Take Wise Counsel From Others - If It Makes You Uncomfortable, Then You Are Probably Doing Something Right

Today's Reading
1 Kings Chp 12

Let me start with the following premise: that we are born sinners, and once we accept Christ as our savior God will always be molding as until the day we die.  Sometimes it may feel as if we are in the refiners fire, and other times it may not.  In either state, we are to keep moving (run) as it says in Hebrews:

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, ² fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. (Hebrews 12:1-2)

To this end, the movement towards Christ and the molding/transformation of our heart includes our acceptance of teaching from others as these people are placed in our lives for a reason.

For Rehoboam, unfortunately, he does not accept this counsel - and the consequences are not good, nor are the consequences for Israel.  Rehoboam fulfills the prophecy of Ahijah in 1 Kings 11:29 that the kingdom established under the House of David, including both Solomon and then his son Rehoboam would be divided. 

 ¹³ The king answered the people harshly. Rejecting the advice given him by the elders, ¹⁴ he followed the advice of the young men and said, “My father made your yoke heavy; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.” ¹⁵ So the king did not listen to the people, for this turn of events was from the LORD, to fulfill the word the LORD had spoken to Jeroboam son of Nebat through Ahijah the Shilonite.

Although Rehoboam would not be able to change God's plans, the words of God for me I see are that wise counsel is critical and that if I am to invite others to pour themselves into my life - I am to listen and follow their advice, even if I don't like it.

My Prayer: Lord, you're counsel is great and your plan for me is great!  Forgive me when I neglect our relationship and when I don't seek you out.  Forgive me when I don't trust you or your words for me.  Please help me submit to you, your plan for me, and help me both seek wise counsel and to take this wise counsel, even if it is uncomfortable.

Seek Wise Counsel

Today's Reading
Exodus Chps 15 to 18

In these chapters we see Moses leading the Israelites through the desert. God instructed Moses for ways to go, for provision, and he also protected them on their way. The Israelites questioned Moses several times about where they could get food or water and even grumbled how it might have better to be left to die a slave in Egypt. Clearly the Israelites lost faith in their God and began to depend on themselves and Moses in particular. They began to quarrel amongst themselves and Moses began to play the role of judge getting involved and mediating all of these matters, many of them trivial.

Moses' father in law Jethro gives Moses sage advice:

¹⁷ Moses' father-in-law replied, "What you are doing is not good. ¹⁸ You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone. ¹⁹ Listen now to me and I will give you some advice, and may God be with you. You must be the people's representative before God and bring their disputes to him. ²⁰ Teach them the decrees and laws, and show them the way to live and the duties they are to perform. ²¹ But select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. ²² Have them serve as judges for the people at all times, but have them bring every difficult case to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share it with you. ²³ If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied." (Exodus 18:176-23)

This is wise advice and Moses followed this advice - this certainly speaks both of Moses humility (vs thirst for power) and his wisdom to seek the counsel of others. Note how Jethro makes it clear that those from whom Moses should seek counsel should "fear God" and be "trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain".

My Prayer: Lord, help me avoid the trappings of power over my family and in any other positions of leadership in which you place me. Help me be humble and help me seek wise counsel - help me most importantly submit to your will - as I know you speak wisdom through others.

Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.

Job 1-42

Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed. Proverbs 15:22

I continue with my study of - Ten Men of the Bible: How God Used Imperfect People to Change the World - eBook by Max Lucado (for purchase). This morning, I continue with the story of "Job: God's Presence in the Storm*".

*Title of lesson two from the Max Lucado study. 

As I start to read and unpack Job, my study starts with Job's initial response to the calamities that befell him in Job 1:13-19. Job falls down in worship and continues to see God reign and how He is worthy of praise - quite an amazing response indeed!  My study then moves to look at Job's friends and the wisdom of their advice.  I am encouraged by my study to seek "multitudes of counselors" and see how Job's friends, while they might have not offered entirely wise counsel, did offer some nuggets. 

