November 16 Thru 22, 2009

Day One, Psalm 22:11; Do not be far from me, for trouble is near and there is no one to help. Some of our greatest opportunities for experiencing the goodness and grace of God come when we feel like the Psalmist did. He apparently realized that for whatever reason, he was in over his head. Perhaps he had made a bad decision (that seemed right at the time), or maybe he had taken some bad advice from a trusted friend. Whatever the reason, he finds himself feeling at the end of his rope. He has looked to his left and his right and found no one to advise or assist him. Feeling totally isolated and alone, he turns to the One who will stand beside us and guide us. Of course, you might argue, had he turned to God before he got into this situation he wouldn’t have found himself in such a bind. That is true, but in reality, this writer was no different than you or me—and just as the propensity for making mistakes hasn’t changed over the years, neither has the grace, goodness and guidance of God.

Day Two, Nahum 1:7 The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; He protects those who take refuge in Him. The little book of Nahum is not what we would call a positive book. It is filled with images of wrath, judgment and chaos. But breaking into this dreary picture, like calm after a storm we find this oasis of reassurance. It is interesting that it is placed early on in the book. Perhaps, after writing what was on his heart, the writer went back and added these words to reassure the reader and those who heard it read that even in the bleakest of times, God does not forsake those who turn to him for refuge.

Day Three, Proverbs 24:19a; Do not fret because of evildoers. Someone once observed that we spend more time being worked up about what people whom we have no control over do than in trying to solve our own problems. Fretting about something means that we are letting it get under our skin to the point that it keeps us from focusing on more important issues. When we fret, we obsess about the matter and if we aren’t careful it can consume all our creative energies. People take advantage of other people—that’s life. People don’t always keep their word—that’s life too. People do all sorts of vile and evil things to each others—unfortunately, that’s life too. Obviously “fretting” about them does no good, so what should a Christian’s response be to these kinds of people? In the New Testament we are told to pray for those who mistreat us, lie about us and take advantage of us. We are also taught “not to let the sun go down on our feelings of anger”, which means we need to let things go, trust God for the best outcome and get on with the business of living!

Day Four, Proverbs 24:19b; Do not envy the wicked. Why do we become jealous of someone else? What makes us want what they’ve got? We can come up with all kinds of good sounding reasons such as, “I deserve it more than they do” or “I’m just as entitled at they are” but in truth we envy other people because we use a false standard by which to measure ourselves. When we look at other people, whether or not they are wicked, and use them as the standard by which we determine our sense of self worth we will always come up short. When this happens it is easy to fall into the trap of allowing jealousy to eat away at our minds and then we begin looking for shortcuts to bring us up to their level of attainment. This can lead to compromising not only our values but who we really are. Instead of using other people as the yardstick by which we measure success or spiritual growth look at where you’ve come from—this will give you a true measure of how far you’ve come and help you avoid envy.

Day Five, Proverbs 25:11; A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in a setting of silver. Words should be considered the most powerful weapons at our disposal. Our words can convey displeasure, anger or resentment. They can also tear down an individual and wound them deeply. But words don’t always have to be destructive. Words can comfort us, give us a sense of confidence, bolster our sagging self-image and create joy and enthusiasm. Of course, words can do much more that these examples, but the point is that the words we hear spoken to us (and that we speak to and about ourselves) carry a power impact on us. This is also true of the words we speak to other people—our words can escalate or de-escalate disagreements, persuade people or turn them against our ideas and encourage or discourage others. A word fitly spoken doesn’t just refer to saying soothing words, appreciative words or using upbeat language. It also means learning to choose our words and use tact and diplomacy when dealing with others.

Day Six, Proverbs 25:14; Like clouds and wind without rain is one who boasts of a gift never given. The forecast called for rain and the overcast clouds and blustery winds made it appear that the heavens were pregnant with precipitation. This particular day, I was working out of my downtown office , so I took the precaution of putting on a London Fog all weather coat and grabbed my trusty umbrella as I ventured out for lunch. As I joined the throngs on the bustling sidewalk it was evident that I wasn’t the only one who was expecting the promised rain. But it didn’t rain, it just stay blustery and overcast. As I the elevator whisk me and a couple of other people back to our offices, one of them said, “The weather made fools of us again” as he looked at everyone’s umbrellas and topcoats. When we tell people things or promise them things, then fail to deliver on what we’ve said, we often make them feel foolish, especially if they were depending on us. In addition, they feel let down and cheated because we had built up their expectations and failed them. At issue is our credibility, which is the foundation upon which trust is built. Don’t make promises you can’t keep or have no intention of keeping.

Day Seven, Proverbs 25:25; Like cold water to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country. One tendency among preachers is to take a text like this and find symbolism in it. We do this in order to sound profound and perhaps to avoid having to deal with the plain truth that is stated. Instead of allegorizing this proverb (our souls are thirsty and we hear the good news of the gospel from the far country where God dwells) let’s just take it for what it says. We live in a negative world. Negativity is all around us—turn on the news and it’s all bad, at work the pressure and deadlines can become depressing, not to mention that most of the communications at work deal with what we aren’t doing right. Add to that all the problems that mount during the day and the fact that most of the folks we know love to tell us all the things wrong in their lives. People’s “souls” become thirsty to hear some good news, a good word, an encouraging or an uplifting story. Research has shown repeatedly that saints and sinners alike respond best to ideas and even criticism when it is presented in a positive way. This verse reminds us that not only do we need to hear “good news”—positive, life affirming news, but that we need to also be sharing the things that lifted our spirits and gave us a sense of joy. Of course, included in this is the best news of all—That God sent Jesus, not to bring a negative message of condemnation but a positive life affirming message of living abundantly.