It's Day 28 and we're in Proverbs 12.
Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 4 - I know from personal experience that the first half of this verse is absolutely true.
If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.
If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.
It's Day 27 and we're in Proverbs 11.
Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 22 - Isn't that true? There's a woman who looks beautiful when you first see her but then as you talk to her and see her personality and character, you're repulsed. Internal beauty is more important than external.
Help:
- Verse 13 - Concealing a matter means not gossiping, not withholding crucial information in a situation like someone being abused.
- Verse 31 - Presumably the "reward" in mind here includes positive and negative.
If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.
If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.
It's Day 26 and we're in Proverbs 10.
We'll be in Proverbs for three days. A reminder of what a proverb is: it's a saying that is generally true. For instance, in the Proverb that says that if you train up a child in the way of the Lord, when he is old he will not depart from it - that is not a ironclad guarantee that every single child that was raised in church will come back to church. Rather it is a proverb - it is generally true that children who are raised in church will come back to the Lord.
Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 19 - A reminder that I should be quicker to listen than talk.
Help:
- Verse 22 - This is the idea that ultimately every blessing comes from God, including wealth.
If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.
If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.
It's Day 25 and we're in Genesis 23.
Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 4 - It's worth pondering that after all this time and all the promises God fulfilled that Abraham still dies as a stranger in a foreign land.
Help:
- Verses 3-16 - This is a depiction of the back and forth of an ancient negotiation.
If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.
If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.
It's Day 24 and we're in Genesis 22.
Where God Spoke To Me:
- Nothing really jumped out to me today.
Help:
- Verse 2, 10 - This is a troubling scene. God is testing Abraham to see if He will trust Him even with his most beloved thing. Still, even knowing that, the scene is disturbing. We do know from verse 5 as well as from Hebrews 11:19 that Abraham expected God would raise Isaac from the dead. Still . . .
If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.
If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.
Your Questions and Comments:
- "Was Sarah actually Abraham’s half sister as well as his wife? As I wrong to think that either all the inbreeding that happened in the early days it’s no wonder the people of today are all goofed up?" - Yes, she is his half-sister. And, yes, that seems wild to us even though it was a common practice back then. One thing worth remembering is the nature of communities in that day. Today we have a towns and cities with tens of thousands of people, plus dating apps that connect us with even more. Back then, most people were part of a tiny town or nomadic group with less than a couple hundred people. It reminds me of the way most Native American tribes would have been throughout most of their history - just a few people isolated from most of the rest of the world. In that environment, things like the situation with Abraham and Sarah were more common for obvious reasons. An additional factor is that throughout most of history marriage was not a romantic endeavor but a practical one, for economic and child raising purposes. Finally, as you suggest, all of this might be one of the reasons people are messed up! ;-)
It's Day 23 and we're in Genesis 21.
Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 1 - "The Lord did just as He promised" - You can count on Him for that.
Help:
- Verses 10-12 - This is a troubling incident. Part of it goes to the fact that it was not God's will for Ishmael to be born. Part of it that the focus needed to now be on the chosen child. But in either event, it's a hard thing to watch a son being sent away by his father.
If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.
If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.
It's Day 22 and we're in Genesis 20.
Where God Spoke To Me:
- Verse 6 - Because he has acted in innocence, God keeps him from sin. We need to make sure we're acting "in the integrity of [our] heart."
Help:
- Verse 2 - Yes, he's going to make the same stupid mistake again. Just like we so often do.
- Verse 7, 17 - It does seem weird that the one who was in the wrong here has to pray for the one who was in the right. Why? Even though Abraham is in the wrong, he still has authority that's been given to him because he is God's chosen. I think of it like God saying to the king, "See that guy over there? The one that caused all this problem? Yeah, well, he's my guy. I know, I know, he was stupid in what he did. But he's the one I chose a long time ago. So go have him pray and we'll get this taken care of."
- Verse 12 - In the rural, often nomadic culture of that day, this was not unusual.
If you want to read the chapter online, here's a link.
If you have a question or comment, email me at butcher@ymail.com.
