Proverbs to live by

The Book of Proverbs Chapter 26
( Please read the entire chapter of lovely Proverbs. I will comment on a few with the aid of my NLT Bible notes.)

Verse 7: In the mouth of a fool, a proverb becomes as limp as a paralyzed leg. (This means that some people are so blind they won't get much wisdom from reading these proverbs. Only those who have the receptive attitude and want to learn from God will have him respond and pour out his heart to us.)

Verses 13 -16: The lazy person is full of excuses, saying "I can't go outside because there might be a lion on the road! As a door turns back and forth on its hinges, so the lazy person turns over in bed. Some people are so lazy that they won't lift a finger to feed themselves. Lazy people consider themselves smarter than seven wise counselors. (If a person is not willing to work, they can fine endless excuses to avoid it. But laziness is dangerous. The less you do, the less you want to do and the more useless you become. To overcome this, try to take a few small steps toward change. Set a realistic goal and figure out steps needed to reach it. Pray for strength and persistence.)

HOW DOES THIS CHAPTER RELATE TO US TODAY? These are lessons for all of us to learn, so I hope you read the entire chapter. Some sound humorous, such as verse 17 which says: "Yanking a dog's ears is as foolish as interfering in someone else's argument." or Verse 11 which says " As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his folly." The proverbs are trying hard to teach you about lying tongues, and words that can trick you or hide evil thoughts.

I think the hardest thing to grasp is the concept of "change", or at least it is for me. Yet in verses that speak of laziness being dangerous, we are told to try to change a small step at a time. For some of us, change comes very slowly. But don't give up! God is protecting you today, just as he gave people proverbs to help them hundreds of years ago. Many of the proverbs hold true today. Just as the words of the Bible are every bit as relevant today as in the time of the prophets and in the New Testament in the time of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Say a prayer today and thank God for trying so very hard to lay it all out for us!

Yours in Christ,
Mary

Prayer Requests are needed for:
HEALTH: Pray for Gabe.
Pray for Janice Long’s parents, especially her mother who faces another round of chemotherapy and her father with Alzheimer’s and now her mother in law also with Alzheimer’s. Their family is feeling the strain both emotionally and financially. Pray for them. Update on this family: Her mother-in-law is being taken to Oklahoma to live with an aunt who will care for her.
Pray for Arlene’s nephew David and for my neighbor Al who is nearing the end of his life.
Pray for Carolyn’s brother Ronald who has cancer. And her sister Wanda who is having risky surgery.
Pray for our friend Michelle who was diagnosed with MS.
UPDATE on Barb who went in for back surgery and had a heart attack and stroke, she has her speech back and is home , but continues to have a problem with one arm and hand. Thanks to your prayers, she is able to hobble without a cane and has been granted disability. She still has surgery scheduled on her hand, but I saw her recently and her attitude is fantastic.
Pray for Robert Sargent who is quite ill with lung cancer.
Pray for Gary Summers, my friend from church, who has cancer.
Pray for Judy’s husband who was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer. Pray for her too, that she can deal with the side effects of his illness.
Pray too for Charly’s husband Robert who is undergoing chemo for his prostate cancer. Update on Robert: he has one more treatment and then three months of waiting for his psat test to come back clean.
Pray for John’s recovery from a heart attack and for the doctors who have difficulty diagnosing his other symptoms.
Pray for James’s sister Cynthia whose chemo has lost its effect as the cancer grows powerful.
Pray for another friend named Carolyn whose faith remains strong, but is lost and confused about where and how to spend her elder years.
SPIRITUAL UPLIFTING: Gail, Mary
RESTORATION OF FAITH: Al, John
LOVE AND SUPPORT: Claire, Hunter, Brian
SUPPORT: Haiti, Chile, survivors of Japan’s earthquake, survivors of the devastating tornadoes in our southernmost states and Joplin, Missouri. Pray too, for our country’s leaders and our military people who die each day for our freedom.