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, we start with leftover cherry pie. I’ve been utilizing the verse-by-verse, in order system of writing the Tiny Devotional since last May, and it both liberates and constrains. The constraint is that I HAVE to deal with the verse that is next up in the rotation; I don’t get to pick one I want to write about. The liberation is that if I am ever accused of writing AT someone, in reaction to something they have done or said, I can say, “Nope. It’s just the verse that came up in rotation.”  There is a kind of person who curses his father And does not bless his mother. Proverbs 30:11, NASB To get the full impact of this verse, you need to read verses 11-14, but putting it mildly: it’s not good to be KOP (for “Kind Of Person”).  We know nothing about KOP’s father and mother, because they don’t matter for this verse, because they don’t matter to KOP. His parents aren’t the...

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, it’s BACK TO SCHOOL DAY!!!! A man who flatters his neighbor Is spreading a net for his steps. Proverbs 29:5, NASB You look lovely today, Mrs. Cleaver! It appears the Almighty doesn’t care for flattery.  Why? Isn’t flattering someone just paying them a compliment? And isn’t that a good thing? Well, no; that’s not what flattery is. Yes, it’s paying a compliment, but it’s not JUST paying a compliment. It’s paying a compliment to win trust, with the specific intent to violate that trust.  It’s deceit + malice. The flattery doesn’t always sound like Eddie Haskell. For example: I’ve been flattered by scam emails that addressed me as “Dear Christian Brother;” I got one that informs me I’m to receive three million dollars because of my righteous reputation!  Lately, I’ve been praised for my wisdom and courage in getting aboard with the latest crypto-currency offering....

 A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, I’m waiting for white bread, so I can make a sandwich. Evil people do not understand justice, But those who seek the Lord understand everything. Proverbs 28:5, NASB The end of my second life verse is “and how I may reply when I am reproved.” (Habakkuk 2:1b, NIV) It changed my entire outlook. Here’s why: Everybody messes up. It’s NOT optional. What IS optional is our response when we are corrected. Now, correction itself is ALWAYS going to pinch, at least a little bit, because it means you were doing it wrong. So, a little ouch.  But then what? You can reject the correction.  You can ignore the correction. You can implement the correction. Rejecting the correction mostly takes the form of making excuses, offering reasons why you think your reason is right, or sometimes denying the knowledge or authority of the person offering the correction.  Ignoring t...

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, the ladies return home today! Faithful are the wounds of a friend, But deceitful are the kisses of an enemy. Proverbs 27:6, NASB Let’s get this out of the way first: not everybody who wounds you is a friend, and not everybody who kisses you is an enemy. In fact, you want to bet the other way.  I feel compelled to write this, because I had a friend who just couldn’t handle nice treatment. He wasn’t able to receive sustained warm affection, and I was shocked one time when he accused me of bad motives after I gave him a present. He was neither a bad nor stupid guy; he had just been badly programmed, and had some issues with his wetware as well.  That’s REALLY not the sort of issue this verse is addressing, but too many people accept bad treatment because it IS a form of attention. So,  I mention it here.  This is what makes this verse work: a TRUE friend lov...

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, cherry pie and Murdered Out coffee. Like a thorn that sticks in the hand of a heavy drinker, So is a proverb in the mouths of fools.  Proverbs 26:9, NASB Thorns? GLOVES! As the cats say, I has confused. What I THOUGHT this verse said was that a drunkard grabs a thorn, and goes around sticking people. And yes, that is rather like a fool who quotes proverbs AT people: lots of irritation, nobody gets blessed, a fight might start. This morning, though, I read that the thorn is sticking in the hand of the heavy drinker, (aka drunkard). This is something I know about, having been a drunkard as a young man. Over the course of some 20+ years of alcohol abuse, I’m sure I got thorns/splinters/fragments in my hand any number of times. “Beer and Building” was a thing for me back then, and ANYONE who works with lumber is going to get stuck.  However, while I have a dim recollec...

