Proverbs 15:2
Knowledge flows like spring water from the wise; fools are leaky faucets, dripping nonsense.
Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved.
When I was a little girl, we used go to a place west of town called Stacy Springs. Today a house sits where there once was an open pavilion. Groups from area clubs and churches would gather there for picnics. It’s not far above the “Big Dike” area on Greers Ferry Lake. We would hike away from the pavilion a few yards to a natural spring that bubbled from the ground. The clean water seemed to magically gurgle from the ground in a gentle, steady flow.
Years ago, people often depended on springs like this one for a clean water supply. My great-grandmother and her family lived near more than one fresh-water spring. They trusted the cool, clear water to be pure and safe.
I recently watched a “House and Garden” show where a family was renovating their basement, and they discovered dirty, moldy water damage caused by a leaky pipe upstairs. The water had seeped down the wall, through the floor and created a murky mess on the ground level… compromising that surface and rendering it unsafe.
If you stop and think about it, we all know people who are like a freshwater spring. They seem to be a steady source of wisdom… trustworthy and dependable for information and advice that is sound and true. We also know people who are like the leaky pipe or faucet. They always have an opinion – and are glad to share it – but mostly spew hearsay, unkindness, or unsubstantiated viewpoints. It doesn’t necessarily take a rocket scientist to discern which is which… but we do have to stay on our toes.
How do you know what you are seeing and hearing is truthful? How do you figure it all out? What if someone is telling you that his/her way is accurate, because “I am a Christian, and God has told me this”? My simplest answer is, “Ask God for yourself!” Do some digging. Get the facts. See if what this person is saying really lines up with the word of God. Ask God if what is being said makes sense, is loving and kind - and honors His word and His will.
God wants us to always operate in the truth. He gave us a brain… and a direct line of communication to Him. He expects us to use both! Don’t believe everything you see and hear… not even from those who claim to be Christians. Do your own investigating and discover whether what you are ingesting is clean, pure “spring water,” or the rotten murky nonsense from a “leaky faucet.” Learn to tell the difference… God is waiting to show you how!
©2012 Debbie Robus
Showing posts with label knowing who to trust. Show all posts
Showing posts with label knowing who to trust. Show all posts
Daily Devotional for August 4, 2012
Psalm 37:30
Words of wisdom come when good people speak for justice.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
If you watch any cooking shows or dabble in the kitchen for any length of time, you have either said to yourself – or heard someone say – “The recipe calls for XYZ, but I like to do this or that.” The recipe is not wrong… it just doesn’t work for your taste – or the palate of those whom you plan to serve. Your substitutions and omissions may improve the dish… or have little to no effect at all on the overall quality of the food (like leaving raw onions out of potato salad).
Some cooks are purists. They would never consider deviating from the recipe. Others use it as a loose guide to create something new and wonderful. And unless something goes horribly wrong, the end result is almost never ghastly!
A lot of people are using the Bible like a cookbook or recipe starter. And to some degree, this is not necessarily the wrong approach. I believe God wants us to take His word and truly dig into it… to find out what He is saying to us and how He wants us to apply the scriptures to our daily living. But some people have decided to substitute one word or phrase for another – or to pick and choose what to include and what to omit. Some have taken a particular passage literally without considering its overall context. And God’s word doesn’t work that way!
Am I saying we are should view every single word of the Bible literally? Are we to stop touching pig skin, kill a newborn lamb and never cut our hair? Absolutely not! But neither are we to twist and turn selected scriptures to suit our own agendas… or to suit our personal comfort level.
There are many excellent guides on the Internet for reading through the Bible in 365 days. A lot of them suggest that you read a passage each day from the Old Testament and New Testament – and a Psalm and/or verse from Proverbs. If you do this, you will find many verses in the Old Testament about sacrifices, burnt offerings, and ceremonial worship. You will see how God’s people showed their humility and repentance to Him by killing their best animals and sacrificed the bodies on an altar. This is outlined in great detail in the Old Testament… what, when, where and how to atone to God.
In the New Testament, the coming of Jesus changes everything. No longer do we have to kill our best calf to show repentance to God for our sin. We don’t have to perform complex rituals for atonement and purification. The focus is no longer on ceremonies and eating the right food at the right time in order to please God. In Colossians 2:20-23, we read… “You died with Christ. Now the forces of the universe don’t have any power over you. Why do you live as if you had to obey such rules as, ‘Don’t handle this. Don’t taste that. Don’t touch this.’? After these things are used, they are no longer good for anything. So why be bothered with the rules that humans have made up? Obeying these rules may seem to be the smart thing to do. They appear to make you love God more and to be very humble and to have control over your body. But they don’t really have any power over our desires.”
