Papa Pat Tiny Devotionals

 A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family who might drop by, HE IS RISEN! She looks for wool and flax And works with her hands in delight. She is like merchant ships; She brings her food from afar. Proverbs 31:13-14, NASB Her ship Today is Easter Sunday, but it's also the 31st, and that day only occurs five times each year. So, in order to give the Proverbs 31 woman adequate coverage, I don't want to ONLY write about Easter. I'll try combining both themes. THE EXCELLENT WOMAN: has the responsibility for her household, and she can't just click on an Amazon link and have clothing shipped to her door. Still, she has to have SOMETHING corresponding to a search engine, and that's what the first line references: she LOOKS for the best and most appropriate items to meet her household's needs.  She also puts some of  herself in the clothes she makes for her family and household. I remember my grandmother sewing a button on my ...

 A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family who might drop by, warm potato salad! There are three things that will not be satisfied, Four that will not say, “Enough”: Sheol, and the barren womb, Earth that is never satisfied with water, And fire that never says, “Enough.” Proverbs 30:15b-16, NASB A Black Hole Eats Everything I was busy NOT understanding these words, until I was RESCUED. First, let me say that I DO understand the plain sense of the words: there are some things that are never fulfilled.  Second, I'm confused because these are things we can't do anything about. Why would the Best Advisor Ever give advice about something we can't change?    Here's where CONTEXT came to my rescue: Proverbs 15a, which I wrote about here, talks about the daughters of the leech, who only cry 'give, give!' These four examples are to further illustrate the nature of the leech; they aren't just tossed out as bits of indigestibl...

 A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family who might drop by, care for some oatmeal? A fool always loses his temper, But a wise man holds it back. Proverbs 29:11, NASB A foolish Papa loses his dogs,  But a wise Papa holds them back. Yesterday, I had to take our dogs Bailey and Piper to the vet. They RAN to the car, tangling my legs in their leashes, and stood there quivering until I opened the door, and let them in. When we got to the vet, they eagerly followed my lead into the building; Piper hesitated, a bit, when it was time to leave Papa and go get her bath. They were just as eager to go home with me when I came to get them a few hours later.  They are very good dogs, very obedient, with one exception: if someone is in the street, or our neighbors are in their yard, and Bailey is outside, he will run at them. He will NOT stop, no matter how much or how loud we call him, until he has checked them out. He's a big dog, too, and ...

  A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family who might drop by, breakfast is a peanut butter sandwich. He who leads the upright astray in an evil way Will himself fall into his own pit, But the blameless will inherit good. Proverbs 28:10, NASB How can the upright be deceived by an evil leader? I suppose the extreme example of this is what happened in Germany, leading up to WWII. How could one of the most cultured countries in the world be suckered into the abominations of the social cleansing policies of the Third Reich? Historians say that the terms of the Versailles peace agreement ending the Great War were unduly harsh on the German people, causing resentments that were exploited by the new leadership.  Resentment comes when we are FOCUSED on bad things in our past. And when we are focused on the past, we can't see where we are going, or where are being lead. And that, I believe, is what has happened when the upright find themselves...

  A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family who might drop by, don't spill your water in your lap. Be wise, my son, and make my heart glad, That I may reply to him who reproaches me. Proverbs 27:11, NASB I had a business transaction with a man who had the unusual last name of  Tweezel. After the deal was over, I asked him if he was related to my friend Dweezel. Dweezel is really a great guy, and when I found out he was Dweezel's father, I complimented him on raising such a fine son. He replied, “I'm proud of both of my sons.” I also know his other son, Meezel, and I knew he was a convicted felon who had spent time in jail; since his release he's worked hard to become a productive member of society. I was touched that Mr. Tweezel stood firm in his statement that he was proud of both of his sons. As parents, we long for our children to make the right choices, whether they are pre-teens or middle-aged, because  we know their lives...

  A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family who might drop by, bring your own food, and we will share! As the door turns on its hinges, So does the sluggard on his bed. Proverbs 26:14, NASB I don't know what mental image you have of this verse, but I see the front door of Frankenstein's castle, or another from that era. CR-EA-A-K! goes the door on it's hinges, as it swings slowly open. That's because I have been gifted with back pain, and after eight hours, it HURTS to get out of bed. My bones don't exactly make a creaking noise, but they feel like it, and they do go snap-crackle-pop.  I don't think King Solomon had back pain in mind when he recorded this wise saying, Instead, I believe he was pointing out that just as the door doesn't leave the hinges, the sluggard doesn't leave his bed; he just turns over.  A door on its hinges is actually filling a need: it keeps people out of your house. Maybe, if the slugga...

