Honest Reflections

One minute read.

Daily Reading: Ezekiel 33:1-34:31, Hebrews 13:1-25, Psalm 115:1-18, Proverbs 27:21-22

Daily Verse: “The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold, and a man is tested by his praise.” Prov. 27:21

Public opinion.

How a person receives praise tells a lot about their character. Receiving public accolades tests people. When David returned after killing Goliath, the conquering hero, the women danced in the street, singing:

“Saul has struck down his thousands, and David his ten thousand.” 1 Sam. 18:7

Jealousy consumed Saul, and David received more praise than him. As a result, the bitter dispute between the two began, and David had to flee for his life from Saul. One man handled the praise; the other didn’t.

How a person handles public opinion, whether bad or good, tells a lot about their qualities. Basing your self-worth on what others think of you doesn’t work. People’s opinions change constantly, but God’s doesn’t, know what He feels about you. Base your value on how the Lord thinks of you instead of people.

Opinions change. What people praise others for one day, they curse them for another. Trust God’s opinion and let the rest go.

Lord, forgive us prideful moments when we don’t receive praise well. Please help us stay centered on You, not allowing public opinion to sway us from our path. Let us become more like Jesus each day. IJNIP. Amen

One minute read.

Daily Reading: Ezekiel 31:1-32:32, Hebrews 12:14-29, Psalm 113:1-114:8, Proverbs 27:18-20

Daily Verse: “As in water, face reflects face, so the heart of man reflects the man.” Prov. 27:19

True self-awareness.

Like clear water acts as a mirror, showing our reflection, our hearts reflect the nature of man. 

“But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person.” Matthew 15:18

Jesus, speaking to His disciples, explains that our words and actions come from the heart, exposing our true nature. What we put into our minds comes out through the mouth. Our actions will reflect our thoughts if we constantly fill our heads with evil, malicious things.

Maintaining pure thoughts and a loving nature requires work. Spending time in the scriptures and getting to know Jesus and how He responds will help us give loving answers that help, not hurt. What comes from the heart exposes our true personality.

Spend time with Jesus. Develop a routine of reading the Bible and letting its contents take root in your soul. Become more like Christ as you follow God’s word.

Lord, forgive us for our evil thoughts and actions. Please help us become more like Christ as we seek and follow Him.  Guide and direct us in all our ways, and help us become the person You intended. IJNIP. Amen

One minute read.

Daily Reading: Ezekiel 29:1-30:26, Heb. 11:32-12:13, Psalm 112:1-10, Proverbs 27:17

Daily Verse: “Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.” Prov. 27:17

Helpful criticism.

Constructive criticism from a trusted source develops character and personality. True friends help each other grow by showing each other their blind spots. Accepting and applying helpful criticism to one’s life will cause them to become a better version of themselves.

Exposing the tip of the iceberg unintentionally causes me trouble. In conversations, I often don’t realize I’ve crossed a line until too late. Stepping on landmines I didn’t see hurts the other person and forces issues to the surface that they didn’t want to discuss. 

“You have a knack,” Ron says after one such incident. He helps me become better at not committing the offense again because my husband helps me understand where I went wrong. Knowing what I did, I can stop myself from doing it again. At this point, I’m much better, but I still have work to do.

Without Ron’s sharpening, I wouldn’t learn.

Helpful criticism helps everyone. People grow from words of truth spoken into their lives with love. 

Lord, forgive us for not accepting helpful criticism. Please place people in our lives that will help us grow and become more like Jesus. Let iron sharpen iron in our relationships. IJNIP. Amen

One minute read.

Daily Reading: Ezekiel 27:1-28:26, Hebrews 11:17-31, Psalm 111:1-10, Proverbs 27:15-16

Daily Verse: “A continual dripping on a rainy day and a quarrelsome wife are alike; to restrain her is to restrain the wind or to grasp oil in one’s right hand.” Prov. 27:15-16

Quarrelsome wife.