Here’s the problem… many Christians pick and choose which parts of the Bible to believe or use for justification on any given day – much like a cook puts in or takes out the raw onions or another ingredient in a recipe. The difference between the cook and the Christian is that “selectiveness” in our faith DOES make a huge difference. Do not misunderstand me… the Old Testament is extremely important, and we must not toss it to the curb as outdated and no longer relevant. But if we go back and pick out ANY scripture passage to justify our opinion on something and do not consider its context or how it functions alongside the rest of God’s word, we may very well be operating in untruth and injustice.
How do you know what is true? How can you figure out who to trust? After all, people who claim to be faith-filled Christians are continually telling us exactly what the Bible says and how we should believe. Shouldn’t we listen? For me, the answer is yes, no… and maybe. I believe that there are plenty of fair, honest and genuine Christians who operate from a place of justice and responsibility… believers who study the scripture, communicate with God and sincerely ask Him, “LORD, what do you mean by this? What are you telling me?” I believe these people make their decisions and serve God honorably from a place of heartfelt worship and obedience. And at the end of the day, I believe these people operate fully in the love and kindness of Jesus Christ - a deep and abiding desire to love others as God loves us… to live in a way that His grace, mercy, love and forgiveness shine through… and they leave the judgment and justice to God.
Look around. These people exist. You will have to sort and sift through a lot of friends and acquaintances who claim to be Christians but often behave in a way that is anything but Christ-like. Finding honest, sincere, wise and genuine Christian friends and mentors will be worth the effort. You’re not seeking someone who thinks like you do… you’re seeking the truth. The “Christian recipe” calls for heavy measures of love, kindness, compassion, wisdom in the LORD, integrity, loyalty, sincerity, and honesty, among other things. This is one recipe we don’t want to alter!
I want God’s truth for my life as much as the next person. I am continually seeking His direction. My prayer is that I would always offer others the truth… and an example of living faithfully in the wisdom and commandments of Jesus… with a heavy dose of justice and fairness. I’ve had a few epic fails in the kitchen… but when it comes to “cooking for Jesus,” I want to offer a solid dish… don’t you?
©2012 Debbie Robus
Words of wisdom come when good people speak for justice.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
If you watch any cooking shows or dabble in the kitchen for any length of time, you have either said to yourself – or heard someone say – “The recipe calls for XYZ, but I like to do this or that.” The recipe is not wrong… it just doesn’t work for your taste – or the palate of those whom you plan to serve. Your substitutions and omissions may improve the dish… or have little to no effect at all on the overall quality of the food (like leaving raw onions out of potato salad).
Some cooks are purists. They would never consider deviating from the recipe. Others use it as a loose guide to create something new and wonderful. And unless something goes horribly wrong, the end result is almost never ghastly!
A lot of people are using the Bible like a cookbook or recipe starter. And to some degree, this is not necessarily the wrong approach. I believe God wants us to take His word and truly dig into it… to find out what He is saying to us and how He wants us to apply the scriptures to our daily living. But some people have decided to substitute one word or phrase for another – or to pick and choose what to include and what to omit. Some have taken a particular passage literally without considering its overall context. And God’s word doesn’t work that way!
Am I saying we are should view every single word of the Bible literally? Are we to stop touching pig skin, kill a newborn lamb and never cut our hair? Absolutely not! But neither are we to twist and turn selected scriptures to suit our own agendas… or to suit our personal comfort level.
There are many excellent guides on the Internet for reading through the Bible in 365 days. A lot of them suggest that you read a passage each day from the Old Testament and New Testament – and a Psalm and/or verse from Proverbs. If you do this, you will find many verses in the Old Testament about sacrifices, burnt offerings, and ceremonial worship. You will see how God’s people showed their humility and repentance to Him by killing their best animals and sacrificed the bodies on an altar. This is outlined in great detail in the Old Testament… what, when, where and how to atone to God.
In the New Testament, the coming of Jesus changes everything. No longer do we have to kill our best calf to show repentance to God for our sin. We don’t have to perform complex rituals for atonement and purification. The focus is no longer on ceremonies and eating the right food at the right time in order to please God. In Colossians 2:20-23, we read… “You died with Christ. Now the forces of the universe don’t have any power over you. Why do you live as if you had to obey such rules as, ‘Don’t handle this. Don’t taste that. Don’t touch this.’? After these things are used, they are no longer good for anything. So why be bothered with the rules that humans have made up? Obeying these rules may seem to be the smart thing to do. They appear to make you love God more and to be very humble and to have control over your body. But they don’t really have any power over our desires.”
