Proverbs 19                                                                                                            

Good morning son,

The nature and character of God is love. That said, He does not leave us alone and with a lack of understanding. He gives us direction and a path. A couple of verses “leaped” out at me.

Proverbs 19:3 “A man's own folly ruins his life yet his heart rages against the Lord.”

Proverbs 19:20-21 “Listen to advice and accept instruction, and in your end you will be wise. Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails”

Proverbs19:23 “The fear of the Lord leads to life: Then one rests content, untouched by trouble.”

I am tired this morning. It has been a long night of praying off and on. See I do not wish to be as the man in verse 3 pursuing my own folly and then being upset with God when it, the disaster occurs. I guess you could say that the man in this verse is not being a man at all since he has done the act but is mad at God for the result. You could say that he is not willing to accept the consequences for His actions. Funny thing is even if we are not willing to accept the consequences, we have no choice in that – i.e. there is no acceptance or denial of consequences brought about by our own actions – they just are.

You could argue that that is the primary message of this passage – don't get mad at God because you screwed up and did not seek, listen or follow His direction but chose your own way – so your life will be ruined, accept your stripes, your whipping. But if you were to apply this as the message of the writing, if you were to do so, you would miss the thrust of the passage – Pursuing your own folly, your own way, no matter how wise it may appear in your eyes will lead only, ONLY to your life's ruin. It is the real man who understands that it is not about the acceptance of consequences which can not be avoided, but about the choice of action – the taking of the choice of obedience to His word. That is where the real man is found first and primary.

It does not take any courage of character to lie down and go by our feelings. It takes tremendous courage to stand by our beliefs and to pay a price for them.

That price may be in others thinking we do not care about them. It may be in the temporary loss of friendships – I say temporary because it is just that. See when you do right by God, you are doing right by the person you say you love and care for. Why? Because God cares more for them then you do. Indeed, to do otherwise is to show you really do not care about them at all. The beautiful thing is that when you do follow God's way in addressing a matter, it becomes His responsibility to fix the matter. That friend may at first be very upset with you, however, in the long run that will change as the truth, God's truth, is proven to be just that true for them. Then they will see you as a true friend, one on whom they can rely. They will come to thank you later for telling them the truth, for living it and for loving them so.

Do you remember the verse “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of all wisdom.” (look it up) Well when you put anyone or thing above God you lack wisdom with respect to that matter. Your decisions, although, appearing to be well intended, will lead only to your destruction. How do you do that? You know the answer to that question. Just think to yourself – in the matter you are concerned with have you asked God about it? What to do? Or have you not for fear of what He may say, or maybe simply knowing from the beginning that it is against His word. You figure that if you don't personally ask you will not reap the consequences of your action.

At the moment the pleasure which you may feel from doing or choosing the wrong thing will ALWAYS seem worth it in comparison to the consequences, the first consequence being you or I having to suffer the pain in ourselves of being disciplined to trust God to provide for what we wrongly think that we can do better for ourselves. Remember the saying: “Sin always takes you farther then you intended to go, keeps you longer than you intended to stay, and costs you way more than you intended to pay.” Well it is true.

When we first entered the Army they showed us a film preparing us for being placed in combat zones, amongst civilians to warn us of the dangers of sex – protected or otherwise (you do know that condoms are not all that they are cracked up to be especially when it comes to STD's). On a screen about two stories tall they showed close ups of the warts, infections, pus, lesions, etc. the consequences of sexual immorality. Their message – just don't do it. Funny thing is, none of those things are in our eyes when we are holding that someone; when our loins are burning, when we feel that we must do it or bust!

You know the bible does not say “know your limits” when it comes to sexual immorality it says to flee – pick up feet and run! Get the _____ out of there? Turn away from it? Do not get anywhere close! Stay as far away as possible!

Do you remember the lessons in the book “Everyman's Battle?” There is a reason that there is not a Sports illustrated Swimsuit edition laying on my cocktail table – because quite simply it violates that word. Remember the names of God? Remember Elohim – God our Creator? He made us and he made us sexual beings. He knows us better than we know ourselves. We don't have such control. So He provides instruction, an owners manual. And if we follow the advise in it we will live. But it begins with our fearing Him above everyone else and everything else INCLUDES OUR OWN SELVES! (reread Proverbs 5 and take note of what the young man says of his decision)

Some things can not be reversed and the suffering of the rest of your life is not worth the fleeting moment of pleasure, acceptance, or shallow fulfillment.

All folly would accurately be described and defined as going against the word of God. Such folly leads only to your ruin. You avoid such ruin by fearing God enough to obey Him at all costs! You must put Him above all friends, all family, all things including me.

And don't tell yourself that the wrong you are contemplating on doing is something that you “must do as a man.”

