“The tongue of the wise commends knowledge, but the mouth of the
fool gushes folly.”
Proverbs 15:2 (NIV)
Devotion:
My eyes filled with tears when I heard the news. I found
out I offended someone. I mean, really offended her. My words hurt her so deeply, she cried all night. A few weeks
earlier, I had met this woman and in our brief conversation, I said something
she could not forget or get over. I thought it was innocent conversation – I
never meant to hurt her – but she was upset.
For several days, I thought about what I had said and how I
had spoken to this woman. I wrestled with what I should have or could have
done differently. I replayed the conversation over and over. I couldn’t undo
what I had said or how I said it. I couldn’t explain it away or give a dozen
excuses. I couldn’t cover it over with my own tears, guilt or shame. It was
“out there” and there wasn’t much I could do to take it back. After a time of
prayer and reflection, I was able to locate the woman’s address. I wrote her a
note of apology and mailed it.
I wonder how many times my words offend? How many times
during a day do my words hurt someone? I am called to edify others, lift
others up, and encourage others in all things. I try to encourage my husband,
my children and my friends. I try to encourage women in their daily walk with
Him. And then an “oops.” A big “oops” happens that rocks my world and
someone else’s. A misspoken phrase or an inappropriate tone, and in an instant,
someone feels struck down by my words.
I felt truly awful about hurting this person and I knew I
needed to go to God. I shared all my thoughts, feelings, inadequacies, words,
and regrets with the Lord. I gave it all to Him. I prayed for the woman and
her pain. I prayed for forgiveness. I prayed for guidance and healing in this
situation. I let God know I wanted my words to be wise and full of knowledge,
rather than gush folly as today’s verse says.
God heard my prayers, forgave me, and even encouraged me a
few days later as I stood in the foyer of my church. Someone I didn’t know
approached me and asked me my name. She said, “I’ve been wanting to find you
because a few months ago I contacted the church prayer team and requested a
prayer for my husband’s job. You wrote me the most beautiful e-mail and
included a prayer. It meant so much to me. I copied it word for word into my
journal. I just wanted to thank you. Your prayer for me and my husband really
touched me.” After she had gone, I whispered, “Thank you, God.” How awesome He is to remind me that my
words have been messages of His hope and love, and not all folly.
What are your words saying to others?
Dear Lord, thank You
for bringing us sweet reminders about Your care for us in every detail of our
lives. I pray my words today will encourage others and spur them on in their
quest to know You. Please help me to think before I speak. In Jesus’ Name,
Amen.
Samuel DiPiazza, CEO of a major public
accounting firm, co-authored a book on building trust in the business
world. The book proposes a spirit of transparency, a culture of
accountability, and a people of integrity. But in an interview in
Singapore, he noted there is one thing the book cannot teach—integrity.
"Either you have it or you don't," he said.
Is he right? In our
world of shifting standards, can integrity be acquired by those who
don't have it? The answer is found in our unchanging standard—God's
Word, the Bible.
David the psalmist did not head a multinational
corporation. But he did rule over a kingdom, and he was serious about
doing what was right. He recognized how easy it is to slide down the
slippery path of unethical behavior simply because it seems
advantageous.
So David asked God, "Teach me Your statutes" (Ps.
119:124). "Give me understanding," he said, "that I may know Your
testimonies" (v.125). David hated "every false way," and based his life
on the principle that "all Your precepts concerning all things I
consider to be right" (v.128).
No one is born with godly
character. But by studying God's Word and listening to His Holy Spirit,
we can learn to hate falsehood and love integrity. — C. P. Hia
For Further Study How can faith flourish in a hostile work environment? Read Daniel:
Spiritual Living In A Secular Culture on the Web at
www.discoveryseries.org/q0724
The measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he never would be found out. —Macauley
today was mitchell's 2nd birthday. i can't believe that 2 years ago today i was in the hospital with that sweet little boy. now he is getting big and he's a real handful. where does the time go? seriously....where does it go?
my dog must have an ear infection again because he's scratching like mad and when he shakes his head he sounds like he's rolling dice. why couldn't this have happened LAST week when bill was off work so i wouldn't have to worry about going to the vet with all 3 boys. we'll wait and see how he does tomorrow...we'll play it by ear. (sorry, couldn't resist the pun)
oh, an update on the nails...getting easier to type. ha.