  A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family who might drop by, yesterday was nap day. Like an earring of gold and an ornament of fine gold Is a wise reprover to a listening ear. Proverbs 25:12 NASB You know why pirates had gold earrings? It was the best way they could keep up with their money. There wasn't a Pirate Federal Credit Union where they could conveniently deposit their loot. And, as for leaving it in their bunks, well, all of their bunkmates were also pirates. Would you trust them not to steal your stuff? Thus, you convert your looted soap and bananas into gold earrings, because pockets are unreliable. I make this point because otherwise, you might be inclined to think a wise reprover and a listening ear are just display, flashy jewelry. That's pretty much all modern earrings are, right? Not so, during this time. Gold in your ear meant you were a person of wealth, and also implied that you could defend your wealth.  The repr...

  A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family who might drop by, corned beef and cabbage rules! My son, eat honey, for it is good, Yes, the honey from the comb is sweet to your taste; Know that wisdom is thus for your soul; If you find it, then there will be a future, And your hope will not be cut off. Proverbs 24:13-14, NASB Does we really need to be encouraged to eat honey? No, of course not; our mouth LIKES it, and taste is one of the earliest things we are sensitive to. We don't really have to learn to eat things that taste good; it's instinctive. If you don't understand that, then observe a newborn nursing. Mouth, meet honey::YAY!! When it comes to wisdom, though, that's NOT instinctive. Wisdom has to be mediated by the brain in order to be accepted, because sometimes, the wise thing is not the pleasant thing. It's your brain, to keep the same example, that tells you to STOP eating honey after a certain point, or you wil...

  A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family who might drop by, it's almost time for lunch. Do not be with heavy drinkers of wine, Or with gluttonous eaters of meat; For the heavy drinker and the glutton will come to poverty, And drowsiness will clothe one with rags. Proverbs 23:20-21, NASB Currently, I can't eat ANYTHING that requires much chewing; that will change in May, when I get the new dental work done. Does my current lack of teeth make me righteous? If I CAN'T be a glutton, because I have no teeth, do I gain any spiritual benefit? What about my friend who is functionally blind; can he boast about not being addicted to looking at pornography? I HOPE not. It seems that would lead a person to  mutilate themselves in order not to give in to sin temptations, and THAT is a a BAD choice. True, Jesus said 'if your eye makes you stumble, throw it out' (Mark 9:47, NASB); but here's a tip, friends: it's not your eye th...

 A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family who might drop by, Cheerios and cold brew with Boost. The eyes of the Lord preserve knowledge,  But He overthrows the words of the treacherous man. Proverbs 21:12 NASB In a small way, my eyes preserve knowledge: if I read something, I can remember some part of it. That part is what we retrieve later. We recall 'something about making up your mind without all the evidence;' you might not know if it's Sherlock Holmes or Bill W, but if you play around with it, you might be able to get a better picture that will lead you to find the actual source. Our ears also preserve knowledge.  We remember music better than we remember  words. Other senses are also knowledge preservers; the smell of suntan lotion recalls a summer vacation, especially if accompanied by the feel of gritty beach sand. Perhaps this verse is telling us that knowledge is never lost, because God has a perfect memory. Perha...

A great good morning to all my friends and neighbors in Internet Land! And to family who might drop by, got some delicious old donuts! The righteous one considers the house of the wicked, Turning the wicked to ruin. Proverb 21:12, NASB If there was anything that would make me feel sorry for the wicked, it's when I consider their house. Buying a house has DEFINITE advantages over renting, but when something goes wrong, you can't call maintenance to come fix it.  Recently, I had to call on the septic tank professionals for the third time. The first two times, Mr. Robert was able to work his magic and repair the damage done by pine tree roots, but this time, the entire front of the tank was caved in, and it had to be replaced. So, my front yard got all torn up by the backhoe, and we got a new septic tank. Now what? Do I invite my friends over and have them see how easy it is to flush the toilet?   A leak in the roof NEVER heals by itself. It only gets worse, and if I hadn...