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Sirach 3:18-19

The greater you are, the more humble you must be,
And you will find grace before the Lord;
Because great is the power of the Lord,
And He is honored by the humble.

Personal Challenge

Wait a minute! Everything that the world tells me, and demonstrates to me, is that I pursue greatness so that I can lord it over others. If I am great, then I deserve to be honored and recognized. This is not how our Lord thinks. Jesus, the Son of God, the creator of all in existence, humbled Himself and became flesh and blood, a human being. He was the greatest of all and was/is the most humble of all. If we desire to be like Him, then we too must become humble, more humble every day of our existence so that He and others will be glorified. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

Sirach 2:1-6

My son, if you draw near to serve the Lord,
Prepare your soul for temptation.
Set your heart right and be steadfast,
And do not strive anxiously in distress.
Cleave to Him and do not fall away,
That you may be honored at the end of your life.
Accept whatever is brought upon you,
And in exchange for your humiliation, be patient;
Because gold is tested in fire
And acceptable men in the furnace of abasement.
Believe in Him, and He will help you;
Make your ways straight and hope in Him.

Personal Challenge

As we strive to draw near to our Lord and live our lives to be like Him, we will be tempted. The enemy does not want us to succeed. We must set our hearts and minds on Him and be steadfast in our commitment to Him. As life closes in on us and we stumble and fall, we must cling to Him even tighter so that we do not fall away. The closer we are to Him, the more that we can accept from this world as it tries to pull us away from Him. These temptations can be used by God to refine us and strengthen us. In all of this, we cannot stop believing in Him, hoping in Him, and trusting that He will make our paths straight. Lord Jesus Christ, son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

 

Sirach 1:20-21

A patient man will hold fast until the proper time,
Then afterwards gladness shall burst forth for him.
He shall conceal his words until the proper time,
And the lips of many will tell of his understanding.

Personal Challenge

Patience! Who really wants to learn about patience? We either do not have the time to learn it or the desire to put up with what it takes to be patient. It is indeed a process that takes the rest of our lives, and possibly even the rest of eternity, to truly learn how to be patient. What we so often fail to recognize or remember is that patience brings with it great rewards. We learn how to hold fast with our thoughts and verbalizations until the proper time generating gladness for not putting our foot in our mouths. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Sirach 1:16

The fear of the Lord is the crown of wisdom,
Making peace and soundness of health to flourish.

Encouraging Words

Heath can be manifested in many areas of our lives. It can be physical, spiritual, emotional, or mental. All of these aspects of health will be affected positively by our relationship with God. The more that we give our lives to Him, submit to Him, trust Him, the more that He can be active in our lives and give us peace and soundness of health in these areas. He is our crown of wisdom and health. Glory be to God!

Sirach 1:10-11

The fear of the Lord will cheer the heart
And will give gladness, joy, and long life.
For those who fear the Lord, it shall be well to the utmost,
And on the day of his death, he will be blessed.

Encouraging Words

In this day of self-glorification and personal aggrandizement, it is hard to find people who understand what is meant by the phrase, “the fear of the Lord” and why anyone would submit to that. It is not about being fearful that some omnipotent being is going to crush us like ants. It is not cowering in the corner in fear like some precious child who has been abused. God is not a bully. He is not angry all the time. He is not always looking for a way to punish us. The fear that we are called to have for Him is awe and respect, a love for Him that puts Him above all else because He first loved us above all else. This kind of godly fear will cheer our hearts. It will give us gladness, joy, and long life. We believe that by loving Him, it will be well to the utmost with our lives and that we will be blessed. Glory be to God!

Wisdom of Solomon 19:22

For in everything, O Lord, You have exalted and glorified Your people,
And have not neglected to be present with them in every time and place.

Encouraging Words

Throughout the history of creation and mankind, God has been an integral part of our lives. Even when we have abandoned Him and sought after our own ways and means, He still remains faithful. He continues to exalt and glorify those who are His. Sometimes, because of the fallenness of this world it appears like He has left us, but the truth is that He is still there holding it all together and waiting for us to return to Him. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

Wisdom of Solomon 12:1-2

For Your immortal Spirit is in all things.
For this reason You correct little by little those who fall away,
And You remind and warn them of the sins they commit
So they may be freed from evil and believe in You, O Lord.

Encouraging Words

When God created mankind He breathed His breath of life into us. He did not do this with any other parts of His creation. That breath of life is still within every one of us. This breath of life is His Holy Spirit, which dwells within us to correct our paths and constantly point us back to our creator. He is there to shed light on our journey so that we can avoid the pitfalls of sin and be freed from sin. Are we, am I, listening to that still, small voice or drowning it out? Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Wisdom of Solomon 8:17-20

When I considered these things within myself
And thought about them in my heart,
That in kinship with wisdom there is immortality,
And in friendship with her there is good pleasure,
And in the labors of her hands there is unfailing wealth,
And in the shared training of her company there is discernment,
And in the fellowship of her words there is good repute—
Thus I searched about that I might take her for myself.
As a child I was good by nature and received a good soul;
And much more, since I was good,
I entered an undefiled body.

Personal Challenge

Solomon did not have the blessing of living after the incarnation of Wisdom in our Lord Jesus Christ like we do. However, He lived his life with the hope of what would be coming someday. This passage is packed with so many things that we are blessed with in Jesus Christ. Kinship with Him gives immortality. Labors with Him provides unfailing wealth. We receive discernment in His training. By staying in fellowship with His words we find and retain good repute. If we search for Him as if we are searching for the greatest of treasures or rewards, we will find Him. Through Him, we can become undefiled bodies. Lord Jesus Christ, son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!