Ruts.

Before paved roads, wagon wheels left deep ruts.  When rain dried, ruts pulled wheels into the deep grooves, whether the driver wanted to go in them or not.  Ruts do that.

Stories create ruts in your mind.

Popular stories create the deepest ruts.  Consider: Are there any virgins on sit-coms? Not unless they’re being mocked, right? Everyone else jumps in bed on the first date, or if they abstain it’s because of something funny—poison ivy, maybe—rather than a moral commitment.  The rut in your mind says “EVERYONE has sex on the first date,” and though we know it’s false, we fall into the rut. Other TV ruts: the single man who is great with kids must be a pedophile; the perfect husband and father must be hiding a terrible secret; ‘friends with benefits’ is normal; when a girl has sex with another girl, it is “empowering”; changing genders is “honest” and “brave.”

The book of Proverbs contrasts these voices: There is the voice of wisdom crying in the street: “You naïve ones, you fools, understand wisdom!” 8:5.  And there is the voice of the ‘Forbidden Woman,’ who hunts naïve young men, saying, “Come, let’s drink deeply of love… my husband is on a long journey….” Following wisdom leads to peace, abundance, and joy. Following the adulteress leads to death, and “he who would destroy himself does it.”

When you come to a fork in the road, which rut will pull you in?  The one you have listened to the most. 

The path reinforced by the stories we listen to is the path we are likely to follow. (If you like stories where people do wrong and get away with it, LOOK OUT. You are creating a rut in your mind that is FALSE.  When you do the same, you will NOT get away with it.) 

“Can a man take fire in his bosom and his clothes not be scorched? Can a man walk on hot coals and his feet not be burned?” 6:27-28.

God, fill our minds with Your VOICE OF WISDOM.

ΑΩ

Don’t Embrace Fire.

When was your worst burn? Do you remember the way it burns for hours? The redness? Blisters, maybe? Fire is so dangerous and yet we play with it all the time. Some of us play with actual fire, with firecrackers, gasoline, and pyromania. Or maybe you love sparklers or Roman candles. Or twirling the end of a burning stick on a dark night. Others are more careful about fire, never forgetting to use pot holders in the kitchen, always turning off stoves, ovens, and coffee pots. 

But we still play with fire—the fire of sin. Dangerous sin. Don’t mess with it. If you put that stuff in your mind, it will impact you. Do you watch movies filled with sins you would never commit? Do you let your mind go there? The Bible says to watch out!

“Can a man embrace fire and his clothes not be burned? Can a man walk on hot coals and his feet not be scorched?” Proverbs 6:27-28.

The answer? No, of course. If you play with fire, you WILL BE BURNED.

Pray. Dear God, show me where I may be playing with fire. Protect me. Don’t let me be burned. Stop me from letting anything into my mind that might hurt me. Keep me safe–even from my own bad choices. Lead me to better habits. Help me glorify you every day. I love you, Jesus. Amen.

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Toxic Sexuality.

People talk about so-called “toxic masculinity” these days, arguing about what that might be. But there is something much more toxic than masculinity: toxic sexuality. God created sex. He designed it to be a wonderful gift within marriage. But people have invented hundreds of ways to twist and pervert this sacred gift, turning it into something not merely sinful, but poisonous—toxic.

Ecclesiastes 7:29 could well be speaking of sex when it says, “God made men upright, but they have sought out many devices.” That’s what humans do—we complicate and corrupt and misuse things.

Proverbs provides explicit warnings. Do not desire her beauty in your heart, Nor let her capture you with her eyelids. For on account of a harlot one is reduced to a loaf of bread, And an adulteress hunts for the precious life. Can a man take fire in his bosom and his clothes not be burned? Or can a man walk on hot coals and his feet not be scorched? So is the one who goes in to his neighbor’s wife; Whoever touches her will not go unpunished. The one who commits adultery with a woman is lacking sense; He who would destroy himself does it. Proverbs 6:25-29, 32.

Aren’t these verses great? I memorized them long ago. They draw such a clear picture: don’t be drawn in by her beauty. Don’t fall in love with those eyes or that smile. If you do, your life will be reduced to a loaf of bread—

–an adulteress will rob you of everything valuable in your life.

