Proverbs 30

30:11 There is a generation that curses its father, And does not bless its mother. 12 There is a generation that is pure in its own eyes, Yet is not washed from its filthiness. 13 There is a generation—oh, how lofty are their eyes! And their eyelids are lifted up. 14 There is a generation whose teeth are like swords, And whose fangs are like knives, To devour the poor from off the earth, And the needy from among men. 15 The leech has two daughters—Give and Give!
How true is this! This seems to describe our generation today. Many in society today expect everything to be handed to them on a silver platter. They are non-appreciative, have no concept of hard work, they feel like they deserve to live the high-life just because they are! It is a good thing I am not God. Swoop, I would wipe away mankind just like Ike.

30:18 There are three things which are too wonderful for me, Yes, four which I do not understand: 19 The way of an eagle in the air, The way of a serpent on a rock, The way of a ship in the midst of the sea, And the way of a man with a virgin.
Do you ever sit back and wonder in amazement at God's creation. How does an eagle soar forever on 1 stroke of his wings? How can a snake move so fast? Do you remember what it is like to be in love? To have you stomach flutter when that special person walks into a room. Everything that God created is good or at least has some good in it. When I look around at nature I am always in awe of how everything fully depends on God for its care. Everything except humans. How God can love us so much is strange.

Proverbs 29 - No Vision

24:18 Where there is no revelation,the people cast off restraint;
One of the biggest reasons I hear people wanting to vote for Obama is that they believe he has a vision for this country. I have to say I believe they are right. Unfortunately for us conservatives, the Republican party seems to have lost their vision. Without vision people will not buy into you plan. That is why so many churches, corporations, organizations all have vision statements these days. It says, this is who we are, this is what we want to accomplish and this is how we will get there. Somewhere during George Bush's tenure, he lost vision. Our country got lost along with him. Congress was already lost and they have been for years but when our leader lost his vision, we quickly fell into chaos. I believe there are better candidates out there besides the big 2, but they will never get elected. Obama will be our next president and I pray he can accomplish all the things he is discussing. It is either a very bright or bleak moment in the history of the US. Do you have a vision statement for your life? I need to put one together. If you could do anything, be anything, go anywhere, what would it be?

24:22 An angry man stirs up strife, And a furious man abounds in transgression.
I cannot tell you how much this fits part of my life over the last few years. Anger is a deceptive feeling. For me it has been very hard to identify what I have even been angry about. Not sure I still know but there are some issues that I have been working through over the last few years that have yet to be completely resolved. I know they are not because there are times when I can be a very angry person. Anger is a secondary emotion as well. For most men we do not know how to experience or express our other emotions. In fact we have been trained not to. Those emotions will most likely turn into anger. I know this is where mine comes from and that is how I am learning to deal with it. I have to first uncover the real reason for my anger, and second learn how to properly deal with and express it. It may be from something that happened ten minutes ago, or ten years ago

Proverbs 28 - Respect

28:4 - Blessed is the man who always fears the LORD, but he who hardens his heart falls into trouble
Do you show others respect? Have you ever heard the phrase that "respect is given, trust is earned"? Do you know that the more respect you show others the more respect you will be given. We are called to respect God always! Do you? Do I? The answer is no. I can think of times daily when I do or say something that does not show God the respect He deserves. Blood flows through our bodies pumped by the heart. If the arteries harden or the walls of the heart harden then our blood pressure will be abnormal and could even kill you. Unfortunately this type of disease is incurable and you have to learn to live with it. This can also be said of our spiritual heart. If we allow our heart to harden towards God, there is scripture that says we may never gain salvation. This is the ultimate blasphemy of the Lord. In fact, it may be worse for those who have experience God's goodness, yet still turned away.

Hebrews 6- 4 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, 5 and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6 if they fall away,to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame.

