Proverbs 19: The Day After the Day Before
It’s easy to see the devastation and loss in this image. What the man once prided himself in is now worthless after the destruction of a tornado. His family is safe, but you can tell they are scared. And is the father trying to comfort them as they share in that loss? Is he looking at them as a gift that God allowed him to keep? Or, like the first man in the garden, is he just looking for someone to blame?
Proverbs Chapter 19 begins with the statement that a poor person who walks with integrity is better than a rich fool. Then it continues in verse 3 about that fool blaming God for his troubles. The Amplified Bible states it this way ..
Proverbs 19:1 AMP
[1] Better is a poor man who walks in his Integrity than a [rich] man who is twisted in his speech and is a [shortsighted] fool.
https://bible.com/bible/1588/pro.19.1.AMP
Proverbs 19:3 AMP
[3] The foolishness of man undermines his way [ruining whatever he undertakes];Then his heart is resentful and rages against the Lord [for, being a fool, he blames the Lord instead of himself].
https://bible.com/bible/1588/pro.19.3.AMP
So what happened the day before this terrible storm? As The family gathered around the dinner table, the television, or shared a hug before climbing into their comfy beds, did they stop to look up at the sky then? Did they think about God and all that He had provided for them and give Him the praise He’s worthy of? Or was it just another blessed day they took for granted?
Sometimes, I think it’s good that my sister and I grew up in a harder life situation where even ground beef for a skillet meal was seen as a benefit and something we should be grateful for. Though we didn’t have a regular church or religion, we had Bibles and we had at least an inkling of God as our Provider. When an earthquake damaged our apartment, we slept on the floor at our grandparents’ house; though it was only in adulthood that I looked back and saw all the provisions we had to be grateful for. Still , I never recall hearing all the blame and anger against The Almighty that seems to permeate the atmosphere these days.
Surely, the rich and wise King Solomon based verse 6 on his own kingly experiences. It says,…
Proverbs 19:6 WEBUS
[6] Many will entreat the favor of a ruler, and everyone is a friend to a man who gives gifts.
https://bible.com/bible/206/pro.19.6.WEBUS
And they treat God the same way. They entreat His favor and offer Him friendship as long as He’s willing to pour out gifts on them. But even in that, it’s a shallow friendship. Though it doesn’t have to be that way. Each of us can look at what we have gained and lost in this life and offer praise to The Great Provider. We can know that nothing is guaranteed (and, yes that can stir up fear if we dwell on it) and just trust that Abba Yahveh has been there before us and nothing surprises Him. If we spend the day before with a grateful heart, we will have more resilience and strength if the day after the day before (today) brings something unexpected.
And this is a great place for the song, “Count Your Blessings.”
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Do You Bounce?
Some things hit the ground and go splat. Some hit and shatter. Some bounce. Obviously, bouncing is the best response because it means that instead of staying down, you will rise back up. The fancy word for this is resiliency. Resilient people can bounce back like cartoon characters who never seem to find a permanent splat even if they have to pump themselves back up. It’s an important characteristic that some have naturally, but which we can also learn.
Yeshua knew the ultimate bounce–from death to life. Today’s Infinite Supply talks about how Yeshua’s resiliency can help us bounce too.
Infinite Supply Image for November Twenty-Fourth by The School of Christ
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November 24
Accomplished Through the Cross
“We were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.”
ROMANS 6:4
The Cross is the means by which God reduces us to Christ, that we may be raised to new Life. What cannot be accomplished in a lifetime of self-effort is easily accomplished in God through the Cross.
We may take many shortcuts along the way and attempt to escape the inevitable, but the day we cease striving and meekly accept the Cross we find everything is done for us.
Source: Embrace the Cross by Chip Brogden
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The trick Yeshua used to bounce back is found in The Holy Spirit. Yeshua didn’t have to fear dying to His earthly self because He knew He would rise again in both body and spirit. He knew death was not permanent, and He knew His new life was worth more than His old life. He also knew the true value of His death–a new life for all those who trust in Him.
I find that people who don’t know The Lord are typically either hopeless or put their hope into things that are likely to destroy them in the end. If they choose the latter, they may look happy in the midst of their partying, but take it away from them and you’ll see how unhappy they are on the inside. If people put their happiness and security in anything this world has to offer, they are only happy as long as they are comfortable.
To the contrary, people who intimately know Yeshua as their Lord, Savior, and Best Friend have hope in spite of discomforts in their lives. The blood of Christ covers us like “Flubber” and helps us both endure and bounce. Serving and loving God gives us the resiliency to bounce back if only to rebound with enough hope to trust in the eternal life He has prepared for our future.
If you are on your way down and know you won’t bounce, it’s not too late to get covered by the blood of Christ in repentance and baptism. Accept the cross and fall at the feet of the Lord before you fall to the bottom of your life, and you can bounce up to a new life and a new hope. When you die to yourself, you open the door for God to raise you up to the newness of life. There’s nothing more resilient than resurrection. Do you bounce? If not, feel free to write to me and ask for more information.
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