Bull! There is NOTHING that you MUST do as a man which will benefit you or those you care for that is outside or which goes contrary to the Word of God for you. Know that you are choosing to go against Him. Remember our discussion of Proverbs 8:22 “All at once . . .” ? Go back and take a look at the Got Word for Proverbs 8. No sin happens “all at once . . .” but instead we take steps leading up to it. We ignore His voice and His advice. Hmm . . . Are your feet rushing to do evil . . . (remember our discussion of the Proverbs 6:16-19? If not go back and take a look, God hates such actions)?

“Listen to advice and accept instruction, and in the end you will be wise”

Wisdom comes from God. You can not be truly wise apart from Him. Life is found in wisdom. Folly leads to death and death alone. Where do you wish to stand? Are you willing to listen to advice and accept instruction? Godly instruction?

We may not always agree on things. And I have no problem with supporting your actions and decisions where you can honestly show where they truly follow God's word. You can, and indeed I charge you to call me on the carpet where I am not in accord with His word. He is our ultimate dad. See I am responsible to obey just as you are. In this same chapter, vs. 16: “He who obeys instructions guards his life, but he who is contemptuous of his ways will die.” In fact I can not follow you in support of your folly again because of the word, vs. 18 “Discipline your son, for in that there is hope; do not be a willing party to his death.” I will not be a willing party to your death, especially my own child's.

Taking a stand based upon His word in a decision is being a man. It is proper and correct and in accord with God's word to firmly stand in my face and make such a stand. But making a stand based upon your own desires, outside of the word of God is nothing but folly and pure foolishness, it is not being a man at all. In that respect you are a child beating your chest and proclaiming to be that which you are not. This is not God's desire for you. Why would you or I choose such a path?

See the verse advised us to listen to advice and instruction. This book they call the bible has a lot of it. Read, listen and apply. You will make mistakes in interpretation, I have, and so have others before you. However, your heart seeking after Him is what is most important, and your obedience to obey Him when you find Him is also. But if you don't . . .

A number of years ago I was traveling between Jennings, Louisiana and Houston, Texas. I was just outside of Beaumont when I heard the unmistakable voice of the Lord telling me to pull off the road and stop at Stuckeys.

Stuckeys was a restaurant and gas station chain in the south which I was familiar with as a child. My father would often stop there to eat at the bar and gas up. Not because the food was so great but because it was the first restaurant chain which served a black man seated next to a white man. To the day he died he supported Shell oil no matter how high the cost because of their affiliation to Stuckeys. However, I had voided and vacated that allegiance of my father when all restaurants had opened their doors to do likewise; indeed, I would avoid Stuckeys like the plague. For me it was about the food – and Stuckeys food quite simply in my memory was the worst anywhere! They sucked! So for God to tell me in the pouring rainstorm to stop at a Stuckeys – well that was one order not going to happen by my hand.

Okay, let me speed up . . .

A mile down the road the car died. I could see the Stuckeys in my rear view mirror. I walked back to the Stuckeys in the pouring rain getting soaked to the bone, upset. Called a tow truck. Tow truck came and hooked me up and began towing me to the dealership. While in the truck across his radio came excited calls for emergency vehicles. I understood from the conversations that two tornadoes had touched down on the other side of Beaumont and there were all sorts of vehicles in the water. All available tow trucks and police, ambulances, etc. were being called to the scene.

I looked at my watch.

Got to the dealership. They checked out my car. Nothing was wrong. Got back onto the road. But my drive was not very long because I quickly hit a massage traffic jam. And as I eased past the emergency vehicles, the cranes pouring cars and trucks out of the river, the people huddled on the side of the road and bridge under makeshift ER centers, I remembered the call I had heard in the truck. I remembered the time. I started crying and thanking God. Why? Because I realized that if I had continued at the pace I was going I would have been there right when those tornadoes were touching down.

See I had plans. God gave direction. I ignored Him, but He did not ignore or cease loving me. He stopped the car.

“Many are the plans in a man's heart, but is is the Lord's purpose that prevails.”

God has not always protected me from my own folly, and where he has not chosen to do so, I have paid some high costs – why? Because His purpose will always prevail, and His purpose is for me to come to the fullness of who I am called to be; to become a man, a man after His own heart. This is only possible when I trust in Him, receive his instruction and accept His advice. When I obey Him for I fear Him above everyone else and every thing else. It is in this way that I love you my child. It is the only way that love can truly be love. Any other way is not love for God, myself, or my fellow man.

Long Got Word today. Yes, but I hope it will save you. My prayer for you today is found in the Psalms for today, Psalm 19:13-14: “Keep your servant also from willful sins; may that not rule over me. Then will I be blameless, innocent of great transgression. May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.”

If you have made plans contrary to His words, there is time to correct your way. Believe me you will be glad you did. Please do not choose folly and ruin your life.

Love yah,

dad