Missions Paul

Proverbs 24
Eat honey, my son, for it is good; honey from the comb is sweet to your taste. Know also that wisdom is sweet to your soul; if you find it, there is a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off, v13-14.

I love the Bible for many reasons. I love the fact that one moment it can be challenging me about some severity of humanity and then the next it can be telling me that I should really consider eating honey.
If I want to paraphrase then it actually is saying that chocolate is good for you, eat it.
But Solomon continues to say wisdom is like honey. It’s not sour, nor is it serious. It is not hard to swallow or digest. It almost sounds like fun.
Today the ‘wise people’ will dress up and go to a building. They do this every Sunday. They know the truth. However, not all ‘wise people’ are portraying the fact that wisdom is not unpalatable or indigestible. They have sour faces, as if they are on the way to a painful place. There is little sweetness and no hope. So according to this proverb, they haven’t found wisdom, because wisdom is like honey or chocolate for that matter. It is a joy to eat it and eat it we must.

Proverbs 23

When you sit to dine with a ruler, note well what is before you, and put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony. Do not crave his delicacies, for that food is deceptive, v23.

FHB. Now these initials may not mean anything to you, but they sure do me. FHB. If I was translating the Bible I would place it in this verse around where Solomon talks about the knife at the throat!
When I was growing up whenever we had someone special come to our house then my mother would bake butterfly cakes, make sandwiches with no crusts and get the best china out. Cups had saucers, plates were smaller and everyone had something which was a cross between a fork and a spoon, simply a weird implement. Before the special one arrived there was the usual forceful announcement, FHB. It means this: Family Hold Back. I still am not sure whether FHB was because of the honour given to the special one or because we had limited cakes and sandwiches. But we knew we had to be grateful for whatever was left after the special one had chosen first. This is where I learnt to pray the most!

Solomon says that when eating before the special one Hold Back. Bridle your appetite. Don’t get carried away and stuff yourself. The reason being is that riches are fleeting. It will all be over soon. It is not lasting, so control yourself.

We all live in the presence of the Special One, Jesus. Today let’s build in some restraint. FHB.

Proverbs 22

The sluggard says, “There’s a lion outside! I’ll be killed in the public square!”, v13.

“I won’t be in today. My fish is sick and I need to take it to the vet”.

“I won’t be coming in today, I’ve spent my last penny playing online bingo and I don’t have any money left for the bus. Don’t worry, I’ll try to win it back today while I’m off”.

“The dog ate my car keys. We’re going to hitchhike to the vet”.

“I am not coming in because I tried to dye my hair blonde, but it came out green.”

“I cannot come into work today because I came down with a bad case of something or other”.

The sluggard says ….
The lazy man doesn’t want to leave his recliner chair.
The lazy man thinks of an excuse to stay indoors.
The lazy man’s excuse is always extreme, pathetic and often laughable.
The lazy man is a visionary.
There is no lion.
There is no danger.
Yet he sees it visually. It’s a certain death.
Is there something God has been calling you to do?
But instead of actions you have made excuses.

Proverbs 21

Whoever shuts their ears to the cry of the poor will also cry out and not be answered, v13.

There’s nothing wrong with the cry, it is loud enough.
The poor do exist, Jesus said they will always be with us.
The poor are poor, that is the category.
They are not criminally poor, immorally poor and lazy poor, they are poor.
Poverty is not having to send the Sky TV back. Poverty is a killer.
Hunger is the world’s number 1 health risk; it kills more people every year than AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis combined.
Some 925 million people do not have enough to eat.
Ninety-eight percent of them live in the developing world.
One in seven people in the world will go to bed hungry tonight.
There are more hungry people in the world than the combined populations of the U.S., Canada, and the European Union.
Undernutrition contributes to five million deaths of children under five each year in developing countries.
Worldwide, 115 million children under the age of 5 are underweight.
The poor are asking Elim International Missions to carry the cry of their soul and the cry of their children’s stomachs.
We have a vision to help. We are doing everything we can. This is a new day for an old cry.
There is nothing wrong with your hearing.
Call us today.
We know these people. We know their names. They are real. They are people just like me and you. We could be them. This could be our cry. We could be poor one day. We could have people ignore us too. Solomon says it will be so if we don’t say YES now.

Proverbs 20
Do not love sleep or you will grow poor; stay awake and you will have food to spare, v13.
I knew a friend once who spent half his life asleep. He didn’t need to sleep he just loved to do it. Sleep shut out the world and his world had quite a few problems! It was a defence mechanism. When he was asleep he didn’t need to work on the problems that needed fixing.
I am quite the reverse. I stay awake for as long as I can to fix as many problems as I can. I love being awake. Being asleep is something I have to do. Yes. I know. I need to sort myself out.
However I wonder if people just got up a little earlier or stayed awake a little longer what productive things could be done? So stop hitting the snooze button and get up and begin to do life. If you had another 15 minutes each day awake, by the end of the year you would gain an extra 3 days!
Now that’s put a smile on your face I know!

