Monday, September 13, 2010

The answer

Ecclesiastes 7

Wisdom
 1 A good name is better than fine perfume, 
       and the day of death better than the day of birth.
 2 It is better to go to a house of mourning
       than to go to a house of feasting,
       for death is the destiny of every man;
       the living should take this to heart.
 3 Sorrow is better than laughter,
       because a sad face is good for the heart.
 4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,
       but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.
 5 It is better to heed a wise man's rebuke
       than to listen to the song of fools.
 6 Like the crackling of thorns under the pot,
       so is the laughter of fools.
       This too is meaningless.
 7 Extortion turns a wise man into a fool,
       and a bribe corrupts the heart.
 8 The end of a matter is better than its beginning,
       and patience is better than pride.
 9 Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit,
       for anger resides in the lap of fools.
 10 Do not say, "Why were the old days better than these?"
       For it is not wise to ask such questions.
 11 Wisdom, like an inheritance, is a good thing
       and benefits those who see the sun.
 12 Wisdom is a shelter
       as money is a shelter,
       but the advantage of knowledge is this:
       that wisdom preserves the life of its possessor.
 13 Consider what God has done:
       Who can straighten
       what he has made crooked?
 14 When times are good, be happy;
       but when times are bad, consider:
       God has made the one
       as well as the other.
       Therefore, a man cannot discover
       anything about his future.
 15 In this meaningless life of mine I have seen both of these:
       a righteous man perishing in his righteousness,
       and a wicked man living long in his wickedness.
 16 Do not be overrighteous,
       neither be overwise—
       why destroy yourself?
 17 Do not be overwicked,
       and do not be a fool—
       why die before your time?
 18 It is good to grasp the one
       and not let go of the other.
       The man who fears God will avoid all extremes . [a]
 19 Wisdom makes one wise man more powerful
       than ten rulers in a city.
 20 There is not a righteous man on earth
       who does what is right and never sins.
 21 Do not pay attention to every word people say,
       or you may hear your servant cursing you-
 22 for you know in your heart
       that many times you yourself have cursed others.
 23 All this I tested by wisdom and I said,
       "I am determined to be wise"—
       but this was beyond me.
 24 Whatever wisdom may be,
       it is far off and most profound—
       who can discover it?
 25 So I turned my mind to understand,
       to investigate and to search out wisdom and the scheme of things
       and to understand the stupidity of wickedness
       and the madness of folly.
 26 I find more bitter than death
       the woman who is a snare,
       whose heart is a trap
       and whose hands are chains.
       The man who pleases God will escape her,
       but the sinner she will ensnare.
 27 "Look," says the Teacher, [b] "this is what I have discovered:
       "Adding one thing to another to discover the scheme of things-
 28 while I was still searching
       but not finding—
       I found one upright man among a thousand,
       but not one upright woman among them all.
 29 This only have I found:
       God made mankind upright,
       but men have gone in search of many schemes."

Thursday, September 2, 2010

olive

Love
 9Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. 10Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. 11Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality.  14Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position.[c] Do not be conceited.
 17Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. 18If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 19Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay,"[d]says the Lord. 20On the contrary:
   "If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
      if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
   In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head."[e] 21Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

I've been reading a devo daily and this is one of my favorite devotions

'Jesus did not commit Himself unto them for He knew what was in man.'
      John 2:24-25

      
Disillusionment means that there are no more false judgments in life. To be undeceived by disillusionment may leave us cynical and unkindly severe in our judgment of others, but the disillusionment which comes from God brings us to the place where we see men and women as they really are, and yet there is no cynicism, we have no stinging, bitter things to say. Many of the cruel things in life spring from the fact that we suffer from illusions. We are not true to one another as facts; we are true only to our ideas of one another. Everything is either delightful and fine, or mean and dastardly, according to our idea.
      The refusal to be disillusioned is the cause of much of the suffering in human life. It works in this way - if we love a human being and do not love God, we demand of him every perfection and every rectitude, and when we do not get it we become cruel and vindictive; we are demanding of a human being that which he or she cannot give. There is only one Being Who can satisfy the last aching abyss of the human heart, and that is the Lord Jesus Christ. Why Our Lord is apparently so severe regarding every human relationship is because He knows that every relationship not based on loyalty to Himself will end in disaster. Our Lord trusted no man, yet He was never suspicious, never bitter. Our Lord's confidence in God and in what His grace could do for any man, was so perfect that He despaired of no one. If our trust is placed in human beings, we shall end in despairing of everyone.