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, let us not conflate turkey with thankfulness. One who plans to do evil, People will call a schemer. Proverbs 24:8, NASB On first glance, this is sort of bland wisdom. That’s really not like most of the wisdom in Proverbs, which I have found to BITE. So, I went to multiple resources to get a good sense of this verse, starting with the verse in Hebrew, then Google translate, and THEN, I got into the heavy hitters. My first read:  “if you plot, people call you a plotter.” Even the footnote (I didn’t include it) didn’t add depth. The Hebrew for this verse is:  מְחַשֵּׁ֥ב לְהָרֵ֑עַ ל֝֗וֹ בַּֽעַל־מְזִמּ֥וֹת יִקְרָֽאוּ׃ and the English translation for that is a bit richer. Instead of ‘schemer,’ we get ‘master of conspiracies.’ Better, but we aren’t there yet, at least in my opinion. I wish I could give you a definitive source citation for the next answer, but, alas: TWO f...

 I don't want to tell you what kind of day I had, but it's 6:33 PM, and I'm just taking up the writing. That might give you a clue. Seems later because it's darker. "Gonna write your traditional blog today, Papa Pat?" Here's the deal, rather, one aspect of the deal: I don't want to write anything on the verse that comes up in the rotation for today. That verse is: Do not withhold discipline from a child; Though you strike him with the rod, he will not die. Proverbs 23:13, NASB I don't want to write about it, because some people abuse their kids. I will say this:  I think there are times when the best thing you can do for a child is paddle their behind. Ask any of my kids, and they can tell you that they got paddled.  I also think that if paddling their behind is your answer for EVERYTHING, then you are messed up. Ask somebody for help. You can even ask me; just not today.   Peace be on your household.

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, every Monday is a different Monday. Train up a child in the way he should go, Even when he grows older he will not abandon it. Proverbs 22:6, NASB I’m speaking PRIMARILY to parents here, but if you are not a parent, you may still reap some benefit.  Here’s what this verse does not, and CANNOT mean, but which parents wish it meant: Raise your kids right, and they won’t ever do anything wrong. It CANNOT mean that, because kids get to choose, too, just as everybody else does. SOMETIMES that choice is going to be the wrong one; or, at least, one you don’t like.  The verse is usually offered as a comfort to good, God-fearing parents when one of their kids wanders, rebels, goes astray, disagrees, whatever. It’s meant as an encouragement:  “In time, they will come back.” Here’s a clue: All too often, what “come back” means is  “They will start acting the way you...

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, the girls went to DC, so the boys are hanging out. The plans of the diligent certainly lead to advantage, But everyone who is in a hurry certainly comes to poverty. Proverbs 21:5, NASB Watching cartoons in the 1950s left me with the idea that if I could just find the map with the ‘X’ marked on it, I could find the treasure, and I’d be RICH! Bugs and Mickey and Popeye were always discovering piles of gold and jewels. It seemed like the way to go, but I don’t think my best friend Butch and I ever found anything. Around the age of 11 or 12, I read an ad in Boys’ Life Magazine about all the prizes I could win by selling greeting cards. Sounded GREAT to me, so I sent off for the cards, and went door to door in the neighborhood. My mom put a stop to that, after I tried selling cards to customers in the drug store.  I didn’t win any prizes, just a nasty letter from the card co...

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, make promises come true. A king who sits on the throne of justice Disperses all evil with his eyes. Proverbs 20:8, NASB If you didn’t have a Mama (or a Papa) who had The Look, you might not get the implications of this verse. The Look is what you get as a warning, and as long as you get your act together, that’s where it stops. Mama had one more stage before resorting to restricting your ability to breathe in a normal fashion, which was Scratching Her Head vigorously. That, actually was a warning to depart the area immediately, whereas The Look was “get your act together right now.” If you acted on The Look, you might not ever get The Scratch. And thus, The Look was a mercy, because it kept you out of Gasping-In-Pain Land. We give thanks to God for the benevolence of The Look. May we ever continue the tradition with our own kids! Okay, so the king is sitting on the throne o...

 A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, Remember Everyone Deployed! All the brothers of a poor person hate him; How much more do his friends abandon him! Proverbs 19:7, NASB The ancient words in the Book of Proverbs always seem current to me. Sometimes, the application comes from the guy sitting in my chair (me); other times, I look a bit further. I really don’t like this verse. Not because I think it’s wrong! I don’t like it, because I fear/believe it’s expressing a truth about attitudes toward poor people that apply just as much today as they ever did.  (I insist on ignoring contemporary political references; sometimes, that’s difficult.) In my prep for today’s devotional, I made a list of why people hate a poor brother. I was up to six reasons, with more on the way, when I realized this word summed them all up:  threat The poorest person in the world might be a subsistence farmer in Sokoto. Do y...

