You Are Not Sherlock Holmes

Proverbs 25:8-10

    ⁸do not bring hastily to court,
for what will you do in the end
    if your neighbor puts you to shame?

⁹ If you take your neighbor to court,
    do not betray another’s confidence,
¹⁰ or the one who hears it may shame you
    and the charge against you will stand

 

Have you ever heard of the internet?  Perhaps you have if you are reading this.  Have you ever followed politics?  If you answered yes to the first question, you are probably answering yes to the second.

 

The internet is great.  We have access to so much information and media that even 20 years ago we wouldn't have imagined it would be this pervasive. 

 

The internet is also terrible.  Everyone who can hit copy/paste can now put together their "researched" 10 point blog/status update proving how some politician(or celebrity, or church leader) is a 2 bit hack(or Communist/Nazi).

 

99% of the time(generous estimate) you are wrong.  And for those rare 1% of times you most likely look foolish because you don't actually make the point as air tight as you thought when you were reading that one website from Peru at 3 in the morning......

 

I am totally guilty of this many times over.  What does God say about this attitude of barely being able to contain yourself from the having the "Big Reveal" and the "Gotcha" moment?  Don't be an idiot(my paraphrase).

 

Here is a key thought though.  It doesn't say you were wrong in your assumption.  It just says, don't go showing you cards and publicizing what you think you know hastily.  You very may well be spot on, but being unable to actually prove it is as damaging as bringing false accusations.  And practically speaking, you just created "Double Jeopardy".  The ability to deal with the issue just got blown up even if later you can prove it.

As you read this you are probably saying, "Well, I don't really ever say anything about Politics, so I'm good, no assumptions and jumping to conclusions here".  Guess what.  You ARE guilty of this.  Unless you are a perfect person.  Bet you're not though.

 

How many conclusions have you had about people in your life?  How many times were you just convinced that someone did, "this" or said, "that", or you are sure their motivation for whatever it is you think they did was "this"?  Have you ever confronted someone with something you are mad about, to then feel really foolish about what actually was going on?  Bet you did some real damage to the relationship that was difficult to deal with because of it.

 

1 Corinthians 4:5 says, "Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the heart. At that time each will receive their praise from God."

 

When we get ahead of ourselves and try to solve all our problems with incomplete answers, whether political OR personal, we are acting out of a profound mistrust in God.  Sure, God is in charge, but I am pretty sure He is running late, so let me take care of this....in my way....on my time schedule.....

 

Maybe everything you think is right.  But are you trusting God?  Do you believe that God is indeed Sovereign and working all things to the good of those who love Him?  Or are you going to exhaust yourself trying to fix all the worlds problems with a google search and/or incomplete accusations? 

 

This week, let go of being right, and hold on to the Righteous Judge who WILL  reveal what needs to be revealed WHEN it needs to be revealed.  Stop looking foolish......Adam....

 

 

Tony Smykowski--Jumping to Conclusions since 1999



They Are Not Your Enemy; Proverbs 24:17-18

"Do not gloat when your enemy falls, when he stumbles, do not let your heart rejoice, of the Lord will see and disapprove and turn His wrath from him"

Have you ever been hurt by someone?  Has anyone, in straight up sin, become your enemy?

It is so easy to want to see them "get theirs".  When the famed atheist, Christopher Hitchens, passed away a year or so ago, there was a part of me that wanted to stand in the courtroom of God and see Him have to finally face the Holy God he mocked for so long.  There have been times in my life that people have acted towards me with such disdain and "evil intent" that a part of me wanted God to just swoop in and put the smack down.

Scripture tells us that God is a righteous and just God who will deal with evil.  But lest we confuse the point, it isn't about justice for "us", it is about justice for a Holy God.  And so, in our own sinful heart, we want justice for our own reasons. 

Jonah was like me.  When asked to participate in saving Ninevah(the Jews enemies) he wanted to run from the assignment, to let them reap their "reward".  But God had another plan. 

What we forget when we seek man-centered justice for the evil we observe is that God's righteousness is a terrible thing for those who stand in unrepentant rebellion.  When we begin to celebrate evil mens "punishment" we are forgetting that the great promise that we have is that WE were enemies of the Lord, saved by Grace.

We need to stop taking joy in others experiencing consequences for their actions.  If someone has hurt you, deliberately or not, out of a sinful heart, don't gleefully await their rude awakening.  Seek a Christ centered heart; one that is broken for even your enemies.

Pray for those who hurt you, seek their good.  Desire in your deepest place their changed and renewed heart. 

Who today do you have to start feeling heartbroken for, and not angry at?  Who needs you to pray for saving instead of punishment?

Proverbs 23:1-8- Being Happy Right Where You Are

Proverbs 23-1 When you sit to dine with a ruler, note well what is before you, 2 and put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony. 3 Do not crave his delicacies, for that food is deceptive. 4 Do not wear yourself out to get rich; have the wisdom to show restraint. 5 Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle. 6 Do not eat the food of a stingy man, do not crave his delicacies; 7 for he is the kind of man who is always thinking about the cost. "Eat and drink," he says to you, but his heart is not with you. 8 You will vomit up the little you have eaten and will have wasted your compliments.