Here’s the problem… many Christians pick and choose which parts of the Bible to believe or use for justification on any given day – much like a cook puts in or takes out the raw onions or another ingredient in a recipe. The difference between the cook and the Christian is that “selectiveness” in our faith DOES make a huge difference. Do not misunderstand me… the Old Testament is extremely important, and we must not toss it to the curb as outdated and no longer relevant. But if we go back and pick out ANY scripture passage to justify our opinion on something and do not consider its context or how it functions alongside the rest of God’s word, we may very well be operating in untruth and injustice.
How do you know what is true? How can you figure out who to trust? After all, people who claim to be faith-filled Christians are continually telling us exactly what the Bible says and how we should believe. Shouldn’t we listen? For me, the answer is yes, no… and maybe. I believe that there are plenty of fair, honest and genuine Christians who operate from a place of justice and responsibility… believers who study the scripture, communicate with God and sincerely ask Him, “LORD, what do you mean by this? What are you telling me?” I believe these people make their decisions and serve God honorably from a place of heartfelt worship and obedience. And at the end of the day, I believe these people operate fully in the love and kindness of Jesus Christ - a deep and abiding desire to love others as God loves us… to live in a way that His grace, mercy, love and forgiveness shine through… and they leave the judgment and justice to God.
Look around. These people exist. You will have to sort and sift through a lot of friends and acquaintances who claim to be Christians but often behave in a way that is anything but Christ-like. Finding honest, sincere, wise and genuine Christian friends and mentors will be worth the effort. You’re not seeking someone who thinks like you do… you’re seeking the truth. The “Christian recipe” calls for heavy measures of love, kindness, compassion, wisdom in the LORD, integrity, loyalty, sincerity, and honesty, among other things. This is one recipe we don’t want to alter!
I want God’s truth for my life as much as the next person. I am continually seeking His direction. My prayer is that I would always offer others the truth… and an example of living faithfully in the wisdom and commandments of Jesus… with a heavy dose of justice and fairness. I’ve had a few epic fails in the kitchen… but when it comes to “cooking for Jesus,” I want to offer a solid dish… don’t you?
©2012 Debbie Robus
Daily Devotional for June 9, 2011
Proverbs 18:24
Some friends don't help, but a true friend is closer than your own family.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
Another favorite book of Timothy’s these days is titled Slobcat. It’s the story of a little girl and her cat. The family named him Slobcat because they think he is lazy. The story shows Slobcat doing all sorts of things – rescuing a baby kitten from deep water, scaring away snakes and predatory birds in the garden, batting a ball out of the way so that the mother doesn’t trip and fall, and much more. But in each instance, the family doesn’t notice the good things that Slobcat does.
Instead, they see a cat who is constantly under foot rather than one who protects them. They see a cat who is too lazy to come in out of the rain – not one who rescues kittens from deep water. Basically, the family fails to recognize what a good friend and companion Slobcat is to each of them.
What about us? Do we recognize our real friends? Do we realize who truly has our back through thick and thin… who cares about us and keeps our confidence? Have we chosen our friends wisely and acknowledged how important these good, true friends are in our lives?
So often, we are like the little girl in the story and her family. We go through life taking our truest friends for granted… or failing to recognize them in the first place. We run after people we want to be our friends… we seek relationships that are not in our best interest – and downright unhealthy in some cases - while foregoing the attention and devotion of those who genuinely care about our well-being. We fail to acknowledge the countless ways a true friend cares for us on a regular basis… and sometimes – just like Slobcat’s family – we assume the opposite.
Shouldn’t we take a look around and see if we have mistakenly labeled a genuine friend in our lives as a “Slobcat”? Can you identify your true friends these days? Have you thanked God for bringing them into your life… and have you thanked these individuals for their friendship and devotion? It only takes a few minutes to send an e-mail, make a phone call, or drop a note to your friends and let them know how blessed you feel that God has placed them in your life. Isn’t today a perfect time to do just that?
©2011 Debbie Robus
Some friends don't help, but a true friend is closer than your own family.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
Another favorite book of Timothy’s these days is titled Slobcat. It’s the story of a little girl and her cat. The family named him Slobcat because they think he is lazy. The story shows Slobcat doing all sorts of things – rescuing a baby kitten from deep water, scaring away snakes and predatory birds in the garden, batting a ball out of the way so that the mother doesn’t trip and fall, and much more. But in each instance, the family doesn’t notice the good things that Slobcat does.
Instead, they see a cat who is constantly under foot rather than one who protects them. They see a cat who is too lazy to come in out of the rain – not one who rescues kittens from deep water. Basically, the family fails to recognize what a good friend and companion Slobcat is to each of them.