 A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, it’s Forward Focused Thursday! A fool’s mouth is his ruin, And his lips are the snare of his soul. Proverbs 18:7, NASB If it was just one fool in the chain of soul-snaring lips, the damage would be limited. It’s never just one fool, though. Who do fools talk to, and who do they listen to? Mostly other fools. So, what happens is this: FoolA comes up with a Great Plan!  It makes them feel good to have such a Great Plan, so they brag to FoolB.  FoolB admires the Great Plan, and shares it with Innocent Bystander, who the Great Plan will impact.  Innocent Bystander is overjoyed, and rushes to thank FoolA, not knowing that in the meantime,  FoolA has realized how hard the Great Plan will be to implement, and now has to disappoint Innocent Bystander.  FoolA then complains to FoolB, and/or FoolB’s boss, and/or FoolB’s friends. Thus, both FoolA and Fool...

 A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, Kenneth just left for MEPS. An evildoer listens to wicked lips; A liar pays attention to a destructive tongue. Proverbs 17:4, NASB “Are you talking to me?” The scene in “Taxi Driver” doesn’t portray an attempt to communicate; it’s a rehearsal of insanity and aggression. The rational response is to turn and walk away, because even before weapons are evident, wickedness is. A few moments ago, I had a brush with inflamed speech, directed at (something; doesn’t matter). I had a visceral response: stomp, kill, rage, destroy! I turned away from it, because I knew no good could come from following after whatever authentic info might be represented. According to this verse, those who are fans of inflammatory speech are evildoers and liars. That’s a HARD word! I’d like to believe that those who are massive consumers of social and political rhetoric are just deceived. I’d like t...

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, let it cool before you eat it! Commit your works to the Lord, And your plans will be established. Proverbs 16:3, NASB We say:  “I’m going to do great and wonderful things for the LORD!” The Lord says:  “You won’t be able to do those things you have in mind. That’s not what I want you to do, anyway. But, go ahead; I’m always here, when you are ready to listen to Me.” All good work advice says: Plan first, THEN work.  Here, though, it speaks of our work first, and then our plans. I THINK that’s because we are ALWAYS working, even right this second: I am writing; you are reading. People never stop working! Even when we sleep, we work, because our hearts beat, we breathe, and our brain does brain things. All of our work is composed of little things: we walk, sit, write, talk, lift, cook, clean, dig, decide, study. Our plans are composed of BIG things: build a tow...

 A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, this day is a gift! The eyes of the Lord are in every place, Watching the evil and the good. Proverbs 15:3, NASB Best place to watch: a Beach! One of my favorite things is watching my kids interacting with their kids. Love fills my heart! God watches His kids, too;  evidently, so do others. Three times in the past month, my gift-from-God, happily-ever-after trophy wife Vanessa, the elegant, foxy, praying black grandmother of Woodstock, GA, and I have had people tell us that they have been observing us at church .  It’s a bit shocking. In each case, they have added something along the lines of “and what I see blesses/encourages me.” Still, we wonder: Why is anyone looking at US? Admittedly, I sing loud; sometimes I respond enthusiastically to a question asked from the pulpit. That doesn’t explain why they are looking at Vanessa, though, or why they are encour...

 A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, Waffle House for Kenneth’s 17 th birthday! A trustworthy witness will not lie, But a false witness declares lies. Proverbs 14:5, NASB There are all KINDS of lies, and talking about some of them will surely get this Redneck Biker in trouble. Benevolent lies.  Those include preacher lies and wife lies. Yeah, I said it; sometimes preachers lie to us. You know that one about the frog in the pot of water? That’s not true. And if you ever heard about a gate in the wall of the city called the eye of the needle, you’ve heard a preacher lie. There are others, but here’s the deal: they are NOT offered with the intent to deceive. Instead, they are like Aesop’s Fables; they teach us, by giving an interesting story to go along with the lesson.  Those stories don’t HAVE to be true in order to be TRUTH. Receive the message, and don’t be critical; or, did you really believe...

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, breakfast with the ZOOM Men’s Group! One who guards his mouth protects his life; One who opens wide his lips comes to ruin. Proverbs 13:3, NASB Man, SHUT UP! If my teachers hadn’t spent so much time telling me that, I might have actually learned something in school. In French, it’s “Fermez la bouche.” The other French I remember is “Asseyez-vous,” which means “sit down.” Of course, they wouldn’t have been saying that so much, if I hadn’t been talking so much. One teacher actually put her hand over my mouth to get me to stop, but I kept talking because I was trying to tell her WHY I was talking. It’s not that I wasn’t TRYING to stop talking; I just COULDN’T stop.  It can still be an issue, but age, wisdom, and medication for my ADD helps a lot. I also have been known to put a timer on myself.  Actually, I don’t think this verse is addressed so much to ADD youth, as ...

