Temptations

It is known that in any kind of temptations (like for example: to eat more than you need), if you stop for a moment and think about the long term consequences of your present actions, it will normally become easier to resist it. It is an evil strategy to push you to make quick decisions without thinking it thoroughly and over thinking with guilt after you do it and not before. It happens again and again. Temptations works more or less like this:

1. Before you do it, it looks wonderful and every aspect of it is positive. Looks like an opportunity you could miss. You have to act quickly.
2. While you do it you experience a mix of pleasure and guilt.
3. After you do it, you feel guilty. Now your sense of responsibility is sinking in. Now you realize that it was the wrong thing to do. You feel bad, depressed, heavy. 
   When you think about recovery, you feel that you already crossed the line, you are dirty, going back to normal will not change your bad past.

Of course, temptation is right when it says that you cannot change your past, but it doesn’t let you know that you can change your future by making better choices. Even after failing temptation, you can still change and be better, have a better future. It is not over. That’s God’s message. That’s why Jesus came to earth: to give you a second chance. You don’t have to remain in your dirt. You can escape if you decide and God will help you do it.    

Wise friends will rescue you from the Temptress—

   that smooth-talking Seductress

Who’s faithless to the husband she married years ago,

   never gave a second thought to her promises before God.

Her whole way of life is doomed;

   every step she takes brings her closer to hell.

No one who joins her company ever comes back,

   ever sets foot on the path to real living.

So—join the company of good men and women,

   keep your feet on the tried-and-true paths.

It’s the men who walk straight who will settle this land,

   the women with integrity who will last here.

The corrupt will lose their lives;

   the dishonest will be gone for good.

(Prov.2:16-22 MSG)

 Prayer: Thanks for your Holy Spirit that aids me to resist any temptation. Help me to be aware, to discern when there is a temptation going on. Help me to stop, think of the long term consequences before decide. Help me to walk in integrity. And when I fail, help to repent and rise up again.

A rich mine of Common Sense

God makes wisdom and Common Sense freely available to everybody. If you receive it and you apply it to your life you will grow as individual. If you live an honest life and are loyal to God, He will take special care of you. You will be able to make better decisions. You will see the danger before it is too late. You will distinguish a good and wise friend from a loser that gives you directions when he himself don’t know where he is going.   

And here’s why: God gives out Wisdom free,

   is plainspoken in Knowledge and Understanding.

He’s a rich mine of Common Sense for those who live well,

   a personal bodyguard to the candid and sincere.

He keeps his eye on all who live honestly,

   and pays special attention to his loyally committed ones.

9-15 So now you can pick out what’s true and fair,

   find all the good trails!

Lady Wisdom will be your close friend,

   and Brother Knowledge your pleasant companion.

Good Sense will scout ahead for danger,

   Insight will keep an eye out for you.

They’ll keep you from making wrong turns,

   or following the bad directions

Of those who are lost themselves

   and can’t tell a trail from a tumbleweed,

These losers who make a game of evil

   and throw parties to celebrate perversity,

Traveling paths that go nowhere,

   wandering in a maze of detours and dead ends.

(Prov.2:6-15 MSG)

Prayer: Thanks for the free wisdom available to us. Thanks for Common Sense. Help me to live an honest life, to be loyal to You. Thanks for the light You gave me that is helping me to make good decisions in life. Thanks for protecting me from bad advices from people that don’t know themselves where they are going. Thanks for Jesus, that opened the way for everybody to connect with You.

Wisdom attracts more wisdom.

“I love those who love me, and those who seek me early and diligently shall find me.”(Prov.8:17 AMP) A heart which is searching for understanding is the one more likely to find it. The acquired wisdom will point your path to God. When you focus on wisdom and understanding, you will find out that it is wiser to trust God and to respect Him. He is always right. He is worthy of your respected.

Good friend, take to heart what I’m telling you;

   collect my counsels and guard them with your life.

Tune your ears to the world of Wisdom;

   set your heart on a life of Understanding.

That’s right—if you make Insight your priority,

   and won’t take no for an answer,

Searching for it like a prospector panning for gold,

   like an adventurer on a treasure hunt,

Believe me, before you know it Fear-of-God will be yours;

   you’ll have come upon the Knowledge of God.

(Prov.2:1-5 MSG)

Prayer: I feel privileged to know You and have a relationship with You. I am a wisdom hunter. Help me to be open to understanding. Help me to be open to your knowledge and wisdom.  

You wanted your own way.

