"He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm." -- Proverbs 13:20

Remember the saying, "you are what you eat"?  Well that's not true.  Look, I can prove it:  if you like apples and an apple withers in your pantry, you might be disappointed that you didn't get to enjoy the apple, but there is no lasting sting over the apple going bad.  However, when you lose someone who is close to you, someone you love and care about, you feel like you have lost a part of yourself.  We are not what we eat.  We are, however, a compilation of the people we know and love-- our parents, our siblings, our friends, our teachers, our children, our community, our leaders... when we lose any of these in our lives, the sting of loss lasts forever.  So if we are a makeup of the people in our life, doesn't it follow then that we must be very selective of who we choose as our influencers?  If you want to be wise, place wise people in your life.  Whoever you want to be, find others like this and do life with them.

Readings: Joshua 24:1-33; Luke 21:1-28; Psalm 89:38-52;

"Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your (the Lord's) throne; love and faithfulness go before you. Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you, who walk in the light of your presence, O Lord." -- Psalms 89:14-15

You live once.  And while your birth dictates some of what life experiences you'll have (family, nationality, childhood socioeconomic status), at some point, your choices begin to trump your circumstances.  At a certain age, you choose the life you will live, and you can live for Good, or you can live for Evil.  You can live for self, or you can live for others.  You can grab and gobble up and destroy everything you possibly can while living and leave the world with the odor of bad gas when you die, or you can share in the creative work of building, sustaining, and healing things that support life and leave a legacy of goodness when you go.  You can choose righteousness or you can choose folly.  You can choose Life or you can choose death.  It's your life.  What's your choice?  Live well.

Readings:  Joshua 22:21-23:16; Luke 20:27-47; Psalms 89:14-37; Proverbs 13:17-19

"But be very careful to keep the commandment and the law that Moses the servant of the Lord gave you; to love the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, to obey his commands, to hold fast to him and to serve him with all your heart and all your soul." -- Joshua 22:5

The scene above occurs after Joshua has brought the Israelites into the Promised Land, defeated all enemies, and who are experiencing peace and prosperity.  He is telling the people that they have accomplished the mission God has given them, and God is pleased.  He basically goes on to say (these are my words), "Okay, you have a good thing here.  Don't blow it.  Remember the rules and don't mess it up for everybody or it won't be good for you.  Got it?"  It won't stay restful forever, and as we know from this side of the story, later generations will  forget and fall away.

So much of what we do, we seem to approach with a sense of permanence.  That is, we kid ourselves into thinking that our works will last beyond us.  Some will, but most won't.  The Israelites may have thought that they had reached a place of utopia and that it would now be heaven on earth.  Their long awaited and worked-for goal had been complete.  Now it was happy ever after, right?  But people forget...

Can you think of the names of the Secretaries of Education during the Presidential Administrations of the twentieth century?  I didn't think so.  Neither can I.  However, I use that as an illustration to indicate that we can be elevated to very high positions and do very important work, but to think that we will be remembered or that our lessons will be heeded... that's wishful thinking.  Our work may be important, and may have lasting effect.  In fact, we want timeless impact, and we should strive for it.  But most of our living will impact the day in which we live.  So enjoy the peace you have today, and if your life is in turmoil, understand peace will one day come to you.  Just remember the rules whatever your situation:  love God and be good to each other.  At least we've come to remember that over the generations.  Haven't we?

Readings:  Joshua 21:1-22:20; Luke 20:1-26; Psalms 89:1-13; Proverbs 13:15-16

"Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life." -- Proverbs 13:12

Third day straight to select a verse from Proverbs.  I wonder if I'm seeking wisdom...  this verse is especially timely, as I'm reminded that life is short, and dreams not acted upon wither faster than life itself.  If you have a longing, a dream, a vision, ask yourself what keeps you from realizing it.  We live in a time like no other when it comes to being able to be and do... what is your dream?  The writer of this proverb speaks profound truth when he shares the understanding that longings (dreams) fulfilled are what make life worth living.  Some would even say, its not in the fulfillment of the dream as much as it is in the pursuit of it that makes life rich.  So many of us live day to day in fear of losing what we have, that we fail to reach for something greater.  To reach and grab a new thing requires releasing our grip on the familiar, the steady, the predictable... it means to carve out a new reality.  For some, that idea is so threatening that it just seems safer to hold onto the life they know, even though they live day in and day out dreaming of a different life.  What do you want in life?  What would happen if you got it?  What does God want for you in life?  What would happen if you got it?  Just what, after all, are you afraid of?

Readings:  Joshua 19:1-20:9; Luke 19:28-48; Psalms 88:1-18; Proverbs 13:12-14

"Dishonest money dwindles away, but he who gathers money little by little makes it grow." -- Proverbs 13:11

If you ask someone in their 80's and 90's what they wished they would have done more over the course of their life, many of them say things like "spend more time with the ones I love" or "take more chances"... some say what younger mid-lifers often say, and that's "save more money".  I tell my kids to give and save... I was told the same thing.  But having information on what to do doesn't make us automatically do it.  It takes practice and discipline.  Many swing for the fences with their finances.  Entrepreneurs, speculators, and many who achieve high levels of financial success have a different appetite for risk than the general population.  They swing and they hit some, and miss some.  Then there are those who come by wealth dishonestly.  This way of accumulation warps the relationship with money because it's not seen as a tool to do good, but instead to satisfy every desire one has for oneself.  When we understand that we are stewards-- caretakers-- of what God has entrusted to us, we view money a little differently.  The way to growing it is by planting little by little over time, and growing it slowly.  This is your money tree.  Take risk and speculate with other monies if that is your calling, but do not be dishonest in your business dealings.  In all things, including the area of your finances, seek the will of God and be faithful on the journey.

Readings:  Joshua 16:1-18:28; Luke 19:1-27; Psalms 87:1-7; Proverbs 13:11

"Pride only breeds quarrels, but wisdom is found in those who take advice." -- Proverbs 13:10

How many arguments, debates, and even fights occur because our perceived need to be right?  How much time is spent trying to make sure we are understood verses trying to make sure we understand others?  When those around us who are wise give us advice, we should listen-- not feel a need to convince them otherwise.  We can take the advice or leave it, but there's often little point to fighting it.  If you want peace in your life, humble your spirit, check your anger, and open your ears.  Seek to empathize with others, and get thee out of the center of the universe.  Your life will be the better for it!

Readings:  Joshua 15:1-63; Luke 18:18-43; Psalms 86:1-17; Proverbs 13:9-10

"Love and faithfulness meet together; righteousness and peace kiss each other. Faithfulness springs forth from the earth, and righteousness looks down from heaven. The Lord will indeed give what is good, and our land will yield its harvest. Righteousness goes before him and prepares the way for his steps." -- Psalms 85:1-13

It's like the chicken and the egg... which comes first: love or faithfulness?   Righteousness or peace?  It's a bit of a conundrum, but we should seek them all as they are intertwined as tight as a woven sheet.  When we love, we are being righteous.  When we are authentically righteous (as opposed to behaving a certain way out of guilt or fear), we are being so out of faithfulness.  When we love, we seek peace.  When we seek peace, we do so for love's sake.  So what comes first?  Who cares... carry these with you at all times and ask yourself, what God is calling you to do in every situation in which you find yourself.  Love God, and these will follow naturally... hmmm... maybe we just found our answer and it's not such a riddle after all...

Readings: Joshua 13:1-14:15; Luke 18:1-17; Psalms 85:1-13; Proverbs 13:7-8