Proverbs Devotional 10.13.20

I. Prayer to enter the Lord’s presence:

Be still for a moment. “Lord, I give the day that is now past to you.  It is yours.  I give the day that is to come to you; help me to see where you are working and to join you there.  Speak to me during these moments.  I commit them and myself to you.”

 II. Prayer of Confession:

“Lord, you are faithful to forgive me and cleanse me of my sin when I confess it to you.  I confess my sin(s) of ______________.  Thank you for forgiveness.” (1 John 1:9)

III. Prayer of Thanksgiving:

Choose to be thankful, speak out loud of what God has done.
“Thank you, Father, for _________________.  Fill my heart and my mouth with gratitude throughout this day.”

IV. Scripture Reflection

Read: Proverbs Chapter 13

Reflect:

For October, I’d like you to simply read slowly through the entire proverb each day. Think about the verses that have stood out to you over this year, the things God has spoken to you about, and the wisdom that was revealed to you. Use this time as a summary review of our time together over the last nine months.

As you read the Proverbs, you’ll notice that they are comprised of different translations. My hope is that doing this will help you to read Proverbs afresh. Following the reading is a short prayer that sums up the proverb. God Bless!

Proverbs 13 (NLT)
A wise child ac­cepts a par­ent’s dis­ci­pline;
a mocker re­fuses to lis­ten to cor­rec­tion.

² Wise words will win you a good meal,
but treach­er­ous peo­ple have an ap­petite for vi­o­lence.

³ Those who con­trol their tongue will have a long life;
open­ing your mouth can ruin every­thing.

⁴ Lazy peo­ple want much but get lit­tle,
but those who work hard will pros­per.

⁵ The godly hate lies;
the wicked cause shame and dis­grace.

⁶ God­li­ness guards the path of the blame­less,
but the evil are mis­led by sin.

⁷ Some who are poor pre­tend to be rich;
oth­ers who are rich pre­tend to be poor.

⁸ The rich can pay a ran­som for their lives,
but the poor won’t even get threat­ened.

⁹ The life of the godly is full of light and joy,
but the light of the wicked will be snuffed out.

¹⁰ Pride leads to con­flict;
those who take ad­vice are wise.

¹¹ Wealth from get-rich-quick schemes quickly dis­ap­pears;
wealth from hard work grows over time.

¹² Hope de­ferred makes the heart sick,
but a dream ful­filled is a tree of life.

¹³ Peo­ple who de­spise ad­vice are ask­ing for trou­ble;
those who re­spect a com­mand will suc­ceed.

¹⁴ The in­struc­tion of the wise is like a life-giv­ing foun­tain;
those who ac­cept it avoid the snares of death.

¹⁵ A per­son with good sense is re­spected;
a treach­er­ous per­son is headed for de­struc­tion.

¹⁶ Wise peo­ple think be­fore they act;
fools don’t—and even brag about their fool­ish­ness.

¹⁷ An un­re­li­able mes­sen­ger stum­bles into trou­ble,
but a re­li­able mes­sen­ger brings heal­ing.

¹⁸ If you ig­nore crit­i­cism, you will end in poverty and dis­grace;
if you ac­cept cor­rec­tion, you will be hon­ored.

¹⁹ It is pleas­ant to see dreams come true,
but fools refuse to turn from evil to at­tain them.

²⁰ Walk with the wise and be­come wise;
as­so­ci­ate with fools and get in trou­ble.

²¹ Trou­ble chases sin­ners,
while bless­ings re­ward the right­eous.

²² Good peo­ple leave an in­her­i­tance to their grand­chil­dren,
but the sin­ner’s wealth passes to the godly.

²³ A poor per­son’s farm may pro­duce much food,
but in­jus­tice sweeps it all away.

²⁴ Those who spare the rod of dis­ci­pline hate their chil­dren.
Those who love their chil­dren care enough to dis­ci­pline them.

²⁵ The godly eat to their hearts’ con­tent,
but the belly of the wicked goes hun­gry.

Respond:

Father, thank You for Your grace and mercy in my life. Thank You for the people You put in my life. Please help me make the most of the time You give me. I want to honor You with my life. Help me to always walk with the wise and keep me from following foolish advice. Teach me what it is to walk in wisdom, to do what is wise, not just what is easy. Use me to pass on to others the wisdom You reveal to me. My desire is to honor You today. Give me the strength, wisdom, and endurance to do just that. I pray all this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

 V. Prayer for others:

Pray specifically for the concerns of your life and the lives of others. 

VI. Prayer of commitment:

“Lord God, I commit to love you with all my heart and with all my soul and with all my strength and with all my mind and to love my neighbor as myself.  Empower me today to love you and others with everything that I am.”  (Luke 10:27)

This Week’s Scripture Memory:
Proverbs 27:1