Think about it: can a man put hot coals in his pocket and his clothes not be burned? Of course not. If you play with fire, you will get burned—simple as that. If you walk on hot coals, your feet will be scorched. And if you break God’s laws about sex, you will be punished. You will reap what you sow. Every seed you plant grows, and if you plant bad seeds in your life, your life will produce rotten fruit. If you break God’s laws of adultery, you are acting foolishly. Only someone with a death wish would do that—you are acting like someone who wants to destroy his life.

You know who has not read these verses? The people in the $90 billion global porn industry. And who consumes the most porn? Kids between 13 and 19, according to one study. This toxic poison is being fed to children around the world. Secular scientists who are not concerned about morality are raising concerns about porn—arguing that the dopamine addiction it creates in young people will forever render their brains “addict brains,” and some worry those brains will never mature properly. There is no doubt toxic sexuality is a powerful force, a powerful weapon in the hands of an enemy we always underestimate.

But there is a way of escape. The truth—scripture—will set you free. John 8:32.

  1. You always reap what you sow; there are consequences. Galatians 6:7.
  2. You can say “no” to any temptation. 1 Corinthians 10:13.
  3. Memorized verses will help you say no.
  4. Write this on a Post-it note and start memorizing: “Do not desire her beauty in your heart, Nor let her capture you with her eyelids. For on account of a harlot one is reduced to a loaf of bread, And an adulteress hunts for the precious life.” Proverbs 6: 25-26.
  5. Change your habits.
  6. Pray!

Dear God, help us to hate evil. Help us remember the consequences—we always reap what we sow. Help us never forget that we can say ‘no’ to every temptation. Show us verses to memorize because we need those weapons to fight these battles. Show us how to change our habits. Give us good ideas about ways to protect ourselves by changing our habits, such as how we use our phones and other devices. Surround us with great friends and mentors who can encourage us to walk uprightly. We want to obey you and to “be holy as you are holy.” Thank you for your love and mercy and grace.

ΑΩ

Running the Sprinkler.

Have you ever taken a drink from a water hose? We all did it as kids.  No one asked how clean the hose was.  What about a sprinkler? Could you drink the cool, white water spraying from a sprinkler?  

This is the time for watering lawns.  Times like this make me glad I live in the country, because every drop of water that enters my hose ends up on my grass.  It was different in the suburbs.  In the great American suburbs, sprinkler water splashes all over concrete driveways and sidewalks and runs off down streets and into storm sewers.

But how clean is that water?  Perhaps you would drink from the hose or sprinkler.  But could you drink from the puddles in the yard? What about the water pooling along the curb in front of your house, little brown bits of dust swirling in tiny eddies?  Would you go to the corner house, hold a Solo cup down in the drain, and catch the waterfall pouring into the sewer, and drink that?  Gross, huh?  Yet people do so much worse when they are promiscuous. 

When you “sleep around,” you take risks greater than drinking from the storm sewer.

“Drink water from your own cistern, fresh water from your own well.  Should your springs be dispersed abroad, streams of water in the streets? Let them be yours alone, and not for strangers with you.  Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice in the wife of your youth… let her breasts satisfy you at all times. Be exhilarated always with her love.  For why should you, my son, be exhilarated with an adulteress…?  For the ways of a man are before the eyes of the Lord, and He watches all his paths.  His own iniquities will capture the wicked, and he will be captured with the cords of his sin.” Proverbs 5:15-23.

GOD GIVES US CLOTHING TO COVER THE PARTS HE CONSIDERS MOST SACRED.  DON’T TAKE THE CLOTHES OFF AND MAKE THOSE PARTS PROFANE.  Don’t trade something special for something broken, toxic, and used up.

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Do You Know What a Cistern is?

When your mother and I went to Mountain Lake in 1994, I found the entire trip fascinating. The small-town, Mennonite community was amazing. But one thing I will never forget is the home of Papa’s parents, Art and Linda Stadtlander. They had a cistern in the house! That is like a basement full of water. It was an odd thing to me, but very interesting. Minnesota, the “land of ten thousand lakes,” has no shortage of drinking water. But whether due to freezing temperatures or whatever, the homes in Mountain Lake had cisterns.