What about us? Do we recognize our real friends? Do we realize who truly has our back through thick and thin… who cares about us and keeps our confidence? Have we chosen our friends wisely and acknowledged how important these good, true friends are in our lives?
So often, we are like the little girl in the story and her family. We go through life taking our truest friends for granted… or failing to recognize them in the first place. We run after people we want to be our friends… we seek relationships that are not in our best interest – and downright unhealthy in some cases - while foregoing the attention and devotion of those who genuinely care about our well-being. We fail to acknowledge the countless ways a true friend cares for us on a regular basis… and sometimes – just like Slobcat’s family – we assume the opposite.
Shouldn’t we take a look around and see if we have mistakenly labeled a genuine friend in our lives as a “Slobcat”? Can you identify your true friends these days? Have you thanked God for bringing them into your life… and have you thanked these individuals for their friendship and devotion? It only takes a few minutes to send an e-mail, make a phone call, or drop a note to your friends and let them know how blessed you feel that God has placed them in your life. Isn’t today a perfect time to do just that?
©2011 Debbie Robus
Daily Devotional for May 23, 2011
Proverbs 20:18
Be sure you have sound advice before making plans or starting a war.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
Often, I will see a post on Facebook from someone planning a trip… “Where’s a good place to stay in Destin?” “How was the weather at Such-and-Such destination last week?” “What are the gas prices like down toward Disneyland?” The advice of someone who has “been there/done that” on a vacation can be very helpful to someone who is still in the planning stages. And it makes perfect sense to ask. Wouldn’t you want to know the best restaurants and motels, cheapest places to get gas, and best times of day to visit certain attractions and avoid long lines?
If you study history, you will see that even back to Old Testament days, people consulted others before starting – or participating in – a war. Strategy was discussed – what worked and what did not, which routes were best, what would happen if this approach or that one were taken, and more. And the right advice often made a huge difference in the outcome.
So what does this have to do with our faith walk? God is using this verse to remind us to seek HIS advice and the advice of fellow believers before making big decisions. Don’t get the advice of just anyone. Seek someone who seems to have a strong connection with God… someone who is known to make wise decisions in his/her own daily living… someone who you are certain prays and studies God’s word before making the first move.
Quite often, God will use others to guide us in the right direction, so find a couple of trustworthy people to consult when you are in need of sound advice. Be sure you ask God to choose these “go-to” advisors for you. He will point you in their direction and make it crystal clear to you that these are the right folks to help you.
God did not call us to serve Him by ourselves. He wants us to interact and lean on one another for help… and that includes sound advice. Find your “go-to” friends and catalog their contact info. When a decision arises, ask God to point you in the right direction… and He will show you who to ask and how to proceed. You will have the satisfaction of knowing that you have decided according to His will… and your choices will be solid as a Rock.
©2011 Debbie Robus
Be sure you have sound advice before making plans or starting a war.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
Often, I will see a post on Facebook from someone planning a trip… “Where’s a good place to stay in Destin?” “How was the weather at Such-and-Such destination last week?” “What are the gas prices like down toward Disneyland?” The advice of someone who has “been there/done that” on a vacation can be very helpful to someone who is still in the planning stages. And it makes perfect sense to ask. Wouldn’t you want to know the best restaurants and motels, cheapest places to get gas, and best times of day to visit certain attractions and avoid long lines?
If you study history, you will see that even back to Old Testament days, people consulted others before starting – or participating in – a war. Strategy was discussed – what worked and what did not, which routes were best, what would happen if this approach or that one were taken, and more. And the right advice often made a huge difference in the outcome.
So what does this have to do with our faith walk? God is using this verse to remind us to seek HIS advice and the advice of fellow believers before making big decisions. Don’t get the advice of just anyone. Seek someone who seems to have a strong connection with God… someone who is known to make wise decisions in his/her own daily living… someone who you are certain prays and studies God’s word before making the first move.
Quite often, God will use others to guide us in the right direction, so find a couple of trustworthy people to consult when you are in need of sound advice. Be sure you ask God to choose these “go-to” advisors for you. He will point you in their direction and make it crystal clear to you that these are the right folks to help you.
God did not call us to serve Him by ourselves. He wants us to interact and lean on one another for help… and that includes sound advice. Find your “go-to” friends and catalog their contact info. When a decision arises, ask God to point you in the right direction… and He will show you who to ask and how to proceed. You will have the satisfaction of knowing that you have decided according to His will… and your choices will be solid as a Rock.
©2011 Debbie Robus
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