Tag: Proverbs

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You Are What You Think

I was recently reminded of this quote from Mr Ralph Waldo Emerson

A man is what he thinks about all day long.

This is one of those brain teasers that you could spend all day thinking about. Not because it’s necessarily a hard quote, but taking time to look at how it really plays out in your life is quite sobering.  Interestingly enough similar words are found in Proverbs 23.

For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he:

I should note that the overall context in Proverbs is different then the Emerson quote, and that is bore out quite well in more modern translations of the entire Proverb.  However, the thought is general the same – what we think about eventually comes out in our actions.

It you think about being stingy – you will be stingy, if you think about others, you will reach out to others. If you think about mud all day, you will be dirty!  If you think about joyful things – you will be full of joy.

It actually a very simple formula to understand, but for some reason it’s pretty difficult for our little minds to grasp at times.

So, a simple question for you today – what do you want to be?  and is your thinking aligned with that desire?

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Fix Your Gaze

Yesterday I wrote a little bit about God having the power to light your way.  I thought I would follow that up with a little real guidance on one way he does that – straight from the wisdom of Solomon, and something that is on my mind this week.

20 My child, pay attention to what I say. Listen to my words. 21 Never let them get away from you. Remember them and keep them in your heart. 22 They will give life and health to anyone who understands them. 23 Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts. 24 Never say anything that isn’t true. Have nothing to do with lies and misleading words. 25 Look straight ahead with honest confidence; don’t hang your head in shame. 26 Plan carefully what you do, and whatever you do will turn out right. 27 Avoid evil and walk straight ahead. Don’t go one step off the right way. Proverbs 4:20-27 Good News Translation (GNT)

 

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Trust, Lean, Seek

For lots of reasons these words from Proverbs 3 have been circulated around in my mind all week, so I thought I would share them

 

5Trust in the Lord with all your heart;
do not depend on your own understanding.
6Seek his will in all you do,
and he will show you which path to take.
The whole Proverb is pretty uplifting, give it a glance over and a thought it you find a moment today.
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Let’s Be Irrational

Today is ‘e’-day, February 7 or 2/7 or 2.718281828459…

That’s right today on the seventh of February some mathematicians decided to honor the irrational number ‘e’, which if you want to know, is explained quite well here.  For those not so daring, just suffice it to say it’s a number that is the backbone for lots of logarithms and usually has its own key on advanced calculators.  So that alone tells you it’s right up there with zero thru nine!

So today, in honor of this dubious number, let’s be irrational. Maybe like this

If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat;    if he is thirsty, give him water to drink.
22 In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head,
and the Lord will reward you. Proverbs 25:21022 (NIV)

or  like this

14 Do everything without grumbling or arguing, 15 so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky 16 as you hold firmly to the word of life. Philippians 2:14-16 (NIV)

or maybe by being like on irrational number and never stopping!

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Sharpening

In the back of my mind I often think about this Proverb as I look for people to interact with.

17 As iron sharpens iron,
so one person sharpens another. Proverbs 27:17 (NIV)

Mostly because I find that I usually am in a great need of being sharpened!  A dull blade, or life or mind, is not very useful.  And it is through the challenge of others that we grow and become usable and are ready for whatever comes our way.  So, that is one reason that I force myself to attend a weekly Bible focused conversation with a rag-tag group of like-minded men.

Well, those men, with a bunch of others are heading off to strengthen each other with one of those fancy-dancy retreats.  And some of those guys put together a video that I thought would be worth sharing.  For two reasons.  First ( and I usually don’t do this here, but here goes!) if any men out there want to join us – come on! (Just get your money in this week 🙂 ) Second, and probably more applicable, for your entertainment!  It’s a pretty funny and well done teaser.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4ufX6xlyZ4

Either way.  Make sure you are finding others that will continue to sharpen you, and in doing so, you will probably help sharpen others!