The Bible talks about cisterns often. In a desert land, a cistern is a vital way to conserve water. Often a system of gutters, chutes, and spouts will funnel rain water from the roof into a cistern, so that none of it is lost. The result is a source of pure, fresh water for everyone in the home.

Each village had public cisterns as well. These would be located in the town square and every traveler and passerby and all their animals would drink from the public source. Camels, cows, and sheep would step in it. Dirt and dust would blow into it. Bugs would live and die and lay eggs in it. The public cistern was a hive of scum and disease.

So if you were thirsty in town, but had a cistern at home, you would gladly pass on the public water and wait a few minutes for a refreshing drink at your own house. No one with their own private, clean, pure water would drink out of the public fountain. Does that make sense?

Consider this extended metaphor in Proverbs:

Keep your way far from the adulterous woman, And do not go near the door of her house, Lest you give your years to the cruel one, And strangers be filled with your strength… And you groan at your final end, When your flesh and your body are consumed, And you say, “How I hated instruction! And my heart spurned reproof! I did not listen to the voice of my teachers, And now I am utterly ruined.” Drink water from your own cistern, Fresh water from your own well. Should your springs be dispersed abroad, Streams of water in the streets? Let them be yours alone, And not for strangers with you. Let your fountain be blessed, And rejoice in the wife of your youth. Proverbs 5:8-18.

Solomon argues that adultery is drinking from the public fountain, with all the locals, the foreigners, and the herds and herds of animals. Adultery is exposing yourself to disease after disease, to bacteria, and parasites, and hookworms, and tapeworms, and eColi, and ruin, and decay, and death. Does anyone want that, really? Of course not.

If you read the full chapter, Solomon admits that the adulterous woman is attractive. Sin is always tempting. But you can say NO to her, NO to her “lips that drip honey,” and NO to her speech that is “smoother than oil.” In the end, she is bitter and her path leads only to death (see verses 3-6). If you can turn away from the dirty water in a public square, and wait for a drink at your own home, you can turn away from the intoxicating but deceptive lure of lust. (A similar analogy might be those who avoid public restrooms for fear of germs, choosing to wait till they get home. Treat lust the same way—shun it for its impurity, and choose God’s sacred choice of a lifelong, monogamous marriage.)

Dear God, help us to see how nasty and dirty and wrong lust is. Give us your holy eyes to see sin for what it is. Help us to understand what a horrible choice adultery is—even when it is mere lust, or what Jesus called committing adultery in our hearts. Help us to hate evil and to choose good. Help us to be disgusted by lust and adultery the same way we might be disgusted by the smell of old milk or the thought of eating food beyond its expiration date. Remind us of the horrible pain of nausea and give us a holy fear of the consequences of lust.

Help us to see how evil it is, even in its most benign forms, such as a quick moment on a TV commercial or something equally innocuous and non-threatening. Teach us that even “small lust” always has consequences. Fill us with a Godly, holy hatred of lust and help us to have a distaste for it, to be sickened and grossed out by it. Even while we are tempted, I pray we would be simultaneously disgusted and turned off by the rebellion, the evil, the wrongness, and particularly the horrible consequences. Help us better understand the beauty and the purity of having a clean, pure cistern waiting for us within the pure bounds of a holy marriage. Help us to see sin the way you see it, Lord. Help us remember that it was because of our sins—my sin—that Jesus had to die. Help us to hate evil.

ΑΩ

Are All Sins the Same?

I run across this idea all the time. What do you think?  Does God consider white lies equal to murder?  Is cheating on a spelling test as a child the equivalent of cheating on your wife twenty years later? 

NO.  All sins are NOT the same in God’s eyes. 

The confusion seems to come from a misunderstanding of the cliché, “the ground is level at the foot of the cross.”  The ground IS level.  ALL are separated from God by sin.  ALL need Jesus.  “There is none righteous, no not one” Romans 3:10. 

Our souls may be equal; our sins are not.  The actual sins we commit are not equal in their severity.  Some sins have more severe consequences. 

