Tiny Devotional for RED Friday, 08-11-2023

 A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, today is RED Friday, so wear something red, and Remember Everyone Deployed!


The righteous is delivered from trouble,
But the wicked takes his place.
Proverbs 11:8, NASB

I can’t tell you how many times I have shivered in cold reality, trying to warm my heart on verses like this one.

This morning, I’ve got a mental picture of Trouble as a great machine, churning away. The wicked go in the input hopper, and from the output door, the righteous emerge. 

Sort of like the Sneetch machine.

The difference is this: the Sneetch machines only made cosmetic changes; the Trouble Machine can change the heart. It’s one of those ‘simple-but-not-easy’ processes, and it’s described in Romans 5:3b-5a:

tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint 

Simple, but not easy: if you want to be delivered, you start by simply holding on. It’s HARD, but you don’t have to be a warrior saint to hold on; you just have to make up your mind to do it.

Hold on long enough, and the change begins. People say admiringly, ‘Wow, he sure can take a beating!’ You realize you aren’t a quitter, and that MEANS something. 

And then, you discover you aren’t a loser, either. You realize you’re no longer just reacting to disasters; and you find the peace Jesus promised.

You find you have exited the Trouble Machine, and you seek Him, instead of seeking escape.

It’s tempting to stop and celebrate, but you really MUST keep moving. The wicked are lining up to take your place, you see, and we need the room. 

Peace be on your household.

Comments

  1. On Christ the Solid Rock I StandAugust 15, 2023 at 5:29 AM

    Wonderful verse to keep us all remind that tribulation brings perseverance and hope does not disappoint. Praise God my Brother Pat!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Tiny Devotional for Wednesday, 06-21-2023

Image
A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, the Fairmount Pattersons are Papa-sitting this morning! It is better to live in a corner of a roof Than in a house shared with a contentious woman. Proverbs 21:9, NASB Today is the 21st of the month; so, Proverbs 21. I have written about verses 1-8;  it’s verse 9’s turn. Thus, my selection of this verse has NOTHING to do with my wife, mother, sisters, or daughters! All of them are intelligent, confident, and assertive; they are NOT contentious. ‘Contentious’ does NOT mean ‘has a different opinion’!  A man who has lived with a contentious woman gives the definition by example: I was 20 years old, and stupid (those might be the same thing).  I thought our marriage would work because she was beautiful, and I was, too. It didn’t take long before I realized I was wrong about that. Most of the time, it didn’t matter what I did; I couldn’t please her. We were married for 3 years,
Read more

Tiny Devotional for Sunday, 08-20-2023

Image
A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, Piper doesn’t like her food. Differing weights and differing measures, Both of them are abominable to the Lord. Proverbs 20:10, NASB If this verse weren’t so important, I’d skip it, because I discovered it in a painful time. Others were involved, and their stories are not mine to tell. So, you get a parable: Stockman Bubba ran a cattle station, in partnership with his horse, Nancy. They worked hard together, and although they were not rich, they had achieved a degree of success. One day, a platypus stung Bubba, incapacitating him. Bubba tried to continue running the station, but after two years had passed, he realized it was time to retire. Nancy couldn’t adjust to this, and she left for life on her own. Three years later, Bubba realized Nancy was never coming back, and considered getting another horse. However, he was concerned that the other station owners would think bad
Read more

Tiny Devotional for Sunday, 07-23-2023

Image
 A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family members who have dropped by, reach for the sky. Do not let your heart envy sinners, But live in the fear of the Lord always. Surely there is a future, And your hope will not be cut off. Proverbs 23:17-18, NASB Today’s verse is 18, but I included 17, because I THINK they are a couplet. I wrote about verse 17 last month, and will try not to repeat myself. Our senses describe the present, our memory describes the past; the future is described by our hopes and our fears. In this little verse, we are given one of the strongest foundations for peace: yes, you DO have a future, and it’s a good one. Under most circumstances, we take the future for granted. If you have ever been forced to doubt that a future exists, you know how chilling that is. ‘No future’ is MUCH worse than ‘bad future.’ This verse draws us back away from the abyss of nothingness, and back into reality: yes, you DO have a future.  (If that
Read more