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, R emember E veryone D eployed! The thoughts of the righteous are just, But the counsels of the wicked are deceitful. Proverbs 12:5, NASB Wicked Counsel You won’t know the thoughts of the righteous until they tell you, and they won’t tell you unless you ask. You can get a clue to their thoughts by watching how they act, though. Why in the WORLD would I seek counsel of the wicked?     • Maybe I don’t know they are wicked; but if I don’t know someone well enough to know they are wicked, I don’t know them well enough to ask for their counsel.      • Maybe I want to become wicked myself; but, hardly ANYONE really sets out to become wicked! Usually, people who do wicked things are doing them to get something good (like food, shelter, clothing).     • Maybe I’m looking for protection, or influence; it could happen. Little kids know that asking so...

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, don’t leave without saying “BYE, PAPA!” (Alicia Ann, I’m looking at YOU!). The righteousness of the blameless will smooth his way, But the wicked will fall by his own wickedness. Proverbs 11:5, NASB Smooth Water It’s Veterans Day, so:  Welcome back! I’ve never been a cop, or lawyer, nor a judge. I guarded a door once. That does NOT make me an authority on how to conduct criminal investigations, no matter how many cop shows I’ve watched. However, I was a middle school counselor for 16+ years. Somehow, that got me involved in a LOT of investigations: What happened? Who said what, who did what?  These weren’t criminals, you understand; just 12-14 year-old boys and girls. Sometimes, they behaved foolishly; most of the time, they just behaved. Toward the end of my career, a young man was identified as possibly being the person who maliciously damaged some school propert...

 A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, keep doing the next right thing. He who gathers in summer is a son who acts wisely, But he who sleeps in harvest is a son who acts shamefully. Proverbs 10:5, NASB Wake up, Carl! Much later in life, Solomon wrote  “There is an appointed time for everything. “ It’s the same wisdom found here, just examined from a different angle. This verse speaks of work and duty; Ecclesiastes speaks (among other things) of inevitability and acceptance.  KEY POINT: This verse does not say the son who gathers is wise, or the son who sleeps is shameful. It says he ACTS wisely; he ACTS shamefully. There is a WORLD of difference between being and acting;  you can’t evaluate a person correctly from a single event, or even a season. You can’t even evaluate cats like that! After all, a smart person can put wrong answers on a test if they want to fail it; a friend of mine tried ...

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, just take a breath. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. Proverbs 9:10, NASB (Religious training isn’t fear of the Lord, and the word “Wise” doesn’t mean wisdom. I know this, because I couldn’t make a good pun on this verse about my friend Kurt driving a Wise Potato Chip truck after seminary. ) Kenneth, Exploring Options Tiny bugs are born knowing everything needful to their survival. Newborn cats, walruses, and giraffes require some nurture in order to make it. And then, there are the humans.  We have to learn SO much more, than how to recognize and obtain food and mates. Dolphins talk about fish, cows talk about grass; we talk about the meaning of Life, The Universe, and Everything ( LTUE ). Wisdom has a HIGH survival value. Throughout the Book of Proverbs, the pattern is “here’s WHY you should do this an...

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, chicken or croissant? Accept my instruction and not silver, And knowledge rather than choice gold. For wisdom is better than jewels; And all desirable things cannot compare with her. Proverbs 8:10-11 Singing Love Songs to the Beloved Late 80s-early 90s, this verse inspired a popular chorus: “Lord, You are more precious than silver. Lord, You are more costly than gold, Lord, You are more beautiful than diamonds And nothing I desire compares with You.” Beautiful song, expressing adoration of the Almighty. One day, our pastor suggested a change, which would reflect our care for each other, as well as God’s attitude toward us: “Sister (or Brother) you are more precious than silver, … And nothing God desires compares with you.” Good theology, pleasant to sing; our congregation adopted that verse as well. Our congregation; not the whole world. Sometime later, a lovely lady was sp...