“Treat younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity.” 1 Timothy 5:1b-2 (NIV)
Devotion: We were ushered into a two-room hut; our feet shuffled on the hard-packed dirt floor. A tin roof, electrical wires hanging from the ceiling, and no running water clearly testified to the financial hardships this family faced. The Americans in the group smiled awkwardly, unsure of whether to look around the room, at the home owners, or at our Ecuadorian guide, Omar.
“Hermano y hermana” our guide and translator spoke in gentle tones, as he extended a hand of greeting. “Brother and sister” Omar said in Spanish, “thank you for welcoming us into your home.” The ice broken, we all relaxed and enjoyed a brief time of getting to know this hard-working family whose daughter was part of the Compassion International project in Quito .
That trip in to the poverty-stricken section of Quito was eye-opening in many ways. But the memory of the love and dignity our guides (there were others besides Omar) showed to the families of the “proyecto” – the poorest of poor - dominates all others for me.
Each visit we made to the project families began with the same greeting: “Brother” or “Sister.” A single word leveled all differences between the giver and recipient of help, between nationalities and between broad economic and educational divides. A single word reminded us we were family, with all the privileges and responsibilities inherent. One heavenly Father – many brothers and sisters.
As I go about my busy life, I can easily forget to treat others as family. It’s quicker to sneak in and out of church without stopping to offer a hug of greeting or a word of encouragement to those around me. It’s even easier during the week to neglect to show familial love to my sisters and brothers in Christ. My blinders slip on and I view life with tunnel vision.
However, through our adoption as daughters and sons of God, we have been ushered into a huge family called the church. The church is not a building – the church is my family. Every person sitting in my church service is related to me through the blood of Jesus. He may be a man brought on a bus from a rehab center, but he is also my brother. She may be a single mom barely hanging on, but she is also my sister. The lonely widower, the brokenhearted professional, the grief-stricken father, the tattooed teenager … brother, sister, brother, sister.
I have a high calling to treat my fellow Christians as if we were related, because we are. Perhaps we might cultivate more love and compassion among us if we adopted the language of my Ecuadorian friend. No, not Spanish. The language of family. How does that sound “mi hermana”?
Dear Lord, thank You for giving me such a big and wonderful family of brothers and sisters. Help me to see fellow believers in a new light. Help me respond to my friends as a sister would. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Why must I suffer disappointment, sorrow, and tribulation? What have
I done that God should send me trials? Is He displeased with me? These
questions are constantly asked by God's dear children.
Much of
this fear and questioning is due to our misunderstanding of God's
dealings with His own. He has His good reasons. And one of those
reasons is for our spiritual discipline. We should be far more afraid
of being left alone than of God's chastening, for He wastes no time on
worthless objects that give no promise of fruitfulness.
On the
shores of Lake Michigan are great barren sand dunes that have never
felt the point of a plow. But in the rich lowlands beyond them, the
farmer is constantly cultivating the soil. The farmer knows what he is
doing, so he keeps on breaking up the soil. The deeper the plow works
and the more the sharp harrow, the more precious the crop will be when
harvest time comes.
God's plow goes deep, but it is only that in
the end we may forget the plowing and rejoice in the blessing of
bearing much fruit for Him. "No chastening seems to be joyful for the
present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable
fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it" (Heb.
12:11). — M.R. De Haan
When blades of distress cut deep in the soul, Breaking up ground that was untouched before, The Lord is preparing soil to bear fruit Fit for the harvest to feed many more. —Hess