This scripture has always confused me and I have heard many interpretations. Some use this scripture to refute the permanence of our salvation. Others say that the person who was "enlightened" never really accepted the Holy Spirit so therefore they were never saved. I tend to agree with this latter statement because the author says that they crucify Christ again. Not that they themselves accept the sacrifice that Christ made of the cross for them a second time, but that they crucify him again, condemning Him and thereby condemning themselves. Another way I tend to look at this like someone who tells me they don't like smoking a cigar. How ridiculous is that. I don't understand how they could smell the rich and wonderful aroma, take the full bodied taste of the smoke into your mouth, letting it flow over under your tongue, into your throat, and all over your taste buds and then not accept that they like it. I just can't comprehend this.

Proverbs 27 - Condition of our flocks

I was watching the 60 minutes special this weekend about the Wall Street debacle. What a ridiculous mess. It all make so much sense to us now that we know the whole truth. I have also been doing a lot of studying for a CTP exam which is all about finance, markets, derivatives, etc. I cannot understand how any of our leaders, any of the politician, any of the people on Wall Street, credit rankings organizations could have been so stupid. Anyone could have looked at what they were doing a realized that it was a house of cards. The sad thing is the ones that are paying for it is us, while these fat cats raked in millions of dollars and walked away. Someone needs to be held accountable, many need to go to jail, congress needs to be reprimanded, impeached, and tossed out for removing restrictions that allowed these things to occur.

27:23-24 Be sure you know the condition of your flocks, give careful attention to your herds; 24 for riches do not endure forever, and a crown is not secure for all generations.
It is obvious to me that I did not know the condition of Wall Street, sub-prime mortgages, and how that all ties into the mutual funds market, stock market, retirement plans, etc. None of us I think did until this happened. We all need to take this as a lesson. In today's world it is much more complicated than going out and counting your sheep 3 times a day. You have to know where your money is being invested, who is handling it, what underlying credit risks and equity supports your investments. 401K's are not just big safe deposit boxes that earn interest and they are not guaranteed. Nothing in life is guaranteed except for the love of God. I feel like Al Pacino. I should have hid my money in the crawl space of my attic.

Proverbs 26 - Mr. T's favorite Proverb

I know all of us remember A-team with George Peppard, Mr. T, etc. The most memorable line from that movie and for Mr. T in general was always "I pity da fool". Well we should all pity the fool. A fool in the proverbialist's (word?) eyes is the most despised among men. They were pretty much worthless. They had denied God (atheists/agnostics), denied His teachings and wisdom, and were leaches on society

Maybe that is why Jesus told us never to call anyone a fool (Matthew 5:22). If we did we were in dangers of the fire of hell. So fool was a very strong insult in those days. Today fool is probably mild considering some of the other ways we insult each other, but the meaning is still relevant. Consider the names of people that we consider the most obnoxious, repugnant, difficult, and beastly. Consider those who deny God, His existence, His omnipotence. That would be what was considered a fool in OT. I am only going to touch on 1 verse since this passage is rife with the worthlessness of a fool.

26:8 Like tying a stone in a sling is the giving of honor to a fool.
This pretty much says it all. We don't use a sling much anymore but consider our weapons of today. Guns. Tying a stone in a sling would be like welding the barrel of a gun shut. Preposterous and dangerous. Just as giving honor to such a person would be ridiculous. Do we honor fools today? Do you give honor or prestige to people that would have foolish qualities as mentioned earlier?

Proverbs 24 - Strength in Troubled Times

Some much of this Proverb speaks of what is occurring today in our financial markets, in our court system, in our divorce courts, and in the world in general. We have become a society where no one wants to own up to their responsibilities. CEOs rob companies blinds and then point the finger at someone else. Marriages fall apart because one of both parties won't communicate and blame the other. Our political party system always wants to point the finger at the other party. We need to start owning up to our own mistakes. Our court system needs to stop functioning as a business and as the judges they were appointed to be. Our political system need to be totally revamped and we need to allow more qualified people to run for office and get equal air time. How many of you know about Donald K. Allen, and independent candidate from Phoenix? Or about the Libertarian running? Neither have gotten any airtime. It cannot be about who has the most money for their campaign, it has to be about who has the answers to solve our economic, ecological, spiritual, medical, and international crises.