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, leftover pizza, three kinds. A worthless person, a wicked man, Is one who walks with a perverse mouth, Proverbs 6:12, NASB “How do you walk with a perverse mouth? Won’t your lips get all messed up?” Those questions were posed for the needlessly literal among us. The answer is “Yes. Now, go away until you are ready to talk sense.” I hope you observe that being needlessly literal is ONE way of having a perverse mouth. It calls to mind a young man I worked with in the early 1980s, who took pleasure in trying to disrupt Bible study by pretending not to understand the CLEAR meaning of the passages. Not the primary way of having perverse mouth; just what occurred to me first. A perverse mouth seeks confusion and chaos, not communication, as will be made clear in verses 13-15. They aren’t seeking to be funny; they seek to disrupt and disturb. A person who is a clown might also dis...

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, wouldn’t it be cool if the Braves did to the 20s what they did to the 90s? And strangers will be filled with your strength, And your hard-earned possessions will go to the house of a foreigner; Proverbs 5:10, NASB Just empty boxes; no cookies. This is one of the bad outcomes for the person who turns from fidelity to adultery. It’s intended to prevent, not describe. It has at least two meanings.  You may have heard this, or read it yourself, as an allegory of the relationship between Israel and God, warning against apostasy. I’m not arguing against this interpretation but: I’m in favor of the plain meaning, in which Loving Elder tells Youthful Offspring WHY he should stay away from The House of Three Colors.  When it’s told depends on the age (and maturity) of the Offspring, of course. My first-born was eight or nine when he started asking questions about some of th...

 A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, it’s trail mix, NOT trial mix: enjoy trails; endure trials. Listen, my child, and accept my sayings, And the years of your life will be many. Proverbs 4:10, NASB If you are careful reader, you will notice that I changed “son” to “child.” It’s not that I’m woke, just that I have daughters as well.   A careful reader might also note that this verse has an unintended reference to a modern shotgun, known as the .410 bore. The significance will not be lost on frustrated parents, who mentally might add this to the verse: “And if you don’t listen, my child, I will shoot you with a shotgun. ” While I DO understand the sentiment, I absolutely forbid you to act on it. There is no possible good outcome to shooting your child, no matter how much they aggravate you. Also, don’t get huffy on me and say no one has EVER thought about shooting their kid. There wouldn’t be a B...

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, put mustard on the biscuit. Honor the Lord from your wealth, And from the first of all your produce; Proverbs 3:9, NASB This verse provides the counsel; tune in next month to discover the accompanying promise.  (Or, look it up.) A farmer’s daughter taught me about first fruits. You’ve been living on home-canned food for months. Toward the end, the best choices are long gone, and it’s nothing but pickled cabbage and cauliflower. Then: the peas come in! That first meal is a JOYOUS time! Each person gets one small spoonful of peas, to be slowly consumed, in reverence for God’s provision through the garden. Giving the first of the produce is mentioned at least 30 times in the Bible, because it’s a significant sacrifice. It means at least one more meal of pickled cabbage, without any fresh peas.  It says “This is the best I have, Lord: it’s Yours!” How can we translate ...

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, leftover turkey sub with cranberry relish. From those who leave the paths of uprightness To walk in the ways of darkness; Proverbs 2:13, NASB Broken Down in the Dark I had a bad dream last night, involving dark city streets and broken-down motorcycles. (Both of these images come from real-life memories; just not combined in this way!) The worst part of the dream was having no hope of rescue.  Living by the wisdom of the Book means that we can (sometimes) avoid learning the hard way. All parents desire this for their children. Shortly after my adult conversion experience, I realized I did NOT want any future Pattersons to replicate my spiritual journey. However, God doesn’t have any grandchildren. Those who follow Him are each a daughter or a son; each has to choose how their own path into the kingdom.  Sometimes, that path includes a walk in the ways of darkness. W...

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, Alma cold brew with Boost, and dried apples. To receive instruction in wise behavior, Righteousness, justice, and integrity; Proverbs 1:3, NASB Making young friends Verse 3 is a part of the six-verse introduction to the  Book of Proverbs.  To get the context of this post, you might need to read my post addressing verse 2 ; I know I had to.  Things I keep hearing: Your family is your most important mission.  If kids see authentic Christianity acted out in the home, it stays with them. Bizarrely, there is solid support for this in a  secular journal . Show interest to a young person at church.  81% of youth who remain strong in their faith as adults grew up having close personal adult friends. Get parental permission first, before you start making friends with their kid. That’s how each week I get to buy my buddy TJ and his delightful sister a sn...