We know rape is worse than catcalling.  Armed robbery is worse than cheating on your taxes.  Kidnapping is worse than blackmail.  Insurance fraud is worse than stealing a library book.  Some sins are worse than others.  God knows that better than we do.  He destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, for example.  Why not destroy every other city on earth?  Every person in every other town was also a sinner.  But Sodom’s sin was more severe.  And Paul gives instructions for dealing with moral failures in the New Testament church.  But is not every member of the church a moral failure in one way or another?  We ALL sin, right?  But no—we do NOT all sin in the same degree as the immoral Christians in the Corinthian church.  All sins are NOT the same.

“There are six things the Lord hates, in fact, seven which are detestable to Him: arrogant eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that plots wicked schemes, feet eager to run to evil, a lying witness who gives false testimony, and one who stirs up trouble between brothers” Proverbs 6:16-19.

All sins are not the same.  Examine your habits and eliminate sins, beginning with those having the most severe consequences.

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Study to Show Thyself Approved by God.

Nothing is more important than wisdom, right?  Are you SURE?  Wouldn’t you trade wisdom for treasure?  Or for SOMETHING?

“Wisdom is better than diamonds. Nothing you desire can even be compared to it” Proverbs 8:11.

NOTHING is more valuable.  So how do you get wisdom? It begins with SUBMITTING to God:  “The FEAR OF THE LORD is the beginning of wisdom” Prov. 1:7.  Second, YOU GET WISDOM FROM HIS WORD.

But consider Solomon.  Kings around the world sent wise men to Solomon, to LISTEN to his vast wisdom.  And what did he talk about?

“God gave Solomon wisdom, great insight, and understanding as vast as the sand on the seashore…. He was wiser than anyone…. His reputation extended to all the surrounding nations….  He described TREES, from the cedar in Lebanon to the hyssop growing out of the wall. He also taught about ANIMALS, BIRDS, REPTILES, and FISH. People came from everywhere, sent by every king on earth to listen to Solomon” Prov. 4:29-34.

Trees, animals, birds, reptiles, and fish.  Solomon did not limit his wisdom to religious topics like “how to behave.” He was not obsessed with rules and ‘churchy stuff.’

God’s wisdom is PRACTICAL! 

It’s not just for Sundays—it’s for weekdays.  God gives wisdom about plants and animals—essentials for a farmer’s WORK.  Today God gives mechanical wisdom for machines, plumbing, irrigation. God’s wisdom improves medicine, science, architecture, engineering. 

So how can you acquire God’s wisdom for weekdays—for ‘doing life’?   You STUDY. Listen to good mentors (like those who listened to Solomon) and READ BOOKS. 

Christians who are serious about following Christ and growing in Godly wisdom should be studying—reading books, asking questions, and educating themselves, not in EVERY subject, but in the subjects God brings into their lives: not just Christianity and your job, but also relationships, cooking, child-raising, budgeting, vaccines, golf, or any other subject God brings to you.

God, show us how to please you by studying both Your word and the practical wisdom You have for us in other books.

ΑΩ

Neighbors.

“Don’t plan to harm your neighbor, for he trusts you and lives near you” Proverbs 3:29.

Relationships with neighbors are tricky.  When you choose a home, you often know nothing about the neighbors until you are moved-in.  When you finally meet, you may find yourself in a long-term relationship with someone you like, someone you dislike, or maybe someone crazy. 

What if you have a dispute?  Can you resolve it?  Will you call the police when your neighbor plays loud music late at night?  What if his dog gets out?  A dog attack resulting in hospitalization may be an easy call because of the medical bills. 

But what if a dog gets in your yard and digs up the flower bed?  Is that worth a trip to small claims court? 

What if you make neighbors mad?  Are you willing to render your property vulnerable to sabotage?  My aunt Joyce’s Bassett Hounds were killed when a neighbor fed them poison.  Will you take that risk?  (Have you seen the TV show FEAR THY NEIGHBOR?  Some neighbors do not have sound minds.) 

No one wants to be taken advantage of. But YOU HAVE TO LIVE WITH THESE PEOPLE.