Proverbs 19
People ruin their lives by their own stupidity, so why does God always get blamed? v3

In October of 2005, a convicted murderer in a Romanian prison sued God for his troubled life. The man, identified as Pavel M., filed a suit in which he requested “legal action against God, resident in Heaven, and represented here by the Romanian Orthodox Church, for committing the following crimes: cheating, concealment, abuse against people’s interest, taking bribes, and traffic of influence.”
Pavel also noted that “God even claimed and received from me various goods and prayers in exchange for forgiveness and the promise that I would be rid of problems and have a better life.” According to the suit, this did not happen, and the plaintiff instead found himself in the devil’s hands.
Pavel’s complaint was sent to the Court of Justice and forwarded to the prosecutor’s office. However, it was eventually dropped because the defendant—God—was not an individual or a corporation, and therefore not subject to a civil court’s jurisdiction!!!

Bonkers I know!

But since the beginning of time man has blamed God.
Adam: The woman You gave to be with me …

It’s not complicated: the mistakes, failures and disappointments that occur in our life can be traced back to ourselves being stupid rather than God being awkward.
And of course if we still are not able to blame ourselves, we can always blame each other!

Proverbs 18

A gift opens the way and ushers the giver into the presence of the great, v16.

Okay, I have a confession to make.
When I shop and there are ‘tasters’ being offered I always take. Even if I don’t normally eat the food or like the food, I gladly receive. Sometimes I have walked around the aisle and gone back trying to appear to be a new customer in order to feel it would be okay to take a second free portion of olives on a stick or whatever it is.
I like to receive. That’s my confession.

And now a fact.
Since a child I have been taught it is better to give than to receive. I like to have the opportunity to buy-in to things that have convicted me because of vision and a clear strategy. That is why I have decided to give every month to Elim Missions. Join with me please.
Send a cheque of any amount to Elim International Missions, Elim International Centre, De Walden Road, West Malvern, WR14 4DF. Or you could simply phone us today on 01684 588 940 and make a difference.
I truly believe God’s presence will be strong in your life as you give.

Proverbs 17

Better a dry crust with peace and quiet than a house full of feasting, with strife, v1.

Yesterday I sat and listened to a man called George. He has a church who worships outside in the north of India. He and his wife have a small modest home. Money is scarce. They are doing much with very little. Their house has a dry crust.

Today I think of a family who will be attending a lovely church. They live in a nice house. Money is no problem. Yet they do little for God with their life. Their house has so much it’s like a banquet.

I cannot help but compare.
Yesterday I was impressed by the peace I felt.
Today I think of all the stress and the falling out.
I know which is better.
It is George.

Proverbs 16

Anyone can come up with ideas, v1
Those ideas can all look good, v2
Good for our life, v9
And justified by appearing to be so right, v25
A Christian can base their whole life’s decisions on the above 4 steps. They can appear to be very spiritual and envied amongst the Christian community.
They talk well.
They look good.
They do right.
However, what does God say? v1
What are the true motives? v2
Is this sustainable? v9
What does it look like in the end? v25
No one ever gets too big for the above 4 questions. No experiences, no qualifications, no titles and no recognitions outweigh the need to know those answers.
It is not complicated. We need to keep it simple.
“Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.” v3
He is always in charge. It is better for us when we acknowledge that.

Proverbs 15
A hot-tempered man stirs up dissension, but a patient man calms a quarrel, v18.

The Academy Award-winning movie Forrest Gump has been viewed by millions. There is a line worth noting. The scene has one of the central characters, Jenny, returning to her old home after her father has died. The old farm house is dilapidated and abandoned. As she reflects on the sexual abuse that she endured as a child, she is overcome by rage and begins throwing rocks at the house. The photography is powerful as it shows her rapidly reaching for rocks and then violently throwing them at the house. Jenny finally falls to the ground in exhaustion and the scene closes with Forrest Gump sympathizing, “Sometimes there just aren’t enough rocks.” Many of us struggle with anger. It can stem from a variety of reasons, and some anger seems very justifiable. Yet, unresolved anger leaves us reaching and crying out for more rocks. The rage is never satisfied, and contentment is never found. Through the power of Christ we can find the strength to lay down rocks of anger rather than needing to reach for more.
A man was dying in the desert. As he stumbled over a sand dune he was greeted by a man selling ties. The dehydrated man begged for water, but the salesman said he only had ties. In frustration and anger the weakened man continued on his journey for survival. In an hour he reached an isolated restaurant in the middle of the desert. Was it a mirage? As he drew closer, he saw it was real. He was ecstatic. With renewed energy he ran for the door. He was stopped at the entrance by a security guard who denied him entry. The guard said, “I’m sorry, sir, but you need to wear a tie to eat here.”
Be careful: what you may be angry at today could make perfect sense tomorrow.