One such nuggets include (from Eliphaz the Temanite):

“Submit to God and be at peace with him; in this way prosperity will come to you. Accept instruction from his mouth and lay up his words in your heart. Job 22:21-22

My study points to Elihu (who speaks up in Job 32-37), who while younger than Job's three friends who have already taken a crack at providing their perspective, rebukes Job for attempting to justify himself vs God.  John Piper has an excellent post on how he believes Elihu provides wise counsel to Job. We should all have Elihu-type advisers in our lives.

Comment and discuss the post here.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who has provided many great men and counselors in my life - thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of this and the many other ways that You bless me.  I continue to sin with worry and other sins.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You. Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior. Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin. Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others. Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day. 

Lean On God and Speak Truth Into Each Others' Lives

Today's Reading
Deuteronomy Chp 1:9-18
Matthew Henry Commentary

While this passage specifically addresses Moses' charge to leaders and judges among the Israelites, there are broader points I see:

- God is the ultimate authority and we should be led by Him first

"...Do not be afraid of any man, for judgment belongs to God." (verse 17)

- God places others in our lives so that they can speak truth (from God) into our lives. Again the scripture here may speak specifically about leaders and judges but I see a role for any brother or sister who can speak truth into my life.

¹⁵ So I took the leading men of your tribes, wise and respected men, and appointed them to have authority over you—as commanders of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties and of tens and as tribal officials. ¹⁶ And I charged your judges at that time: Hear the disputes between your brothers and judge fairly, whether the case is between brother Israelites or between one of them and an alien. ¹⁷ Do not show partiality in judging; hear both small and great alike. (verses 15-17)

To resolve difficult questions and situations, I see the broader point as go to God first, then go to brothers and wise counsel second. Another case for how God sees how it is critical for us to walk together with God - we cannot do this alone...

My Prayer: Lord, it is amazing how you care for me. You place people in my life, brothers and sisters that serve to lift me up and to help me along during difficult times. Forgive me if I ignore wise counsel you place in my life, if I judge against your will, or if I am not enough of a brother to others. Thank you for the brothers in my life and please help me be both be a brother to others and see it when others are being a brother to me.

This is what the Lord says: Do not go up to fight against your brothers, the Israelites. Go home, every one of you, for this is my doing.’” So they obeyed the word of the Lord and went home again, as the Lord had ordered.

1 Kings 12

This is what the Lord says: Do not go up to fight against your brothers, the Israelites. Go home, every one of you, for this is my doing.’” So they obeyed the word of the Lord and went home again, as the Lord had ordered. v24

Rehoboam, Solomon's son, does not appear to have the wisdom that his father had.  He chooses to follow the advice of his friends - his peers, and those with whom he has grown up - versus the advice of the elders (v6-11).  This results in an Israelite rebellion and Jeroboam is made king in Israel while Rehoboam maintains reign over Judah.  

Although it is clear from the text that God orchestrated these results (see v24), we can learn that it is not wise to discount wise counsel - particularly those whom God has put in authority over us - earthly authorities (government, etc.) and church authorities (pastors, elders, etc.).  

See also my post from a couple of days ago.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who has led me and provided for all of my needs. I have never been in want - thank You Jesus!  I am not worth such love.  I worry.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo. Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

"For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.”

Acts 5

"For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.” v38-39

For believers this is a powerful reminder that God's will is unstoppable - period.  An equally important message is that plans that are of "human origin" (as noted by Gamaliel) will fail...we must seek guidance and validation that our plans are in line with God's purpose and will.  

How can we validate that our plans are in line with God's will for our lives?
- Read the Bible; it is God and it is God's word for us
- Pray
- Seek wise counsel (Exodus 18:13-27)
- Ask yourself if you are at peace; peace is an indicator of the extent to which You are following God (Galatians 5:22)
- Seek confirming circumstances (God is unstoppable and His will should be clear to the extent that you are getting "positive" results).

To be clear, you should probably use ALL five methods to validate God's will for your life as for many of us, myself included, we can can easily use one method or another to validate that our own plans are God's will.

