Daily Devotionals
Daily Devotional: Proverbs 27:6-10
Prov 27:6-10
6 Faithful are the wounds of a friend; profuse are the kisses of an enemy. 7 One who is full loathes honey, but to one who is hungry everything bitter is sweet. 8 Like a bird that strays from its nest is a man who strays from his home. 9 Oil and perfume make the heart glad, and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel. 10 Do not forsake your friend and your father’s friend, and do not go to your brother’s house in the day of your calamity. Better is a neighbor who is near than a brother who is far away.
1 Cor 3:1-3
But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready, for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way?
Do you like to admit that you are wrong about anything? I don’t know that I have ever met anyone who wants to be told they are wrong. When we are corrected, most of us have a defensive shield that comes up and tries to justify what we are doing, saying, or just what we believe. It is easier to think about how to defend ourselves than it is to listen and actually consider that we may be wrong.
We know that we are right because it is what we have always been taught by our parents or the church where we grew up. Our preacher, that we regard so highly, has taught us this or maybe we even studied it and decided on our own, so we can’t be wrong. I have heard people justify what they believe because “all the commentators say this”. This is about as credible as saying that something has to be right because we saw it on the internet. Maybe it is but maybe it is not.
The wise person listens to what others say and this is especially true if they are challenging what we believe about something. With all things, measure it by the word of God because it is his revelation of truth. Our understanding and our application of truth may be wrong, and it is a true friend who will point it out and reason with us about it. Study. Pray. Think. Pray for wisdom. Reason. Decide.
O Lord God, help me remember to be careful in my assessment of myself and of my thinking, knowing that I have been wrong before and I can be wrong again today. Help me be humble enough to accept correction and criticism when I need it, and then to be willing to change when shown that I am wrong. Be with those who have been displaced by storms. Be with our nation as we engage in elections. Give us leaders that will allow us to live peaceful lives. Help each of us to show your love and to respect those in authority. I pray in Jesus’ name.
Robert