24:10 If you falter in times of trouble, how small is your strength!
The Lord promises us we will experience times of trouble, tribulation, and testing. Through these times we build perseverance, character, hope, tenacity, and eventually our faith. It is easy to be strong in good times. True character is shown during the tough times. I played golf today. It was such a beautiful day. I have been playing so good, striking the ball better than I have in years, but on the first 6 holes I was all over the place and playing horribly. I was very frustrated. I have vowed that whenever I play that no matter how I play I will give God the glory. I determined myself to keep playing hard, trust my swing, and persevere. I ended up shooting an 80 after it was all over with and could have easily shot mid 70's had my first 6 holes been better. That is the perseverance we must have. Do you have things that you do that you can relate to this? How do you react when things are not going well for you?

24:11 Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter. 12 If you say, "But we knew nothing about this," does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who guards your life know it? Will he not repay each person according to what he has done
One of the things that I notice today in the church is that people don't want to become involved when others are going through hard times. They don't lend a hand, don't ask, and almost ignore them. How many of us ask "how's it going" or "how are you", but then really don't care. There are many people in our congregations that are really hurting. They are going through divorces, sickness, financial stress, family problems, etc. but no one seems to be there for them. God calls us to assist others in their time of need. He brings us through hard times so that we can share with, emphasize with, and comfort others in their time of need. I experienced this in my divorce. No one was there for me, or for my ex-wife. I know that she was going through significant internal turmoil as was I, yet everyone turned their backs. That breaks my heart and I know it breaks the heart of God? Who do you know who is hurting and really needs your help? Who do I know as well?

24:25 But it will go well with those who convict the guilty, and rich blessing will come upon them.
Our politicians and courts need to hang this scripture around their necks, write it on the forefronts of their head, and store it in their heart. I am positively sure that this is the very reason we are in the problems we are today. The guilty have been exonerated, bailed out, and even haled. We need to convict the guilty and bring about God's blessings on this country

Proverbs 23 - The Dangers of Drinking and Dining

I have many acquaintances who spend their entire life's partying. One has a $3000 a month Amex bill from just going out drinking, partying on the weekends, etc. His life is just what is described in this Proverb

Additionally be careful when you are with people of power that have persuasion over you. It can cause you serious internal turmoil. Have you ever been invited to dine with powerful people, or royalty? How has it made you feel? Special, unworthy, jealous, confused why you cannot have that kind of life?

23:1-5 When you sit to dine with a ruler, note well what is before you, 2 and put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony. 3 Do not crave his delicacies, for that food is deceptive. 4 Do not wear yourself out to get rich; have the wisdom to show restraint. 5 Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle.
If you are even in a situation like this be careful of what you consume. In Jewish times many of the things that rulers ate were not acceptable to the Jewish people and would cause them to sin if they partook. The same can be said for us. Rulers and powerful people have a huge banquet of foods and wines that would not be good for a Christian to take part in. Not to mention the entertainment they sometimes have. Don't desire their lifestyle, it is not the lifestyle of a true Christ follower. It is easy to be enticed by this excess but we need to remember that we are called to show fortitude and restraint. Have you ever been in a situation like this? Did you feel like you should leave?

23:29 Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has strife? Who has complaints? Who has needless bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes? 30 Those who linger over wine, who go to sample bowls of mixed wine. 31 Do not gaze at wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it goes down smoothly! 32 In the end it bites like a snake and poisons like a viper. 33 Your eyes will see strange sights and your mind imagine confusing things. 34 You will be like one sleeping on the high seas, lying on top of the rigging. 35 "They hit me," you will say, "but I'm not hurt! They beat me, but I don't feel it! When will I wake up so I can find another drink?"
What an extremely true and forceful warning about drinking. Remember they drank mostly wine during these times, but today there are all kinds of things that can be abused. Abuse leads to addiction and addictive behavior. You can be easily lured into the darkness of this behavior. I was there in my pre-Christ days. I don't ever want to be there again. Anyone who lives this life will eventually die to themselves, to the world, and eventually die period.