“When pride cometh, then cometh shame: but with the lowly is wisdom.”–Proverbs 11:2 The late Adrian Rogers once told a story that humorously shows the serious effects pride can have on a person. He told of a man who walked into a friend’s home, bruised and bleeding. When asked what had happened, the injured friend replied, “Well, I was walking down the street and was mugged by two thugs who wanted all of my money. I didn’t want to give it to them, so I fought them and fought them and fought them!” His friend then asked how much money he had on him when he was attacked. “Thirty-five cents,” he answered. “You fought for 35 cents?” his friend exclaimed. “Yes,” the wounded man answered. “I didn’t want to reveal my financial situation.”

We can laugh at this character’s irrational behavior, but how many times have we said or done something in an effort to conceal our true spiritual condition, financial state, or marital health?

The Bible tells us that “A man’s pride shall bring him low: but honour shall uphold the humble in spirit.” (Proverbs 29:23). A moment of humility will gain more respect than a lifetime of pride. Begin to live a humble life, moment by moment. (from Turning Point)

Satan’s number one weapon is pride. God’s number one defense is humility.
Larry Burkett

Let no one think of happiness as nothing more than a desirable quality, a mere ornamental grace, which is winsome-but is not an essential element in a Christian life, something which one may have or may not have, as it chances. Happiness is a duty, quite as much a duty as truthfulness, honesty, or good temper. There are many Scripture words which exhort us to rejoice.—–

But how are we to get this habit of happiness into our life? The answer is very simple–

The secret of Christian joy-is the peace of Christ in the heart. Then one is not dependent on circumstances or conditions. Paul said he had learned in whatever state he was, therein to be content. That is, he had formed the habit of happiness and had mastered the lesson so well, that in no state or condition, whatever its discomforts were, was he discontented. We well know, that his circumstances were not always congenial or easy. But he sang songs in his prison with just as cheerful a heart and voice as when he was enjoying the hospitality of some loving friend. His mood was always one of cheer, not only when things went well-but when things went adversely. He was just as songful on his hard days-as on his comfortable days.

Then Paul gives us the secret of his abiding gladness, in the word he uses-“content.” It means self-sufficed. He was self sufficed-that is, he carried in his own heart the springs of his own happiness. When he found himself in any place, he was not dependent on the resources of the place for his comfort. The circumstance might be most uncongenial. There might be hardship, suffering, poverty; but in himself he had the peace of Christ, and this sustained him so that he was content.

There is no other unfailing secret of happiness. Too many people are dependent upon external conditions-the house they live in, the people they are with, their food, their companions, the weather, their state of health, the comforts or discomforts of their circumstances. But if we carry with us such resources that things outside us cannot make us unhappy, however uncongenial they may be-then we have learned Paul’s secret of contentment, which is the Christian’s true secret of a happy life.(By J. R. Miller, 1898)

“Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.”–Ephesians 5:16  An article in “Senior Living” presented this scenario:

” Imagine if you were to check your bank account one morning only to find a direct deposit for $86,400. And it goes on for weeks!

Each morning you find a new deposit for this amount…but soon realize that your balance is not carried over to the next day. Instead, it is deleted each evening and the next morning you begin again with a new balance of $86,400.

What would you do when you finally realized your account balance would be deleted each evening if you didn’t use it all that day? Of course…you’d withdraw the balance left over each day!

You and I have such a bank account called time. Each day we are credited with 86,400 seconds. And every night that which we have not used is deleted from our account. However, our time accounts do not allow overdrafts, loans, or savings options.

We must invest our time wisely in this life.”

Good point! My cell phone plan has what they call “Roll-over minutes”, where my unused minutes are carried over to the next month, but life isn’t like that. There are no roll-over minutes in life. You use it or you lose it. You can’t add a second to the time you’ve been alloted for today. That should motivate us to use our time wisely. Don’t misunderstand—I’m not a time management nut. I believe you can use time wisely by taking a nap or by playing catch with your kid, etc. But, you have to admit we do waste a lot of time on things that are frivolous–silly stuff that doesn’t really matter. Our time is short. We should make every minute count. We should determine to use our time in the best way we can for God’s glory and the good of others.

“Live as though every day were your last–and someday you will be right.”

“And Jesus lifted up his eyes, and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me” (John 11:41).

This is a very strange and unusual order. Lazarus is still in the grave, and the thanksgiving precedes the miracle of resurrection. I thought that the thanksgiving would have risen when the great deed had been wrought, and Lazarus was restored to life again. But Jesus gives thanks for what He is about to receive. The gratitude breaks forth before the bounty has arrived, in the assurance that it is certainly on the way. The song of victory is sung before the battle has been fought. It is the sower who is singing the song of the harvest home. It is thanksgiving before the miracle!

Who thinks of announcing a victory-psalm when the crusaders are just starting out for the field? Where can we hear the grateful song for the answer which has not yet been received? And after all, there is nothing strange or forced, or unreasonable in the Master’s order. Praise is really the most vital preparatory ministry to the working of the miracles. Miracles are wrought by spiritual power. Spiritual power is always proportioned to our faith.–Dr. Jowett

“A wise man will hear, and increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels.”–Proverbs 1:5   If the truth be known, you know very few people who are true students of the Bible. Even many Sunday School do not fit into that category. Most church members would rather read what someone wrote about the Bible than to read the Bible itself. Now, I’m not against reading good books, commentaries, and dictionaries, etc., but none of these can take the place of the Bible.   Some people read daily devotionals and books from the latest best-sellers list, but they don’t spend five minutes a day reading God’s Word. And, out of those who do read the Bible regularly only a very few really study it. It’s no wonder that they are spiritually malnourished, weak and susceptible to sin. They are starving themselves. They feed on junk food rather than the milk and meat of the Word. Listen, serious Bible study is not just for preachers and teachers, it is the duty and should be the delight of every Christian. You will never become the person God wants you to be without it.   We have only so much time—don’t use all your time studying resources about the Bible, study the Bible itself. J. I. Packer said, “If I were the devil, one of my first aims would be to stop folk from digging into the Bible.” Sadly that is exactly what he has done in the lives of many and, oddly enough he has even used “Christian literature” to do it.   “The treasures of the Word of God are great beyond compare; But if we do not search them out, We cannot use what’s there.”         -author unknown