Devotion 

Good Advice

Frances Taylor 

The Book of Proverbs makes for an interesting read. There is great advice in these words and quite a bit to think about. The first verse we have here is pretty familiar. "The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom." It is good to remember that God is God and we are not! So often we think that we are in control of our lives, the masters of our fate! We forget that God is in charge. When we think of ourselves as in charge, that's when things go wrong. We put ourselves first, we make poor decisions and suffer the consequences. When we put God first and follow his way, we are at peace. That doesn't mean that we don't run into problems, but God is there to direct us. We only need to ask for direction. It's amazing that a peaceful heart usually means a decrease in stress and anxiety. This leads to a healthier you and goes along with the statements that our days will be multiplied. And even if we don't live as long as we might like, it will be a happier, more joyous life. The problem is, we tend to like control. I do understand. I am a very bad passenger, I prefer to drive. I have been in too many situations where I felt unsafe. It takes time for me to trust. But I have found that when I gave up trying to control my life, things went a lot smoother. I pray daily for God's guidance. I can't control what my children or grandchildren do, no matter how much I might like to, but I can pray that God will help to guide them. It is my responsibility to give them good example and to help them realize that following Jesus will bring them joy and not sorrow. Handing everything over to God isn't always easy, but, as the proverb says, it is the beginning of wisdom, and it also is the beginning of freedom. If God's in charge, I don't have to be!

Prayer 

Thank you Lord for giving us this great book of advice! It's full of common sense and that can be lacking in our world today. Let me turn to it more often to remind myself of the things I should already know! Amen.