Day 28 Bible Reading

Job 8-10, Matthew 19: 16-30, Proverbs 3: 11-20

Proverbs 3: 13-16

“Blessed is the one who finds wisdom, and the one who gets understanding, for the gain from her is better than gain from silver and her profit better than gold. She is more precious than jewels, and nothing you desire can compare with her. Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor.”

Verses 13 through 16 from Proverbs 3 made me think about what exactly is Wisdom. From the Christian point of view, Wisdom can be found in the Bible and teachings of God and Jesus Christ. Most of what we read in Proverbs seem like common sense that people figured out over years and years of experience. But in Verse 3, we read that you can find Wisdom but you might not always understand it at first. But once you do understand Wisdom, it seems to open so many doors. When you find Wisdom, you will come to see that it is better than the profits from silver and gold which was the money at the time Proverbs was written. From an understanding of Wisdom, you will receive a long life and riches and honor. If we follow the teachings of the Bible and Christ, God has a plan for us. And if we follow God’s laws, then we have to believe God will give us a long life and the money needed to fulfill his plan. For me, the Wisdom part makes so much sense. It’s the applying of the Wisdom to my life and the understanding of it that is so hard. I consider myself a smart person, and I think what I do is compare God’s Wisdom to what I know. When I do that, God’s Wisdom sometimes doesn’t make sense. Which is crazy I know because God sees and knows everything, and I can only see a little bit. These verses stood out for me as a reminder to once again trust God in all things. He has Wisdom, he has the 360 degree view of my life that I don’t have.

Day 24 Bible Readings

Genesis 47 & 48, Matthew 17, Proverbs 3: 1-10

Proverbs 3: 5-6 (ESV)

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”

Verses 5 and 6 from Proverbs 3 stood out for me today. I think because I consider myself a very independent and smart person, I rely on my own understanding much of the time even though I think I trust in God with all my heart. But I am beginning to understand and to acknowledge that I have an ally in Christ and especially the Holy Spirit. It seems so silly to me sometimes to check with God for every little decision I make in my life. But there are so many stories which show us that it is the small decisions we make in life, and not necessarily the large ones, that truly affect our life. So I’m trying to check in with God more each day for all the decisions in my life. I’m trying not to make it such a big deal, just a quick prayer to ask Christ if I’m making the right choice and then a minute of quiet time to listen for a response. Most of the time I don’t hear much of a response, and I’m thinking probably because I think I use common sense to make decisions. But every once in a while, I think I hear a soft “no” or the word “really?” to a question about something I want or want to do. And when I follow God’s response to my question, it does seem that things really do turn out better. Not in a dramatic way, but in small ways that make me glad I have the Christ to ask for a second opinion, a gut check to tell me if I’m doing the right thing, if I’m going the right way, and most of all, if I’m following God’s plan for my life.