My Prayer: Lord, You are indeed great and Your design and will is perfect.  I have seen Your hand in my life and in the life of others.  Perfect!  I know You have a plan for me and it is not to harm me but to prosper me as You say in Jeremiah.  Thank You Jesus that You love me so much despite my sin.  I am weak, selfish, impatient, I worry too much, I am quick to anger, slow to listen, etc.  Please forgive me for such sin and help me turn from such sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as Your do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Help me know and follow Your will for my life.

But select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. Have them serve as judges for the people at all times, but have them bring every difficult case to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share it with you. If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied.”

Exodus 18

But select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. Have them serve as judges for the people at all times, but have them bring every difficult case to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share it with you. If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied.” v21-23

Ever since creation (see Genesis 2:18), God designed it that we are to live here on earth together - with and for others.

We are to serve others, confess our sins to one another, and encourage one another.

See also:
- Acts 2:42-47 (early formation of church)
- Serve
- Encourage

Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.  James 5:13-16

Key also to this passage of scripture is how Moses received wise counsel and how we are to do the same - to both seek and receive.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God, full of love and patience for me...thank You Jesus.  I am not deserving.  I allow my own comfort and selfishness to prevent me from seeking You. Please forgive me - help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself strength and wisdom.  Please heal Lisa from her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Woe to them! For they walked in the way of Cain and abandoned themselves for the sake of gain to Balaam’s error and perished in Korah’s rebellion.

Jude

Woe to them! For they walked in the way of Cain and abandoned themselves for the sake of gain to Balaam’s error and perished in Korah’s rebellion. Jude 11

I proceed with my study of Jude using the Christ-Centered Exposition commentary series volume for this book.  Today, my study consists of a review of Jude 11-16, with a focus on an unassisted review of the first division per the commentary - v11.  Here Jude warns us of the fate that befalls the false teachers discussed in the previous verses of Jude including v4 where Jude calls them out for how they "pervert[ed] the grace of our God into sensuality and den[ied]" the authority and sovereignty of Jesus Christ.  Jude further describes their sin by comparing them first to Cain whose offering to God failed to reflect a heart of faith and he killed his brother out of jealousy (see Genesis 4).  Second, Jude compared the false teachers to Balaam who sought reward from Balak, the king of Moab who was seeking a curse upon Israel as the Israelites were moving towards the promised land (see also here) - ultimately it was the Moabites themselves and their idol worship that drew Israel into sin.  Finally, Jude compares the false teachers of his day to Korah and the rebellion he led in the wilderness where Korah "usurp[ed] the authority of God and of those whom He has chosen to be leaders of His people." There are many contemporary equivalents to false teachers who pervert the gospel for their own gain and we must both carefully discern truth for ourselves and seek out churches and other influences that focus on Truth.  

Comment and discuss this post.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who gives me Your Word, the church, wise counsel, and other resources/influences to help me discern and obey Truth.  Thank You Jesus!  I am blessed by the Truth.  Yet I am undeserving of the love and blessing that comes with the Truth.  My sin is great and it continues...please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior. Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

God Sends Us Angels

Today's Reading
Exodus Chps 21 to 23

God has communicated to Moses and the Israelites the ten commandments and now He is giving more guidance on righteous living. Finally, God reminds the Israelites that He is looking after them by sending an angel.

²⁰ "See, I am sending an angel ahead of you to guard you along the way and to bring you to the place I have prepared. ²¹ Pay attention to him and listen to what he says. Do not rebel against him; he will not forgive your rebellion, since my Name is in him. ²² If you listen carefully to what he says and do all that I say, I will be an enemy to your enemies and will oppose those who oppose you. ²³ My angel will go ahead of you and bring you into the land of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hivites and Jebusites, and I will wipe them out. ²⁴ Do not bow down before their gods or worship them or follow their practices. You must demolish them and break their sacred stones to pieces. ²⁵ Worship the LORD your God, and his blessing will be on your food and water. I will take away sickness from among you, ²⁶ and none will miscarry or be barren in your land. I will give you a full life span. (Exodus 23:20-26)

Of note here is that God warns us to "pay attention to him and listen to what he says". This is important because God often sends us angels in the form of our brothers and sisters in Christ. Much like Jethro advised Moses, our brothers and sisters often offer wise counsel and act as angels in our lives. While we certainly can't rule out other forms of angels, we should certainly appreciate how others already in our lives can be angels!

