8 November 2010 - Proverbs 18

"An unfriendly person pursues selfish ends" says verse one
"And against all sound judgment" quarrels are begun
"Fools find no pleasure in understanding"
"But delight in...their own opinions" airing
"When wickedness comes, so does contempt"
"And with shame comes reproach's" attempt
"The words of the mouth are deep waters", per verse four
"But the fountain of wisdom is a...stream" rushing more
A fool's lips and strife are often meeting
"And their mouths invite a beating"
Verse nine says "one who is slack in his work"
"Is brother to one who destroys", going berserk
"Before a downfall the heart is haughty" at its core
But per verse twelve, "humility comes before honor"
"To answer before listening", says verse fourteen
"That is folly and shame", it is often seen
"The power of life and death" has the tongue
"And those who love it will eat its fruit", often getting stung

Much of this proverb focuses on words
They have the power often exceeding swords
Words can do a world of good
But evil escapes more often than it should
We all have two ears and one mouth
Not listening enough sends us south
In life and with God this is very true
So lets my ears outdo my mouth in all that I do

7 November 2010 - ENCS

The "Follow the Leader" series did commence
Noah the "ark-itect" was far from dense
"Righteous Perseverance" Pastor Kenneth talked about
His throat was dry; he could not shout
Pastor started by reading from Genesis 6, verses 8 and 9
Noah found favor in God's eye and was never out of line
By way of context, we read verses five and seven
The earth's wickedness grieved our Father in heaven
From Adam, Noah was ten generations down
How did he find God's favor instead of a frown?
Pastor focused on character traits two
That drove Noah to do what he did do

Righteousness was the first such trait
In the Bible, Noah sure did rate
Verse nine says that he "walked with God"
Enoch is the only other to get such a nod
Per Genesis 6:22 and then in Genesis 7:5
Noah followed God's commands when he was alive
By giving God his all
Noah really stood tall
Eight people were all that God did save
When he sent the Great Flood and a big wave
As a side note, we then had a brief Chinese lesson
The character "ship" is comprised of "boat", "eight", "person"

Pastor then talked about the trait of perseverance
"To pursue steadily despite opposition" to your stance
Many famous persevering people he did then name
Lincoln, Edison, Churchill, Ford, Disney were the same
Be never giving up, they eventually did succeed
Words of failure they just refused to heed
From John 16:33 Pastor Kenneth then read
"In the world, you will have trouble" Jesus said
And from James 1:12, "blessed is the man"
"Who perseveres under trial" the best that he can
Thinking back to Noah and his situation
He was no doubt ridiculed by the entire nation
But he persevered according to God's will
Thus his family God's Flood did not kill
Remember that persevering in an unrighteous way
Brings destruction at the end of the day
As a result of persevering with righteousness
Noah received a life filled with fruitfulness

5 November 2010 - Proverbs 10:1-14 (The Message)

Solomon wrote, in one language or another
"Wise son, glad father; stupid son, sad mother"
Verse two says "ill-gotten gain gets you nowhere"
"An honest life is immortal", so you should care
"God won't starve an honest soul"
But the wicked may have an empty bowl
"Sloth makes you poor; diligence brings wealth"
These are not words to follow in stealth
"Make hay while the sun shines—that's smart"
"Go fishing during harvest—that's stupid" he did impart
Into a good and honest life blessings will infuse
"But the mouth of the wicked is a dark cave of abuse"
"A good and honest life is a blessed memorial"
"A wicked life leaves a rotten stench" as a testimonial
"A wise heart takes orders" without being rude
"An empty head will come unglued"
"Honesty lives confident and carefree"
"But Shifty is sure to...exposed" be
"An evasive eye is a sign of trouble ahead"
"But an open...meeting results in peace" instead
"The mouth of a good person is a deep, life-giving well"
"But the mouth of the wicked is a dark cave of abuse" and hell
"You'll find wisdom on the lips of a person of insight"
"But the shortsighted needs a slap in the face" with might
"The wise accumulate knowledge—a true treasure"
"Know-it-alls talk too much—a sheer waste" for sure

It is hard to add to what Solomon did say
From his guidance, I try not too far to stray
For living in the way that he penned
Helps me to do what God doth intend

4 November 2010 - Matthew 13:10-15

"Why do you speak...in parables?", Jesus' disciples asked
He said that between the disciples and the people there was a contrast
For the disciples had been given, according to verse eleven
"The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven"
Jesus also said that "whoever has will be given more"
"And they will have an abundance" of what is in store
He added that the people "though seeing,...do not see"
"Though hearing, they do not hear or understand" me
For the prophecy of Isaiah we should not disregard
"The people's heart has become calloused" and hard
If only people would understand with their hearts and turn
Jesus would heal them; why won't the people learn?

At times, I definitely feel like one of "the people'
Although I study God's Word and pray under the steeple
But at times, things seem even worse
It is as if I am living under a curse
For even the parables are beyond my comprehension
That gives me cause for much apprehension
But at other times, it all seems so clear
That is when His presence feels so near
So please dear God, let my heart be perceptive
And allow my body and mind to be receptive
And never allow me to be nonchalant
For a calloused heart is not what I want

3 November 2010 - 1 Peter 3:8-9

Peter tells us what we all should do
He starts verse eight with "finally, all of you"
And then says "live in harmony with one another"
"Be sympathetic, love" as you would a brother
"Be compassionate and humble"
Try to help them not to stumble
"Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult"
"But with blessing", if the Bible you consult
"Because to this you were called"
Your blessings will never be recalled

I remember that Peter was a three time sinner
But he ended up as a leader and a winner
So his words should take on extra meaning
As my actions and soul need some cleaning
This passage reminds me to turn the other cheek
For the world shall be inherited by the meek
'Blessings' should be my word for the day
On it I will now go and pray

2 November 2010 - Genesis 1:1-19

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth"
"The earth was...empty" but present was God's worth
On the first day, God said "let there be light"
"God called the light day and the darkness...night"
On the second day God created the sky
As an expanse between waters it did lie
On the third day, God "let dry ground appear"
God liked the land and the seas, from verse ten we hear
God provided vegetation on the land between the seas
By introducing various types of plants and trees
On the fourth day, God created the sun, stars, and moon
The introduction of living creatures was coming real soon

For me, the creation story never ceases to fascinate
From a formless darkness, the world God did create
Step by step, He did so in such a logical way
It is no wonder that nature's laws all must obey
And I can not help but to be in awe
For it is no wonder that God liked all that he saw

1 November 2010 - Psalm 95

From verse one, this is the Word:
"Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord"
"Let us come before him with thanksgiving"
"And extol him with music" and our singing
"The depths of the earth" are in his hand
"The sea is his...and he formed the dry land"
"Come, let us bow down in worship"
"Let us kneel before" our Lordship
The alternative we should clearly dread
For to the Israelites this is what he said
"Do not harden your hearts as you did at Meribah"
"As you did that day...in the desert...at Massah"
"Where your fathers tested and tried me"
Though what I had done they did see
"For forty years I was angry with that generation"
Even though they were my chosen people and nation
"They shall never enter my rest"
Isn't it better to be blessed?