“How bad am I to be married to?” I asked Ron this morning as we headed to the neighborhood yard sale. A bi-annual event, I find lots of treasure for my business. However, my honey must put up with small furniture throughout our house, and God knows what else I find.

“You’re not that bad,” Ron replied. 

Thank God. Quarrelsome wives make life miserable. Nagging drives anyone crazy. Even if husbands give wives reasons to complain, we must remember that they must live with us, too. And only one perfect person walked the earth, Jesus.

As a wife, work on not nagging. Try not complaining for a day and see if you struggle to keep quiet. Practice an attitude of gratitude, looking for ways to thank your spouse for the things he does.

After Ron took me around the yard sale, I took him to breakfast to say thanks. One little act of appreciation goes a long way in a marriage.

Lord, forgive us for nagging our spouses. Please help us have attitudes of gratitude towards our mates. Help us easily find things to thank them for daily, appreciating all they do for us. IJNIP. Amen

One minute read.

Daily Reading: Ezekiel 24:1-26:21, Hebrews 11:1-16, Psalm 110:1-7, Proverbs 27:14

Daily Verse: “Whoever blesses his neighbor with a loud voice, rising early in the morning, will be counted as cursing.” Prov. 27:14

Inappropriate greeting.

How, when, and why we say something matters. Choosing the right time and place with the proper intent makes listeners receive our words better. Knowing people well helps determine the best circumstances to talk to them.

One of my best friends starts her workday at 3:30 every morning. Whenever I wake up, whether 5:00 a.m. or 7:00, I know I can text her. However, not on her days off. I will never forget the morning I texted her on a Saturday and received this back:

“No texts before 8:00 a.m. on my days off.”

Now, I know the right time to contact her and try to respect her boundaries to the best of my ability.

To become a good communicator, ask people for the best times to reach out to them. Knowing people’s routines helps you understand the appropriate time to talk to them.

Bless people with your words by waiting for the right moment to share them.

Lord, forgive us for speaking at the wrong time. Please help us learn to wait for the right moment to share the news we have. Let us become better communicators as we think more about our listeners than our message. IJNIP. Amen

One minute read.

Daily Reading: Ezekiel 23:1-49, Hebrews 10:18-39, Psalm 109:1-31, Proverbs 27:13

Daily Verse: “Take a man’s garment when he has put up security for a stranger, and hold it in pledge when he puts up security for an adulteress.” Prov. 27:13

Obligations fulfilled.

No matter what the commitment, we must live up to it. Keeping a deposit on a debt owed forces people to fulfill their obligations or lose their deposit.

We planned our summer vacation in January. Desiring to explore the coast of Maine, we booked several campgrounds well in advance. However, when my father-in-love declined, and God called him home, we had to cancel. As a result, we lost the deposits we paid in several places. We fulfilled our obligations.

“Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’;” Matthew 5:37

Keeping commitments does two things. First, as you learn to live up to your words and pledges, you will mature. And secondly, you will stop making rash promises, taking time to think about your “Yes” or “No.” 

Accountability by making a deposit motivates us to fulfill our obligations and helps us think before we do.

Lord, forgive us for any unfulfilled obligations in our lives. Please help us think before we commit and fulfill the promises we make. Guide and direct our paths, keeping us on the straight and narrow. IJNIP. Amen

One minute read.

Daily Reading: Ezekiel 21:1-22:31, Hebrews 10:1-17, Psalm 108:1-13, Proverbs 27:12

Daily Verse: “The prudent sees danger and hides himself, but the simple go on and suffer for it.” Prov. 27:12

Avoid pitfalls.

Wise people see danger ahead and hide from it, but the simple head straight for it. Mature people develop a wariness, while inexperienced youth quickly stumble into the pitfalls of life.

Meant to motivate the naive, today’s verse shows the importance of learning. Remaining teachable allows us to grow from life’s experiences and avoid the same mistakes. Fool me once; shame on you. Fool me twice; shame on me.

Learning from our mistakes means honest self-evaluation. Identifying the failure helps us avoid it in the future. When I landed in the pitfall of credit card debt, the problem came from swiping the card instead of paying cash. To fix the issue and learn from my mistakes, I stopped using credit and only bought what I could afford with money.

