Imagine, We're half way through the work week. If you think of it please pray for 1) my brother Dan as he reaches out to his community tonight with our Fathers gift of peace 2) for a teacher to open their classroom to our Good News Club for this year 3) for Ben, Becky & myself as we travel to Central Cal. for our friends son memorial service.
Do you know, Just how much room does fungi need in order to grow? Well just in case you don't know. As mushroom as possible. Oh oh sorry about that.
Our meditation for today is found in Prov. 22:5 "Thorns and snares are in the way of the perverse; He who guards his soul will be far from them."
This verse reminds us of the importance of guarding the desires of our very soul.
Guarding our soul doesn't mean just reading your Bible, attending church faithfully, gathering together with other believers. It evidently also means guiding our lives away from thorns & snares.
Let's think about that:
Thorns - they are painful, harmful
experiences in life
Many times they are actions that
open us up to hurt. That is many
times the thinking that "Well
that's not down right evil or I can
get away with doing that just
once."
Here where we live in the high
chapperel there is a plant that's
called a tumble weed. It pops up
right after a fresh rain, it is
seeming harmless, but it quickly
begins to form a hard kernel
which then forms sharp points.
If this plant isn't pulled out &
destroyed, it becomes what we
call a goat head.
Later when the plant drys up and
detaches from the soil the wind
begins to blow this tumble weed
which begins to distribute those
goat heads all around.
They become so firm that they
can give your tire a flat or pierce
even your shoes and each time
you step down hurt your feet.
If they had been removed
before the development of goat
heads this harm would have
been diverted.
Just like so many things in life
that seem to be harmless when
allowed to have a place in our
life ultimately bring extensive
harm.
Like, Ignoring Gods warnings,
allow anger & outrage to have
free reign, to give place to
discouragement & fear in our
life, to make place for
questionable activities, etc. the
list can go on.
I can remember my
Grandmother lamenting over
her brothers (8) enjoying a cool
one at the end of a hot day and
then that one slowly becoming
two and so on. That led to all of
their families being destroyed &
her brothers dying early
deaths.
When she would go to visit
their families she came home
determined to keep us
grandkids from considering
those seemingly harmful things
from taking root in our lives.
The second warning was guard yourselves from snares:
Each of us have snares that we
are more vulnerable to. If we are
honest with ourselves we know
what our primary snares are.
Paul warned Timothy in his
second letter 2 Tim. 2:22 "Flee
youthful lusts:" the idea was to
let the reader meditate on what
that could mean.
Then he spoke of what we
should give place to: "follow
righteousness, faith, love,
peace, selfless prayer."
It's good for us to look those
snares directly in the eyes. It
may be fear, or being liked, or
well just add your likely snare
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Guard your soul from thorns & snares
So Go With God for He knows when Satan, the world, or your flesh are building a trap that will trip you up, harm or maybe even destroy your life. Be on your guard, for Satan is out to harm your future whether it's two days or for your whole life. Look to our Heavenly Father for added defenses in these evil days.
Lord, keep me from the spiritual goatheads.