Monthly Archives: May 2018

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DO YOU NEED A COUNSELOR?

 Proverbs 11:14 “Where there is no guidance, a people falls, but in an abundance of counselors there is safety.”

WE ALL DO

 I have heard it said, “Every counselor needs a counselor.”  I believe that is true.  I am in my 40thyear of ministry.  In many of those years I did not have anyone I could honestly confide in when I needed to talk.  I didn’t have a person in my life I felt comfortable enough to unload my burdens. I have had that in recent years, and let me tell you, it makes all the difference.

We need each other.  But we don’t just need any “each other.”  We need people we can trust.  We need people who know us and still love us.  We need guidance when we think we know the right course.  We need someone to take us aside and whisper, “Brother, you are wrong.”

TEACHING MOMENT

 Children need counselors too.  I am not talking about a certified mental health professional, although that may be necessary sometime.  I am talking about a parent to whom they can confide without judgment.  A parent to whom they can spill their deepest failures.  A parent who will walk with them through the darkest days of their lives.

As children get older they will make some decisions they regret.  If they can’t come to you, who will they go to? They may fall into the arms of a stranger who has no good motive.  They may turn to drugs or alcohol.  They may just turn away.  Be their go to person.  Let them know you are there, no matter what.

Let me ask you, “Who do you turn to?”  “Well, I turn to Jesus.”  Yes, that is good.  He is always there.  But He also puts people in your life to “do life with.” Don’t ignore the importance of that.  We need help. Accept it.

Thank You, Lord, for sending people in my life to whom I can divulge my deepest secrets.  Thank You for people with whom I can cry, laugh, mourn and celebrate. But thank You most of all for sending me the Wonderful Counselor, Jesus Christ.

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FAMILY AND FRIENDS

 Proverbs 7:4 “Say to wisdom, ‘You are my sister,’ and call insight your intimate friend,”

CURIOUS WORDS

 When Solomon used these two analogies I took a step back to ponder.  I understand calling insight my intimate friend.  An intimate friend is one you can rely on. You know them deeply and they know you. You can call on them anytime for help. That’s insight.

But calling wisdom my sister?  What does that mean?  I have two sisters.  I love them both.  A brother defends his sister.  He stands up for her.  He wants no harm to come to her.  That’s how we should treat wisdom.  We should protect it and do nothing to hurt it.  We should love wisdom.

TEACHING MOMENT

 If you are blessed with boys and girls, you know the love/hate relationship that exists between brothers and sisters.  One minute they are hugging or playing well together.  The next they are ready to kill each other.  Our job as parents is to teach them how to treat each other because they will always be family.

Read this verse to them and ask them to tell you what they think it means.  Do you think your little Johnny is going to equate wisdom with his sister Susie?  Probably not.  Do you think Susie is going to consider Johnny her intimate friend?  My guess is no.  But because God uses these pictures in His Word, we know it is possible.

Who is your intimate friend?  I hope it is insight.  Who is your sister?  I pray it is wisdom.  We all need that in our lives.  If you are lacking wisdom and insight right now about something, turn to the One who can give it to you.

Thank You, Lord, for giving me wisdom and insight. Let me see these as my sister and intimate friend.  Let me hold them close and turn to them daily.

 

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DISCIPLINE

Proverbs 5:23 “He dies for lack of discipline, and because of his great folly he is led astray.”

IT’S NOT A BAD WORD

In our permissive society today discipline is looked upon as bad or unnecessary.  Our verse for today reminds me of Hebrews 12:11 “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.”  Without discipline, Solomon says we die and are led astray.

Discipline is really conditioning.  It’s conditioning our spirits to obey a holy God. It’s conditioning our minds to dwell on His Word.  It’s conditioning our mouths to speak truth.  It’s conditioning our ears to not listen to gossip.  It’s conditioning our eyes to look on godly things.

TEACHING MOMENT

 If you ask your little Gertrude or Elrod what discipline is, they would probably say a “whooping.”  Children equate discipline with pain unless we teach them otherwise.  Discipline may not be pleasant, as the writer of Hebrews says, but it does not have to be painful.

In fact, when we learn to discipline ourselves, the pain subsides quickly.  When we learn to practice self-discipline we don’t have problems with authority.  When our children learn that discipline is a good thing, parenting becomes so much easier.

How about you?  Are you disciplined or self-disciplined?  Do you require God to take you to the woodshed or do you deny yourself those things that you KNOW will lead you astray?  Discipline yourself.  Listen to the Spirit.  He will always point you correctly.

God of discipline, I know You love me and only discipline me because of that.  When I complain of the discipline remind me why You do it.  Your goal is to make me more like You and that is not possible until I yield to Your Spirit.

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