Reflections from May 10, 2010

Today we read of Jesus wanting to spend a few final moments with His disciples in intimate prayer time with the Father, but He was disappointed by their lack of focus and attention. He said to them in Matthew 26:41, "Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."

Jesus certainly knows the way of Man. His disciples found it difficult to stay awake with Him, but He knew that there will be other temptations that we will face in our lives. Prayer and a close relationship with God, is a very important method to avoid falling prey to temptation. God promises to deliver a way out, and prayer is often the answer. We generally will hear immediately from God on what to do when faced with temptation.

Proverbs 9:7 says to us, "He who corrects a scoffer gets shame for himself, And he who rebukes a wicked man only harms himself."

More than once I've found this to be true. Generally what happens, is you think you're all important and it's up to you to "make it right" by pointing out what the other person did wrong. Well, people already know that so all that happens is they now look at you and think how ridiculous you are for wasting time on the person doing all that scoffing. When you go after a wicked person, you end up dealing directly with the devil, and that only ends up hurting you.

That's why Jesus gave us the Holy Spirit. He protects us in our dealings with people like this, and let's us know to walk away and let God deal with people like this. As the saying goes, "Let go and Let God!"

From Proverbs 10:13 we read, "Wisdom is found on the lips of him who has understanding, But a rod is for the back of him who is devoid of understanding."

My oh my, that's pretty clear. If we are full of understanding, Solomon says we are able to speak with wisdom. But without it, we'll be punished. I think this means that without understanding, we'll be without wisdom. Without wisdom, we'll not be able function in today's world in a way that keeps us free from harm. By not functioning in God's way, we'll endure His anger and wrath; plus, we'll be more likely to end up being punished by the world's ways as well. God's wisdom saves us every day in every way. Learn from God and it will save your life.

Blessings to all