bank accounts and creditability.


5 Evil men do not understand justice,
but those who seek the Lord understand it completely.
6 Better is a poor man who walks in his integrity
than a rich man who is crooked in his ways.


7 The one who keeps the law is a son with understanding,
but a companion of gluttons shames his father.

Our Constitution allows State Legislators to propose Constitutional Amendments for needed things like this - Term limits to those who make laws.

The Congress should follow the laws they give us.

 Line Item Veto.

The laws should not 'Frequently' turn into the tangled mess President Ronald Reagan threw on the floor of Congress, during his State of the Union Address. Line Item Veto is needed; lobbyists destroy the law.

Article Five of the Constitution.


8 Whoever multiplies his wealth by interest and profit
gathers it for him who is generous to the poor.

The Kennedy's live this today.
When they donate, it's frequently with a partner system to increase teamwork. A system of earned reward and not a hand out.

9 If one turns away his ear from hearing the law,
even his prayer is an abomination.

Where is our freedom of speech in prayer?
We have men in Arlington National Cemetery - who gave their lives for this freedom.

10 Whoever misleads the upright into an evil way
will fall into his own pit,

But the blameless will have a goodly inheritance. Jesus Christ chose to come into the world, when the upright were not so upright. Strive for the goodly inheritance of giving mercy in a cynical world.

11 A rich man is wise in his own eyes,
but a poor man who has understanding will find him out.

12 When the righteous triumph, there is great glory,

but when the wicked rise, people hide themselves.

13 Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper,

but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.


Confession is good for the soul. Open communication is Psalm 39.

My heart grew hot within me. While I meditated, the fire burned; then I spoke with my tongue



14 Blessed is the one who fears the Lord always!
But whoever hardens his heart will fall into calamity.

A hard heart is not pleasing to Father God. He is described in completion as a God of Love.


15 Like a roaring lion or a charging bear
is a wicked ruler over a poor people.

Saul was an example. Then David continued to be merciful, even to the men who ran up to him only after he was king. He was a shepherd to them. David was merciful, as we want God to be to us.

16 A ruler who lacks understanding is a cruel oppressor,
but he who hates unjust gain will prolong his days.

17 If one is burdened with the blood of another,
he will be a fugitive until death;
let no one help him.

18 Whoever walks in integrity will be delivered,
but he who is crooked in his ways will suddenly fall.


A life lived with meaning creates more harmony and gives life abundantly. The Lord makes peace for those who love the Lord.

 David lived this. All the people of Scripture discovered the path of the godly has frustration. They 'just' overcame by believing He would help them. Jesus loves faith. Jesus does miracles with faith.

19 Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread, but he who follows worthless pursuits will have plenty of poverty.

20 A faithful man will abound with blessings, but whoever hastens to be rich will not go unpunished.

To believe this verse is to be rich in blessings. Jesus said the eyes of faith are blessed.

21 To show partiality is not good, but for a piece of bread a man will do wrong.

We've seen this in our culture, sadly, people are killed for their tennis shoes.

22 A stingy man hastens after wealth and does not know that poverty will come upon him.


Ecclesiastes 11:1
Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days.

This was a favorite verse of my Grandmother Anita and my mom. This suggests what we put out to do with goodness and allow God to be in charge - will prosper.


23 Whoever rebukes a man will afterward find more favor than he who flatters with his tongue. 24 Whoever robs his father or his mother and says, “That is no transgression,” is a companion to a man who destroys.

My brother, working in law enforcement as a Assistant D.A. said many problems stem from parents telling their children constantly bad behavior is excusable or dismissing punishment. We always need to press our children to stretch to go forth the right way.

25 A greedy man stirs up strife, but the one who trusts in the Lord will be enriched.

26 Whoever trusts in his own mind is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom will be delivered. 

27 Whoever gives to the poor will not want, but he who hides his eyes will get many a curse. 

28 When the wicked rise, people hide themselves, but when they perish, the righteous increase.

Sometimes in life, we are forced in a less than winning situation. Not as He would hope. And we learn to turn these things over to Him. Not is defeat, but in Victory. His.

1 Peter 5:7 Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.




Life can be complex. Not all things are within our control. We suddenly are the ping pong in the events around us.
Layers of what people said or what they meant. After a while it looks like the ticker on the three moving screens of the news.

Jesus in our calm times assures us He is coming. And when the wild winds of life howl - the assurance He has seen us through before. And in Psalm 131

But I have calmed and quieted my soul,
like a weaned child with its mother;
like a weaned child is my soul within me.

O Israel, hope in the Lord
from this time forth and forevermore.


Romans 8
There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do.

By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh,

in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.

For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.




Father God, when we pray, let us not be a waiter ordering our will. You have given so much.
You gave us freedom from death and from sin. We stand firm in our faith because of You. We will not submit to the fear we have without You. In the Spirit of the Lord - we are free in Jesus. We will use our freedom - to love and serve each other.

And on the day we see You with our soul - We will be free indeed.

Grace - You have given - nothing we could do would earn grace. We could never earn this Salvation. We are saved in the faith - You gave us. This is the Gift of Jesus.

No longer a slave to fear, but a Child of God and a heir to Your Kingdom. Amen.

Thank You, Jesus!

♔ Lord Jesus Saves †

 

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