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Let me first apologize for not sending out the devotionals, it has been a combination of being sick and depressed. Then - the snow! Callie has been out of school - all - week! We're not even sure if they will have school tomorrow and here we sit with very little groceries, but we are trying our best to hold onto hope! Please forgive me.
In His Hope,
Sharon
Thursday
January 13, 2011
Fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge. Only fools despise wisdom and discipline.
Proverbs 1:7
Until the day I accepted Christ as my Savior I did not have a reverent fear of God. Up until that day I truly had to make myself believe there was no God. As long as I believed that – there was no need for change. However, when the Holy Spirit took up residence in my life – well you know what happened! As a result of reading God's Word, hearing it taught, and allowing Him to change me, I began to receive knowledge of what He wanted in my life.
Jesus came to reveal to us the wisdom, the very heart, of God. Matthew 11:25-26 says, "Then Jesus prayed this prayer, 'O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding the truth from those who think themselves so wise and clever, and for revealing it to the childlike. Yes, Father, it pleased you to do it this way.'" It is God's desire for us to know Him. He wants us to trust Him with every aspect of our lives, to walk with Him every step of the way.
Believe me, I know this is hard; lately it has gotten harder and harder for me. I've been extremely sick – and broke – totally broke even to the point that my Internet was cut off. When that happened I truly felt shut off from the world – even though I still had a phone. I've come to realize that the wisdom of the world says, "entertain me, love me, serve me, do it my way." This, the ways of the world, began with Cain and Able. When Able found favor in God's eyes, Cain did as the world does today; the competition was started. Our society wants to clone the strong, and kill the unborn – ultimate examples of selfishness.
When we submit to God, read His Word, and communicate with Him through prayer, we find that it is in losing our lives that we find real life. St. Francis of Assisi said it best: "Lord, make me an instrument of Thy Peace; Where there is hatred, let me sow love; Where there is injury, pardon; Where there is doubt, faith; Where there is despair, hope; Where there is darkness, light; and Where there is sadness, joy. Divine Master, Grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; To be understood as to understand; To be loved as to love; For it is in giving that we receive; It is in pardoning that we are pardoned; And it is in dying that we are born to eternal life."
In essence, wisdom teaches us that we need to see our shortcomings and allow Him to change us. Joy comes when there is more of Jesus and less of me.
Lord, I confess that most of the time I just don't like it when You discipline me. Yet, as time goes by and I see what the benefits of Your discipline are I just want to praise You! Thank You for using me even though I am just a little woman with little training! You keep on working in me. I want to love You more, and I want Your wisdom working in me!
