WELCOME... if you click on the date above it will bring up the Bible and verses for today's reading. This is easy and convenient. My devotion's come from practical, relevant life stories that match the real and raw places of my own life. God has challenged me and taught me some very powerful lessons. My daily devotion's stem from a portion of the days reading. Take the time to read the bible verses and then refer to my devotion to see how the bible came to life in my neck of the woods!
Happy Reading!
King Solomon, in today's reading was a wise King who forgot the First, principle of wisdom.
I pondered the story of King Solomon as I watched the Royal wedding today. I then pondered my wedding day and realized a few important truths.
For a smart guy, King Solomon sure ended up doing some dumb things.
By the end of his reign, this brilliant king somehow forgot the first principle of wisdom: "THE FEAR OF THE LORD IS THE BEGINNING OF WISDOM" Psalm 111:10
Only wisdom energized by a vibrant walk with God makes Godly leaders.... husbands and wives.
The enemy wants to distract us from our royal calling and we will see in the rest of our reading in 1 Kings how the King Solomon spiraled downward.
Solomon however has used his life of mistakes to bring us wisdom on skillful living. The book of Proverbs often refers to the "path" or the "way". It provides a Godly goal and a means to reach the goal. May today challenge you to ponder your path as we learn from King Solomons dumb mistakes.
Solomon addresses the problem of sexual immorality in Proverbs chapter 7. He turned from wisdom at one time and followed after his own folly.
How often do we turn from what we know is right and folly after our flesh desires?
When we follow hard after those desires we give no thought to the path of life and the consequences will be dreadfully real.
I have experienced the sting in my life from a broken marriage. My hope was gone and my heart was sick.
My husband and I did not value the treasure of Gods promises early in our royal wedding, leaving us in a world of pain. However, God knew my personal deepest hurts and heard my cries. I came to the end of my rope and knew I needed to learn how to depend on God. I am grateful for the people the Lord had divinely placed in my life for that exact season.
King Solomon teaches us that:
The person that enters into an adulterous relationship has allowed the eyes and mind to to become obsessed with a lustful portrait. The individual man or woman makes a choice to put themselves willingly in the way of temptation. In Proverbs chapter 7 you will see a graphic portrait of what I believe Solomon experienced. He gave graphic illustrations of the seductress. The woman chose to dress provocatively, she used flattering speech and was outside her home hanging around in the wrong places.
It takes two people to fall into the trap of an adulterous relationship.
We need to be careful not to end up being the seductress. We often think that would never happen BUT...
when our emotions are restless and unfulfilled we can easily choose the wrong path.
I have witnessed close friends that fell in the trap of loneliness and restlessness and when emotions are not guarded they can tug us down the wrong route.
We need Gods wisdom when we struggle and He will give us the right perspective and tackle our inner conflict.
As individuals we need personally make sure we are in the right places to protect our marriages. Sometimes our " night out" takes us to local towns with great restaurants however, the twilight of the evening can put things in our path that could eventually "cost" us. We need to be wise and protect our heart from turning and straying down wrong paths. I have witnessed the flirt of eye contact and how that dangerous lure ended up destroying a family.
Often couples blame each other for cheating but we need to learn to ponder our personal paths. My husband and I did not walk the best path early in our marriage. We did not bond in a way God royally planned.
When two people are not united in the royal truth of Gods wisdom someone will end up getting hurt. Our marriage today only survives because Gods word burns in both our hearts, helping us to remember wise choices and love each other with a royal pure heart!
I want to pause a second and speak a word of encouragement to the marriages or individuals hurting. Please hang on and turn to God for help and wisdom. My husband and I went down a wicked path so I do not take the sentence lightly that I wrote above about us both going to church and being united in Gods truth together. Listen friends, living a Godly life was not reality for me at one time, but I chose to change and persevere. God took over and His power showed up in amazing ways. So please believe big, it takes one person in the relationship to take a stand and believe for change. Regardless, you will see the power of God by your personal choice to stand strong, seek God and choose wisdom. Some days God may just show up to comfort and hold you in your pain and reveal His power by settling your sick heart. I can vividly remember God holding me while I was crying on my bed one night. Friends He is so very real.
God is good and His mercy, grace and wisdom is now a must for my family.
Everyday we all make mistakes and often more wrong choices then good. But God is always waiting to teach us wisdom and help us make the right moves in the game of life. We may loose some games but in those loosing times we gain through the experience. We accept correction, change and then grow.
Sweet Blessings and Happy Royal Wedding Day!
Heather Baxter