My Prayer: Lord, first of all, I am thankful that you love me so much. You watch out for me and you protect me. You are certainly my rock. Help me recognize the angels you place in my life and help me "pay attention to and listen" to these angels!

And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”

Matthew 3

And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” v17

I see two messages here:
1. That confirming circumstances are key to understanding God's will for your life
2. That God judges all of us...now and upon death.

We should always be looking to God (prayer and His word), confirming circumstances, wise counsel, and for peace for indications of alignment to God's will for our lives.  We should always be growing in Christ (and He in us).

This is in an ongoing process of maturity.

For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.  Luke 12:48.

My Prayer: Lord, Your creation, Your design, Your Plan are all perfect.  Everything You do and everything You will ever do will be perfect.  Although scripture indicates that I am just how You designed me...I am not worthy of all the blessing You have provided me.  I am selfish, harsh and discouraging with me words.  Yet You love me.  Thank You Jesus.  Please forgive me for my selfishness, my harshness, and my discouraging words.  Help me be more like You.  Transform both my heart and my life Jesus.  I want Your desires to be my desires.  Help me also to have a bold and daring faith.

When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, he withdrew to Galilee.

Matthew 4

When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, he withdrew to Galilee. v12

Upon reading Matthew 4 and the above verse, it struck me as odd that Jesus would withdraw.  Jesus does not need to withdraw from anything or anyone!  He is God!  But after thinking about this, it dawned on me that the timing was not right for Jesus to find himself in trouble yet...His ministry needed to gain steam before the appointed time for Him to go to the cross.  Simply, there was more for Him to do.  There was a plan of course.

For me this causes me to be more aware of how God may be using my current circumstances as part of His plan and how He may be directing me.

In terms of my current circumstances, I think of the verse here.

In terms of how God may be directing me and how I can know God's will:
- read God's Word
- pray
- do I have confirming circumstances
- do I have confirming witnesses or wise counsel of brothers and sisters in Christ
- do I have peace of mind

My Prayer: Lord, You are truly a great God - the one true God!  There are none like You.  You create, You love, You bless, etc.  What an amazing God You are!  That You love me and died for me is incredible!  I am not worthy of such blessing and love.  I seek other Gods (pursuits, etc.) and this is SINFUL.  Thank You that You love me anyway but please forgive me!!  Help me Jesus.  Please grow in my heart and transform my heart and my life to be more like You.

Will I Listen to Wise Counsel....Even I Don't Like What is Said?

2 Chronicles Chp 18

⁷ The king of Israel answered Jehoshaphat, “There is still one prophet through whom we can inquire of the LORD, but I hate him because he never prophesies anything good about me, but always bad. He is Micaiah son of Imlah.”

First of all, a prophet is one known to speak truth - from God of course.  Yet the king of Israel hates Michiah.   The first key point for me is am I seeking truth or what is good for me (in a selfish way)?  If I were to amplify this key point, I need to both surround myself with those speaking truth and accept the truth they speak.

My Prayer: Lord, you ARE truth, you are the WAY, and you are the LIGHT.  There is no God like you and you are everything to me.  Forgive me for seeking other idols when I do, whether it is other ways to spend my time or my own will, or earthy matters, please, please forgive me.  Help me truly focus on you, seek you out, love you, obey you, trust you.  Help me surround myself with those who speak truth, invite this truth into my heart and live this truth.

But Rehoboam rejected the advice the elders gave him and consulted the young men who had grown up with him and were serving him.

