Verse of the Day

June 23, 2020

SEARCHING FOR TREASURE

Proverbs 2:1-6

My son, if you receive the words of my commandment
And hide them within yourself,
Your ear will be obedient to wisdom,
And you will incline your heart to understanding;
You will entrust it to your son as an admonition.
For if he calls upon wisdom,
And you utter your voice for understanding;
If you seek perception with a strong voice,
If you seek her as silver
And search for her as treasure,
Then you will understand the fear of the Lord
And find the knowledge of God.
For the Lord gives wisdom,
And from His face come knowledge and understanding;

Personal Challenge

We have become a people that search for the wrong treasure in all of the wrong places. We pursue wealth in our jobs and our investments. We stockpile toys and stuff that make us feel powerful and in control. We chase after the temporal, which can fade away so quickly. We are reminded here in Proverbs that the true riches of both this temporal life and our eternal life can only be found in God and that we must seek after Him and His treasures to truly be blessed with wisdom, knowledge, and understanding. Glory be to God!
June 22, 2020

KEEP IT SIMPLE

Proverbs 1:22

“So long a time as the simple hold fast to righteousness,
They shall not be ashamed;”

Personal Challenge

Jesus turned the religious world of His day upside down by telling people that they must become like little children to inherit the kingdom of heaven. Just as the Pharisees and Sadducees of His day we have made Christianity so much more complex than it was ever meant to be. This proverb reminds us to stay simple and to hold on to God’s righteousness in order to not be ashamed. If we live this way then God gets all the glory for everything that happens and not us. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!
June 21, 2020

WISDOM

Proverbs 1:20-21a

Wisdom sings in the streets;
She moves boldly in the squares.
She preaches on high city walls
And sits at the gates of lords.

Encouraging Words

Our Lord Jesus Christ proclaimed that His message would be presented to everyone, but that many with ears would not hear. The early Church fathers (those who lived in the first couple of centuries) taught that this Wisdom spoken of throughout the Proverbs was Jesus. If you really want to have fun, read the Proverbs substituting “Jesus” for “Wisdom”. This passage reminds us that Jesus is doing everything He can to proclaim His gospel, His Good News to every human being because He wants all of us to be part of His family. Glory be to God!
June 20, 2020

Saint of the Week

St. John Chrysostom
June 18, 2020

BEGINNING OF WISDOM

Proverbs 1:7

The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom,
And there is good understanding in all who practice it;

Encouraging Words

The book of Proverbs is full of great nuggets of knowledge and wisdom. It does start off by reminding us, though, that true wisdom and understanding have a beginning point. That starting point is fearing God and practicing that fear in our lives, every day. All knowledge, all wisdom, all understanding that means anything, begins with Him. Glory be to God!
June 17, 2020

HEAR ME, O LORD

Job 42:4

But hear me, O Lord, that I also may speak.
I will ask You, and please teach Me.

Personal Challenge

Sometimes it may feel like God is deaf and cannot hear our pleas. He is not, God is always present and listening to us. Sometimes He waits to respond to our pleas so that we can keep calling out and hopefully grow in our depth of knowledge of Him and understanding of what we should actually be praying for. He is still listening. No matter what our prayer or plea is about, we should always be looking for what He is teaching us. Glory be to God!
June 16, 2020

WISDOM AND UNDERSTANDING

Job 28:28

He said to man, ‘behold, the fear of God is wisdom,
And to abstain from evils is understanding.’

Personal Challenge

In our western, self-centered, self-made culture, we have gotten wisdom and understanding all wrong. We believe that if we accumulate knowledge through books, seminars, and degrees, then we are wise. God tells us that wisdom starts by fearing Him, putting Him and His ways at the center of our lives. He goes on to say that understanding then comes from running from evils and practicing them in our lives. Wisdom and understanding come from God and our living lives that are dependent upon Him. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!
June 15, 2020

BLESSED BE THE NAME OF THE LORD

Job 1:21

“Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away. As it seemed good to the Lord, so also it came to pass. Blessed be the name of the Lord.”

Personal Challenge

We so often go through this world living our lives as if we are in control of everything that goes on. I hate to disappoint, but we are actually in control of nothing, except how we choose to respond to the events that transpire. Our response shapes us and equips us for the next event. Job had this figured out and deeply ingrained in who he was. God is in control and the more that we yield our lives and will to Him the more we can joyfully go along for the ride that He has in store for us. It is not that we are some mice in a predetermined maze or a robot that must follow it’s programming. God knows what is best for us and is guiding us through our journey of life to form us into the image of Christ that He has specifically designed for each one of us. We can choose to go with His plan, His will, and be shaped into that image, or we can resist and fight and eventually be broken and rebuilt into that image. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!
June 14, 2020

HEALED

Psalms 146:3 (147:3)

He heals the brokenhearted
And He binds up all their wounds.

Encouraging Words

Have you ever been brokenhearted, wounded so deeply that you felt like you were going to die? Many, if not all, of us, have been here at one time or another. It may have been the repose of a loved one, the loss of love and family through a divorce, The pain and challenges of a severe illness, or any other event that cuts deeply into our hopes and desires. Our world is still a fallen world and painful things happen to us and to those we love. But we do have a hope in all of this: We have a God that feels our pain with us and who treats our broken hearts. He is the great Physician and binds up our wounds. He pours out His love and healing on us. Glory be to God!
June 13, 2020

Saint of the Week

St. Seraphim of Sarov