This passage has two extreme sides painted of the same issue; lack of contentment  with where you are right now.  First we are told that we need to be careful of desiring the "delicacies" of rulers(contextually--those who have more than you) because it is actually deceiving.  And when you have it, it is not what you had hoped for, and, you have exhausted yourself to try to obtain it.

On the other hand, we have avoiding the table of a "stingy man".  The picture painted here is someone who is so overly concerned with being "frugal" that they are incapable of enjoying that which they do have. 

These two extremes are at the heart of our personal frustration with the "Now" in our life.  Either we are desiring for more than we currently have and it consumes us.  Or, we are so concerned with losing what we already have, that we don't enjoy it.  We covet and we hoard.  They are the same heart issue. 

God's promise is that He is the source of our happiness.  And what you have at this very moment is a source of hope and blessing in your life.  The kind that He knows you need for this very moment.  When we covet and hoard we live in the discontent of a lack of trust and hope. 

God's perfect plan for our future is beyond our utmost abilities to conceptualize.  To try to "imagine" or "day dream" things that we want(or don't want to lose), and to dwell on them causes us to lose focus on God Himself and become dissatisfied with who we are(and what we have) right now.

Finding happiness is not about changing our situation, but celebrating where God has us at this very moment.  When we move from envy and worry to gratitude and faithfulness, we will discover that happiness was there all along. 

To read more similar thoughts check out my earlier post here.  Also, a good a sermon on coveting is here.

Update:  Link to a recent sermon I preached on this topic is here

Our Problem with Miracles

Do you ever wish God would do a miracle in your life?  A knock your socks off, blow your mind, kind of miracle?  Then, He doesn’t?  We have a problem with miracles today.  Not that they aren’t happening.  But that we don’t actually know what we are asking for.

The first thought that comes to mind about miracles is something stupendous happening to something around us.  When you are broke and don’t know where to turn, you pray for a miracle of money to fall in your lap.  When someone is sick or dying, we pray for a miraculous healing.

There is nothing wrong with that.  And God does do some pretty fantastic things regarding those problems in our lives. 

But our problem with miracles is that we rarely are looking for and asking for the best type(and the one you can have today) of miracle.

Our first inclination is to run from problems and scream for help.  And when we don’t get it, we are angry, and sad, and disappointed with God.

 God isn’t in the business of giving stuff and making life “better”.  He is in the heart transplant field.

We are made for much more than paying your bills, or not being sick, or not dying.  We are made for the radical transformation that makes us something we weren’t before.  His.

Every moment of every day we have the opportunity to be changed in ways that will astound us.  This change will alter the way you view those trials in your life.  No longer will they be obstacles that destroy, but opportunities to see you learn more of what it means to be His. 

The miracle will be that you don’t need the miracle you wished for.  Because if you are in Christ, the miracle has already happened that covers all.

So, start praying and seeking the miracle of letting God change your heart, not your stuff.

 

Proverbs 22:12--- Frustrating Your Words

"The eyes of the Lord keep watch over knowledge, but He frustrates the words of the unfaithful"

Have you ever said something you regret?  Done something you are embarrassed about?  I know I have.  And when I am honest with myself, every time that happens(and it is often) it is rooted in self-reliance.  I say and do what I think is right.  And it is always wrong.

True knowledge and wisdom belongs to the Lord.  When He goes before us in speech and action the power and effectiveness of what we are communicating is without compare. 

What does it mean to be unfaithful in such a way that leads to "frustrated words"?  Are you in God's word, are you in prayer?  Are you vetting your conversations and life through a lens that is God's truth?  When Christ is your center, it will define the type of words you will use, and how and when you use them!

Steps this week to speak more wisely:

1)  Get in the word.  When you expose yourself to Scripture consistently it begins to shape the way you think and talk.  Start each morning in the word and let it be the guide to your words.

2)  As you have conversations this week, have a running thought going through your head;  "God, what should I say in this moment?"  And here is the key to that, the one I forget, actually listen!


What are some ways that you seek to have more God centered wisdom in your life?

Proverbs 21:30

"There is no wisdom, no insight, no plan that can succeed against the Lord"

Anxiety can be a ruthless master.  It is so easy for us to be controlled by the emotional battering ram that is anxiety.  What will happen?  Will it work?  Will it fail? 

Here is the trick.  Who is going before you in your life?  If it is you, good chance you do fail.  If it is God, nothing will stop Him from completing what it is He has started in motion.

How often we practically say we are living for God, but live really through our own strength.  As we learn to give more and more to Him, allow Him to be the driving force and designer of what we are doing, the more we can have peace and a true and lasting hope that nothing will "mess it up".

So how about you?  Who is leading your steps?  Want to get rid of anxiety about "tomorrow"?  Start trusting Him and following hard after Him today!

Proverbs 20:30 Thoughts

"Blows and Wounds cleanse away evil, and beatings purge the inmost being"

How we view trials shapes the way they will effect us.  If we have a resistant attitude towards the "blows" we take and begin with the "why me?" syndrome it WILL be pain for no reason.

If instead we embrace these trials as an opportunity to grow the experience shifts from one of pain and pain alone to being one of great blessing. 

Not that God gives us pain, but that His Glory is Sovereign, and even "this" will be turned to good. 

So how are you facing your wounds and blows?  Are you running from them and afraid of them?  Or, are you embracing them as an opportunity to finally address the issues of your own heart that have been exposed and can be healed?