2 Chronicles 10-11 and 1 Kings 12-13

But Rehoboam rejected the advice the elders gave him and consulted the young men who had grown up with him and were serving him. 1 Kings 12:8

 
Day 151 of my chronological study of the Bible with The Daily Bible® - In Chronological Order (NIV®) (available by purchase through Amazon - author F. LaGard Smith) moves from Solomon's reign to that of divided kingdoms of Judah (and Benjamin) under Solomon's son Rehoboam, and of the remaining tribes of northern Israel under Jeroboam, who returns after being forced to flee to Egypt following a conspiracy against Solomon.

I've previously posted on Rehoboam's rejection of advice from the elders that served his father and how it is important to remain humble and accept the wise counsel of others - in particular that of our brothers and sisters in Christ who exist to help encourage us and to help us hold each other to account.

Of particular note here as well is how quickly things can go off the rails once we turn from God - a cautionary tale indeed.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who has placed men and women of God who have encouraged and helped me grow immensely in my journey with Christ.  Thank You Jesus for these blessings - yet I am undeserving.  I sin...I am easily distracted by the world.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me. Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air

1 Corinthians 9

Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. v25

God has a plan...we know that...and God wants You to have a plan...one grounded in God's guidance for You (through the word, wise counsel, prayer, confirming circumstances, etc.).  We are to be intentional in our lives to live out what we believe is God's plan for us.

See also the following link:

"For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.”

Once we understand God's will for our lives we are to be intentional...instead of running aimlessly.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are a great God, just and merciful.  I don't know why things happen but I know that You have a plan and it is not for harm, but to prosper Lisa and myself.  Thank You Jesus so much for being the great God that You are...to me personally.  I am not deserving of a great God yet You are there...and You always have been and always will be.  I am selfish, my thoughts are often evil and sinful...please forgive me for such sin Jesus and help me turn from such sin.  Help me turn towards You instead and help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind, and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.  Help me lead my household and Lisa through this difficult journey.

Focus On Glorifying God Not On Any Specific Other Results or Outcomes

Acts 23

Paul is simply following the Lord's will.  Paul's actions are confirmed and encouraged by the direct words of the Lord himself:

 The following night the Lord stood near Paul and said, “Take courage! As you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome.”"Take courage! As you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome".

I have often heard other believers say about certain things like evangelism that we should focus on the message and not worry about the outcome as God will take care of the outcome.  For me the broader message is not lost.  God does not say to Paul here (and a summary review reveals few occasions where an outcome is the focus - Matthew 28:19) I have not seen it that often to my knowledge) to focus on bringing X number of believers to Him.  Instead, He simply says to "testify about me [Jesus]".  In the same way, I should not focus too much energy on any specific outcome but instead on glorifying God.  If I focus on glorifying God then pray, be in the Word, seek wise counsel, seek confirming circumstances, and find peace, then I will continue to be led by the Spirit as "Your word [will be] a lamp onto my feet."

My Prayer: Lord, Your ways and Your will are perfect.  That you would use me - someone who is clearly broken in so many ways - is incredible.  How You do it is amazing and I AM truly amazed by Your greatness.  And I desperately need You because of my brokenness.  I think of my anger and how I am often in "fits of rage" - something that clearly disappoints You and something that is not indicative of being led by Spirit but instead by Satan.  Forgive me Lord - PLEASE!   Thank You that I have You because I need You to protect me Lord!  I need you to purify me Lord.  Help me focus solely on You and on glorifying You.  Give me wisdom to glorify You Lord.

Are We Not Aware When God Wants Us to Pay Attention to Him?

Today's Reading
Numbers Chps 21-22

While a talking donkey (see chp 22:21-31) may seem amusing, the subject here is of course very real and should be taken seriously. If I were to see a talking donkey (seriously) my first thought would be God is trying to reach me...whatever the message is, it must be pretty darn urgent for Him to use a donkey to deliver the message! In this case, God wanted Balaam to stop what he was doing!

