Two children play on a tire swing in a refugee camp at sunset

Unwelcome Counsel

“The one who corrects a mocker will bring abuse on himself; the one who rebukes the wicked will get hurt. Don’t rebuke a mocker, or he will hate you; rebuke the wise, and he will love you. Instruct the wise, and he will be wiser still; teach the righteous, and he will learn more.” (‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭9‬:‭7‬-‭9‬ ‭CSB‬‬ – Read the chapter)

Have you ever had someone try to give you advice you didn’t want? My guess is that you didn’t receive it so graciously. Perhaps if you had been taught by your parents to always be polite you expressed some gratitude, but inside you knew just exactly what you were going to do with that advice: nothing. And you were probably going to resent the person for giving it to you unsolicited in the first place. You might have even determined that you were going to do the opposite out of spite. In that situation, you were playing the part of a mocker. That’s not a great role to play. Let’s talk about it.

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Digging in Deeper: Psalm 34:19

“Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.”  (ESV – Read the chapter)

Isn’t this a nice verse of deliverance?  God delivers us from all of our afflictions.  What great comfort this offers us when we are low.  God won’t leave you on the ground when you are down.  That could almost go on a bumper sticker.  My take?  If that’s how you are reacting to this verse, you might want to take a second look…and this time, take a minute to actually read it. Read the rest…