If you ignore God’s way for your life, your life will end up the opposite of God’s plan for you. You cannot expect God’s blessings and at the same time ignore Him. Whatever seeds you plant in your life it will grow and you will harvest. Plant God’s wisdom and then relax, you will be in good hands, His.

“Since you laugh at my counsel

   and make a joke of my advice,

How can I take you seriously?

   I’ll turn the tables and joke about your troubles!

What if the roof falls in,

   and your whole life goes to pieces?

What if catastrophe strikes and there’s nothing

   to show for your life but rubble and ashes?

You’ll need me then. You’ll call for me, but don’t expect

       an answer.

   No matter how hard you look, you won’t find me.

“Because you hated Knowledge

   and had nothing to do with the Fear-of-God,

Because you wouldn’t take my advice

   and brushed aside all my offers to train you,

Well, you’ve made your bed—now lie in it;

   you wanted your own way—now, how do you like it?

Don’t you see what happens, you simpletons, you idiots?

   Carelessness kills; complacency is murder.

First pay attention to me, and then relax.

   Now you can take it easy—you’re in good hands.”

(Prov.1:25-33 MSG)

Prayer: I want to thank You God for your wisdom. Help me to be wise and listen to your counsel. I want to obey You. You are the One who knows better. Help me to live under Your wisdom and knowledge. Help me to be obedient. I know that being in Your hands is the best place to be.

Lady wisdom.

The lady Wisdom represents the wisdom that comes from God. A wisdom which is not based on our subjective, always changing, human knowledge and opinions; but in an always constant, always true and faithful God. Everyone can access this wisdom. God offers it to everybody that seeks it. You don’t need to be somebody special. It is near you, “in the middle of the traffic”. Your heart need to be humble and open to God’s counsel.

Lady Wisdom goes out in the street and shouts.

   At the town center she makes her speech.

In the middle of the traffic she takes her stand.

   At the busiest corner she calls out:

22-24 “Simpletons! How long will you wallow in ignorance?

   Cynics! How long will you feed your cynicism?

Idiots! How long will you refuse to learn?

   About face! I can revise your life.

Look, I’m ready to pour out my spirit on you;

   I’m ready to tell you all I know.

As it is, I’ve called, but you’ve turned a deaf ear;

   I’ve reached out to you, but you’ve ignored me.

(Prov.1:20-24 MSG)

Prayer: Thanks God for being near me and to make your wisdom available to me whenever I need it. Without you I could easily make fool decisions. Thanks for all the tools and wise advisers you put around me. I could never thank myself for the wise decisions. I recognize that it is You the One that guide and help me. You never leave me on my own. Thank You God.

Thanks to the family...

I was raised in a nuclear family: one dad, one mom, four siblings, occasionally influenced by the presence of grandparents, uncles and aunts. My parents committed their life to Jesus very early in life and before I was born. That was normal for me and I grew up thinking everybody had similar opportunities. After adulthood and living in different cultures I realized I was privileged to have such family environment. For many the idea of family doesn’t seem so comfortable. Many grew up with only one parent or cared by other family member, or experiencing ruptures, divorce, or chronic fights, each individual by themselves. If you have a healthy family, you have to be thankful and if you don’t, break the vicious circle, make everything you can to be building one that will be healthy for the next generations. A family that builds up instead of destroying.  

Pay close attention, friend, to what your father tells you;

   never forget what you learned at your mother’s knee.

Wear their counsel like flowers in your hair,

   like rings on your fingers.

Dear friend, if bad companions tempt you,

   don’t go along with them.

If they say—“Let’s go out and raise some hell.

   Let’s beat up some old man, mug some old woman.

Let’s pick them clean

   and get them ready for their funerals.

We’ll load up on top-quality loot.

   We’ll haul it home by the truckload.

Join us for the time of your life!

   With us, it’s share and share alike!”—

Oh, friend, don’t give them a second look;

   don’t listen to them for a minute.

They’re racing to a very bad end,

   hurrying to ruin everything they lay hands on.

Nobody robs a bank

   with everyone watching,

Yet that’s what these people are doing—

   they’re doing themselves in.

When you grab all you can get, that’s what happens:

   the more you get, the less you are.

(Prov.1:8-19 MSG)

Prayer: Thanks for the protection of a family environment. Thanks for family values. Thanks for molding my character and habits through a family. Thanks for continuing that process with the extended family, the church in every country I have been. Help me to provide care and support for the family I am in now. Help us to continue that care for generations until the day You come for us all.

