10/6 – 10/12

Life seems to be full of choices. Some options are similar, yet there are times when two different options lead to two completely different outcomes. In the Garden of Eden Adam and Eve were told they could eat fruit from “every tree” except one (Genesis 2:16-17). Making the choice to eat from all of the trees other than the forbidden one enabled their bodies to be fed and nourished, while enjoying healthy relationships with God, one another, and God’s creation. Yet when Eve and Adam “saw that the tree” of the knowledge of good and evil “was good for food, and that…the tree was to be desired to make one wise” they ate the forbidden fruit (Genesis 3:6 NRSV). Because of their choice human beings became sinners. The relationship of humans with God, humans with one another, and human beings with the created world suffered because of the consequences of sins. We continue seeing and experiencing those consequences today.

 

King Solomon, Israel’s wisest king, is given credit for the majority of the proverbs within the Old Testament book of Proverbs (1 Kings 3:1-15; Proverbs 1:1). In it he teaches that “the fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7 NRSV). To become wise a person must have a reverential fear of God. We need a humility in approaching the Lord as the source of knowledge and wisdom. That is the first step on the journey towards receiving God’s wisdom. Unlike Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden when they ate the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, we are supposed to humbly seek God’s will, obediently live His ways, and ask to receive His wisdom, instead of seeking our own will, ways, and other sources of wisdom (Genesis 3; Deuteronomy 30). The overall goal of the book of Proverbs is to persuade the reader to choose God’s wisdom as a way of life. Jesus taught about this choice during the Sermon on the Mount when he said, “the gate is wide and the road is easy that leads to destruction, and there are many who take it. For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it” (Matthew 7:13-14 NRSV). Continue reading the book of Proverbs this week and choose the way of blessings, life, God’s will, and the Lord’s wisdom.

 

The format of this plan is designed for you to use as much or little as you have time to use each day. Below is a guide for the daily use of this devotional:

Each Day

– Read the Psalm

– Spend a few minutes in silence as you wait in the presence of the Lord

– Read The Bible verses for the day

– Listen to and/or sing a worship song or hymn

– Pray

– Live according to your faith in Christ Jesus

 

 

DAILY PSALM:

READ PSALM 25 to begin your time set apart to be with and encounter the living God. Consider using the psalmist’s words as an opening prayer.

 

 

SILENCE & SOLITUDE:

You are encouraged to spend a few minutes quietly alone with God after reading the Psalm. You may find it helpful to sit, kneel, lay down, or walk as the message rolls around in your heart and mind.

 

 

DAILY BIBLE VERSES:

Sunday – Proverbs 6

 

Monday – Proverbs 7

 

Tuesday – Proverbs 8

 

Wednesday – Proverbs 9

 

Thursday – Proverbs 10

 

Friday – Proverbs 11

 

Saturday – Proverbs 12

 

 

VIDEO TO WATCH:

If you did not watch it last week, you are invited to watch the Book of Proverbs Summary video using the link provided before reading verses from Proverbs this week:

Book of Proverbs Summary by The Bible Project

 

 

LISTEN to and/or SING a worship song or hymn to help you respond to God. You may find it helpful to use the same song each day, or a different one on some, or all, of the days because of what the Bible verses bring to mind.

 

 

PRAY:

You are encouraged to let the Bible verses you read guide your prayer. You may find it helpful to use the daily suggestions as well:

 

Sunday – Pray to receive the grace, love, and fellowship God is offering you. Offer thanks and praises to our God. Pray for the people of Jesus’ Church throughout the world, including Catholics, Orthodox believers, and other Protestants. The “other Protestants” includes the Livingstone Anglican Church.

 

Monday – Thank and praise the Lord. Pray for those who are closest to you, including family members, friends, co-workers, and neighbors.

 

Tuesday – Thank and praise our God. Lift up leaders and those who point others towards God.

 

Wednesday – Thank and praise the Lord. Lift up the worries and concerns you have for the world, people in need, as well as for yourself.

 

Thursday – Offer thanks to God for the many blessings you have been given and continue to receive. You may find it helpful to write them in a journal or somewhere you can read through the list again later.

 

Friday – Thank and praise the Lord our God. Confess your sins and failures and ask for forgiveness as you forgive those who have sinned against you.

 

Saturday – Offer thanks and prayers of praise. You may find it helpful to kneel, lay on the floor, sit with your hands on your legs with palms facing up, or stand raising your arms as an expression of worship as you pray.

 

*If you do not have a Bible, consider downloading the YouVersion Bible App for free from the Apple App Store or Google Play for your smartphone or tablet. You can also use www.BibleGateway.com to look up and read various translations of Bible verses online.