³¹ Then the LORD opened Balaam's eyes, and he saw the angel of the LORD standing in the road with his sword drawn. So he bowed low and fell facedown.

³² The angel of the LORD asked him, "Why have you beaten your donkey these three times? I have come here to oppose you because your path is a reckless one before me. ³³ The donkey saw me and turned away from me these three times. If she had not turned away, I would certainly have killed you by now, but I would have spared her."

³⁴ Balaam said to the angel of the LORD, "I have sinned. I did not realize you were standing in the road to oppose me. Now if you are displeased, I will go back."

³⁵ The angel of the LORD said to Balaam, "Go with the men, but speak only what I tell you." So Balaam went with the princes of Balak. (Numbers 22:31-35)

Which then begs the questions....how close am I to God to know both that He is talking to me AND for me to know what He is saying? This then begs the question, how do I get close to God.

I think I reasonably know the answer to these questions but I pray that I have a good understanding:
- read and study the bible
- pray
- ask God for wisdom and ask for guidance
- talk to wise Christian brothers and sisters for input and counsel
- talk to your pastors

My Prayer: Lord, thank you for you wisdom and counsel for I know that I would not be able to live without it. You are great. Forgive me when I, like Balaam, ignore you commands and your efforts to reach me. Help me stay close to you and be aware when you are trying to reach me. Help me follow your lead.

Therefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable to you: break off your sins by practicing righteousness, and your iniquities by showing mercy to the oppressed, that there may perhaps be a lengthening of your prosperity.

Daniel 4

 Therefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable to you: break off your sins by practicing righteousness, and your iniquities by showing mercy to the oppressed, that there may perhaps be a lengthening of your prosperity. Daniel 4:27

I continue my pause of my study of Hebrews to study Daniel in conjunction with a disciple/small group study with my church's men's wake up call. This morning my focus is Daniel 4:1-27 as I lean on a commentary for its observations of this text. The commentary highlights three divisions for this text:

• v1-3 It Is Good to Honor Our Great and Sovereign God for Sorrow That Leads to Repentance: these verses describe Nebuchadnezzar's praise of God in reaction to seeing how God rescued Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednago from the fiery furnace (chapter 3); the commentary, in particular notes how the words used by Nebuchadnezzar echo biblical terminology and reflect praise of God found elsewhere in scripture, including Psalm 145
• v4-18 It Is Good When Our Great and Sovereign God Troubles Our Hearts in Order to Get Our Attention: here, the commentary describes the reaction Nebuchadnezzar had to his second dream and how he falls back into old ways going not to Daniel first to interpret the dream, but to his pagan wise men, but as to be expected these men could not and Daniel was then brought in
  
• v19-27 It Is Good When Our Great and Sovereign God Exposes Our Sin and Calls Us to Righteousness: here, the commentary discusses Daniel's reaction to the dream and his inner turmoil upon hearing how the dream reflects how God will punish Nebuchadnezzar - clearly a man whom at this point is someone the commentary shares that Daniel cares about; the commentary emphasizes how believers, when confronted with bad news that we must deliver about someone else's sin, particularly those we care about, we must be prepared to deliver God's message for both repentance and hope

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My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are a good God who offers hope and grace, in spite of our sin - thank You Jesus!  I am of course not deserving...my sin continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

A fool’s mouth lashes out with pride, but the lips of the wise protect them.

Proverbs 14

A fool’s mouth lashes out with pride, but the lips of the wise protect them. v3

Last week and the week before that I posted about how how words flow from the heart and how words can be used to build one another up and to encourage others, or to tear others down.

This morning I am reminded about how it is important to listen.


My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry[.] James 1:19

People listened to me expectantly, waiting in silence for my counsel. Job 29:21

Be still, and know that I am God[.] Psalm 46:10

My Prayer: Lord, I know that You are God and that You are in control. I am thankful for this because I mess things up - if I do things my way I mess things up.  Please forgive me for too often doing things my way.  Help me overcome my sin and turn towards You. Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind, and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure her of her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach, and Dustin...and serve You.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.