Maturing takes effort, but with it comes less strife as we learn to avoid the pitfalls of life. Remaining teachable, regardless of age, helps you continue maturing, avoiding life’s pitfalls, and enjoying a smoother journey.

Lord, forgive us for not learning from our mistakes. Please help our hearts remain teachable, molding and growing us with each lesson. Let us represent You well as we mature, traveling through life on the straight and narrow with You.  IJNIP. Amen

One minute read.

Daily Reading: Ezekiel 20:1-49, Hebrews 9:11-28, Psalm 107:1-43, Proverbs 27:11

Daily Verse: “Be wise, my son, and make my heart glad, that I may answer him who reproaches me.” Prov. 27:11

Teaching vindicated.

When someone criticizes a father’s son, wise children enable their dads to defend them. Teachers typically get blamed for their students’ faults, treating them with contempt. But by highlighting the students that have learned, the teacher shows they didn’t labor in vain.

As a coach, I have students who want to listen and learn and those who don’t. One new student who has only had four lessons has so much enthusiasm for the game; he’s already shown vast improvement because he constantly practices. However, another student has taken classes longer and has a natural ability but doesn’t improve because he won’t listen and do the work necessary to take his game to the next level.

Teachers give the information necessary to learn, but the student must receive and apply it to grow. Wise kids listen and learn, showing the effectiveness of their teacher.

We can’t control what other people do. But we can highlight the progress an avid student makes.

Lord, thank You for allowing us to learn and grow. Please help us apply ourselves to Your teachings, becoming the person You intend. Let us represent You well as we follow Jesus. IJNIP. Amen

One minute read.

Daily Reading: Ezekiel 18:1-19:14, Hebrews 9:1-10, Psalm 106:32-48, Proverbs 27:10

Daily Verse: “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.” Prov. 27:10

Helpful friends.

Available friends who live close by offer more help than a relative far away. My neighbor Stephanie, only walking distance from us, takes care of our dogs, picks up packages, waters the plants, and anything else that pops up when we leave. I do the same for her when she takes a trip. She’s more available than my relatives who live further away.

When you live far away from family, friends help you through the trials of day-to-day life. One of my young friends and her family of five children, with a traveling husband, has no relatives nearby. When she needs help babysitting, she texts me. My availability and proximity make me a better choice than calling her mom, who lives 2,000 miles away.

Calling on relatives who live a long distance away can’t help like a friend who lives close by. Whatever the emergency, available neighbors help where far-off family members can’t. 

Call on the friends God gives you in your time of need. They will help you through the storm.

Lord, forgive us for calling on the wrong people for help. Please place around us friends we can count on amid life’s stresses. Help us develop strong relationships with those who live close to us. IJNIP. Amen

One minute read.

Daily Reading: Ezekiel 16:42-17:24, Hebrews 8:1-13, Psalm 106:13-31, Proverbs 27:7-9

Daily Verse: “Oil and perfume make the heart glad, and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel.” Prov. 27:9

Sweet counsel.

Close friends who give wise counsel bring a beautiful aroma to life like oil and perfume. Knowing someone speaks to you with a heart of love and wants the best for you helps to hear what they say, even if it’s not what you hoped.

Only a handful of people give me this type of counsel. Most people say what they think I want to hear or use flattery to try and win my graces. You don’t need an army of people giving advice; you need a few trusted friends who won’t steer you wrong.

Tomorrow, I’m having lunch with one of my wise counselors. I can’t wait to see her, catch up on life, and listen to her input. The epitome of sweetness, our time together always encourages and uplifts me.

Develop deep relationships with others. Lead with love, honesty, and grace. Become vulnerable and watch how others share with you.

Enjoy the sweetness of good counsel as you build friendships that will last a lifetime.

Lord, forgive us for taking friendships for granted. Please help us develop healthy relationships that bring sweet counsel into our lives. Let us enjoy the benefits of community as we follow You.  IJNIP. Amen