The key to wisdom

You could achieve many goals, you could learn a lot, but if you miss the essence of life you will be a fool. The fear of the Lord is what puts you in the right position. It teaches you that you are not your own god. It teaches you not to trust in yourself 100%. It teaches you to submit yourself to instruction and discipline to become the best person you can be. If you ignore God, you will never achieve your full potential.

“The reverent and worshipful fear of the Lord is the beginning and the principal and choice part of knowledge [its starting point and its essence]; but fools despise skillful and godly Wisdom, instruction, and discipline.” (Prov. 1:7 AMP)

Prayer: Don’t let me be foolish. Help me to cultivate the fear of You. Let me always acknowledge your holiness, honor and superiority. Help me to be humble and recognize that I am just human. Help me to submit to your wisdom, instruction and discipline. Help me to always be transformed by the work of your Holy Spirit.

A manual for living

The book of Proverbs, in the Bible, is a collection of riddles and sayings of the wise. Salomon composed some 3,000 proverbs and wrote 1,005 songs. He was wiser than all men and his fame was in all the surrounding nations. He knew about trees species and animals species (1 Kings 4:31-33). His general culture was enhanced by the visit of many dignitaries from all around the world. There is no match for its wisdom. God allowed us the access to these treasures so many years later. And they remain relevant today as the Bible as a whole.

These are the wise sayings of Solomon,

   David’s son, Israel’s king—

Written down so we’ll know how to live well and right,

   to understand what life means and where it’s going;

A manual for living,

   for learning what’s right and just and fair;

To teach the inexperienced the ropes

   and give our young people a grasp on reality.

There’s something here also for seasoned men and women,

   still a thing or two for the experienced to learn—

Fresh wisdom to probe and penetrate,

   the rhymes and reasons of wise men and women.

(Prov. 1 MSG)

Prayer: Thank God for the book of Proverbs. Thanks for making it available to us. These treasures make us rich. Gives us tools and wisdom that will help us to have a better life. Its value surpasses all material things. It is impossible to repay You for these gifts. Help us enjoy them and make the best use of it.

A million ways

The diversity of ways to worship and praise God testifies of our admiration for His greatness and power. There are millions of reasons to praise Him. There should be millions of ways to express it too. You should cultivate it. Diversity in praise helps you not to get stuck. Variations in praise prevents us from our tendency to do things always the same way without thinking it. You are constantly renewed and refreshed. Your praise remains authentic and meaningful.

Hallelujah!

Praise God in his holy house of worship,

   praise him under the open skies;

Praise him for his acts of power,

   praise him for his magnificent greatness;

Praise with a blast on the trumpet,

   praise by strumming soft strings;

Praise him with castanets and dance,

   praise him with banjo and flute;

Praise him with cymbals and a big bass drum,

   praise him with fiddles and mandolin.

Let every living, breathing creature praise God!

   Hallelujah!

(Psalm 150 MSG)

Prayer: I am alive and I am grateful. Let me praise You for your acts of power and magnificent greatness. There is no God like You. I didn’t do anything to deserve knowing You. I can only say: "thank You" and praise Your name in ways that will invite all the inhabitants of the earth to experience a relationship with You, the only God of the Universe.

Break out celebrating

The psalmist encourages creativity, celebration, exaltation, dance, and great instrumental music… all of it because God delights in his people. Everybody that sincerely loves the Lord can join the celebration. Oppressors and abusers will finally be judged and punished and people who love God will be honored. Praise, gratitude and hope for the future fills your heart while you worship Him.

Hallelujah!

Sing to God a brand-new song,

   praise him in the company of all who love him.

Let all Israel celebrate their Sovereign Creator,

   Zion’s children exult in their King.

Let them praise his name in dance;

   strike up the band and make great music!

And why? Because God delights in his people,

   festoons plain folk with salvation garlands!

Let true lovers break out in praise,

   sing out from wherever they’re sitting,

Shout the high praises of God,

   brandish their swords in the wild sword-dance—

A portent of vengeance on the God-defying nations,

   a signal that punishment’s coming,

Their kings chained and hauled off to jail,

   their leaders behind bars for good,

The judgment on them carried out to the letter

   —and all who love God in the seat of honor!

Hallelujah!

(Psalm 149 MSG)

Prayer: Let creativity flourish. Let me sing, dance and play music to honor You. My heart is filled with gratitude, praise and hope for the future. I worship You and You alone. You deserve it and I love You.