Papa Pat Tiny Devotionals

 A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, warm focaccia bread with olive oil. A fool does not delight in understanding, But in revealing his own mind. Proverbs 18:2, NASB  I am striving against being a fool this morning! I WANT to reveal my own mind about something I found in verse 23, but I already blogged on that in December. Alas, I can’t really justify TWO posts on the same verse, when there are so many I’ve not covered yet. One of the FIRST skills I was taught as a counselor was how to listen. Seems easy, right?  Sixth grade teacher Mrs. Brown (she had a lovely daughter) told me:  “You have two ears, and only one mouth. You should listen twice as much as you talk.” Not me! By my late 20’s, when I started counselor training, I had a strong habit of listening just enough to know what brilliant, pre-formulated response to make. This is perhaps a moderately acceptable approach for a person work...

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, even though the focaccia didn’t rise, it’s still good. One who mocks the poor taunts his Maker; One who rejoices at disaster will not go unpunished. Proverbs 17:5, NASB   Confession: I have never been poor. There have been a very few times when I didn’t have ANY money, and a LOT of times when I didn’t have ENOUGH money. One time I got so far behind on my house payment, that the bank was about to foreclose. But NONE of that was being poor! Why not?  Well, in times of ZERO money, which was in my student days, I either had food in the fridge, or somebody’s house I could go to for a meal.  AND I HAD A FRIDGE! So: not poor. The times of not ENOUGH money were more frequent, and had many causes, and weren’t at all pleasant. But still: not poor. My definition of being poor is no money, no food, no resources to fall back on, and  NO PROSPECTS FOR IMPROVEMENT. If y...

 A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, BLACK RIFLE COFFEE SHIPMENT ARRIVED! One who loves discipline loves knowledge, But one who hates rebuke is stupid. Proverbs 12:1, NASB I’m writing this from the perspective of a parent, AND I’m going to step way out there, and say that I believe this reflects an aspect of God’s perspective as well.  “Discipline” is a LOT more than spankings.  Of course, there are some who insist that discipline ONLY means pain imposed on children as a consequence. They are wrong. Discipline is teaching; training, if you prefer that word. We speak of the discipline of history, or karate, or cuisine. Parenting is a discipline; it might be the most important. Every good parent does their best to teach their children the things they need to live a productive life (using ‘productive’ to replace ALL the other words).  I think that even BAD parents mostly do the best they know ...

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, breakfast is postponed. When pride comes, then comes dishonor; But with the humble there is wisdom. Proverbs 11:2, NASB Startled Armadillo Pride statements: “I am better than you are.” “Look what I can do!” “I am skilled at my job.” I’m gonna say the first statement ALWAYS qualifies as the type which precedes dishonor, EVEN THOUGH (or maybe, ESPECIALLY BECAUSE) it has been used as an advertising ploy. Statement two, on the other hand, is something that grandparents (and parents) LOVE to hear from the little ones, who demonstrate newly acquired skills. I will leave it as an exercise for the reader as to the appropriateness in the adult work environment. The third statement is practically untarnished; the only caveat is that you should let others make this assessment. Overall, it seems that “pride” is a minefield, and to be avoided. HOWEVER! Perhaps there is another way to go...

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, we are OUT OF SALSA! Ill-gotten gains do not benefit, But righteousness rescues from death. Proverbs 10:2, NASB I’ve been trying to come up with a satisfactory definition for “ill-gotten gains.” I went so far as looking the verse up in Hebrew, which I can’t read, and then relying on Google Translate; I get “the treasures of wickedness.” I propose that this refers not only to MONEY, but to any benefit derived from bad acts. As an example, I had a brief moment in which I thought,  “Hey, just say you looked it up in Hebrew, without a disclaimer, and people will be impressed with your scholarship!” That, I believe, would be an ill-gotten gain. Persons who can read a language other than their primary deserve respect for their study; if I intentionally gave the impression I could do that, I would be reaping the benefit, without putting in the work. Note that the contrast prov...

 A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, it’s Monday again. To you, people, I call, And my voice is to mankind. You naïve ones, understand prudence; And, you fools, understand wisdom! Listen, for I will speak noble things; And the opening of my lips will reveal right things. Proverbs 8:4-6, NASB We are still in a pandemic; half the country seems to be still muttering about the election;  the only news I have seen is that the military is being scrutinized for extremists; Wisdom is still shouting to gain our attention. Hoyt Axton wrote “Snowblind” about a friend lost to drug addiction: “He said he wanted heaven, but praying was too slow; So he bought a one-way ticket on an airline made of snow.” How do you find heaven? In 1970, when Steppenwolf covered the song, I was a high school senior. I couldn’t see that the future being prescribed for me (college, to prepare for a career, to fund a suburban fami...

 A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, Maxwell House (until Black Rifle delivers). Go to the ant, you lazy one, Observe its ways and be wise, Which, having no chief, Officer, or ruler, Prepares its food in the summer And gathers its provision in the harvest. Proverbs 6:6-8, NASB Don’t you think it funny that the correction to the sluggard BEGINS with an injunction to sit around and watch? Almost all of my ant observing took place on Edna Place Road in the 1950s, when I was 3-5 years old.   “Go play, stay in the yard, and come when I call you!” So: I watched the ants. Ant activity was FASCINATING! There was an invisible set of trails they followed, one after the other. If I broke the trail with my finger, they’d wander around, until they picked it up again. Then, work resumed. Solomon is pointing out that the ant doesn’t require a boss to get them out of bed, and tell them what to do. That’s worthy...

 A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, pizza. She does not ponder the path of life; Her ways are unstable, she does not know it. Proverbs 5:6, NASB and then, she falls off the ramp. Although these words describe the Adulterous Woman (AW), she is strictly a literary figure. AW represents all who have turned away from the covenant relationship with God.  Any turns are a bad idea, of course, but some have greater consequence. Here, Solomon describes AW ignoring the truth, instead of meditating on it. Disaster hasn’t struck. Yet. It’s coming, though, because AW has no goal. Incompetent athlete that I was, still I learned that you KEEP YOUR EYE ON THE GOAL (or ball, as my Little League coached urged, with despair in his voice as I held a useless stick in the batter’s box). Whether it’s running, driving a car, or piloting a boat, if you don’t aim toward a particular point, your path wobbles. WORST HAIRCUT EV...