Sometimes it’s better to forgive and be the bigger person… This is true not only where you live, but at work and in situations involving friends and associates.  Sometimes the best thing you can do is roll with the punches.  Sometimes being “the bigger man” or the stronger, more mature party, means accepting a loss and ignoring an offense.

“Do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also” Matthew 5:39.

Lawyers fight battles every day.  Justice and fairness are our obsession.  But this lawyer is telling you: sometimes the wisest thing you can do is forgive and let things go.

When it comes to neighbors or anyone you will continue to regularly interact with, crushing them over a once-minor conflict will poison the well from which you both are drinking.

“Whoever shows contempt for his neighbor lacks sense, but a man of understanding keeps silent” Proverbs 11:12.

Forgive.  Ignore and forgive.

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Picture Jesus Happy.

Do you know anyone who is happy all the time? Who is it? What makes him so happy? Solomon was the wisest person, and Samson may have been the strongest. But can you imagine the happiest person who ever lived? I wonder what that person was like?

How do you picture Jesus? Happy? Sad? Angry? People have strange ideas—God is mad at us, or sad about us, or disappointed in us. But that is NOT Biblical. Hebrews 1:9 explains that Jesus fulfilled a prophecy from Psalm 45:7—and that prophecy says that He would be a man of JOY!

“You love righteousness and hate wickedness; therefore God, your God, has anointed You with the oil of joy above all Your companions” Psalm 45:7.

The Bible says that because Jesus obeyed the Father and never sinned, God blessed Him with more joy than anyone who ever lived. Imagine that: Jesus was the most joyful man—the happiest man—who ever lived!

How does that affect you? Will you pray more honestly or more boldly knowing your prayers are being heard by the most joyful Man ever? He will not reject you, or laugh at your requests, or make you feel stupid or selfish or childish. He loves you. He smiles at you. He welcomes you with His embrace.

And did you notice WHY He has so much joy? God gave it to Him—anointed Him with it. But why did God bless Jesus that way? Because Jesus “loved righteousness and hated wickedness.” So if you love righteousness and hate wickedness—if you hate sin and STOP SINNING—I believe God will bless you with great joy also.

Pray. Dear God, thank You for Your amazing love. Thank You that You SMILE at me and my prayers. Thank You that You love me and welcome me with Your open arms. Help me to love You and pray with boldness, confident in Your great, amazing love. And help me to hate sin and love doing right, so that You can bless me with great joy!

ΑΩ

People Who Do What is Right are Happy!

Aren’t coloring books fun?  Remember the smell of grinding crayons into that thick paper?  Did you try to stay inside the lines?

In a 1992 TV ad, a nerdy teacher in Kissinger glasses walks up and down the rows of an elementary classroom saying, “Stay within the lines.  The lines are our friends,” but one little girl refuses.  Then the scene jumps to the present and she is driving the new Isuzu Rodeo within the lines on the highway—until she veers off, just as the narrator says, “Introducing the world’s first V6 crayon: the Isuzu Rodeo. Built to go way outside the lines.”

I’m all for coloring outside the lines.  The more creative a person is, the more desperately he will need to color outside the lines.  Whether you are painting, performing music, cooking, or doing anything creative, true artistry sometimes means understanding rules so you can break them to achieve an effect. Feel free to color outside the lines.

But the coloring-book analogy proves false in some contexts.  An Isuzu Rodeo will fall apart if you drive it off-road all the time.  Worse, ignoring lines while driving can get you killed.  Bills must paid.  Medicine must be taken.  You must sleep every night.  There are rules for life—and no matter how creative you are, if you ignore the rules, you will suffer. 

“You love righteousness and hate wickedness, therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of joy above all your companions” Psalm 45:7.

This verse, repeated again in Hebrews 1:9 and applied to Jesus—the MOST creative person who ever lived—explains that God gives joy to people who do what is right.  Jesus ALWAYS did what was right, so God gave Him more joy than all His companions.  Jesus radiated joy—how else do you explain the way children were drawn to Him?  Jesus obeyed God and God gave Him joy.

And if we obey God, if we “love righteousness and hate wickedness,” then we too will be blessed with joy.  There is joy inside the lines.

ΑΩ