What is the condition of your heart?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ©

The LORD detests men of perverse heart
but he delights in those whose ways are blameless.
(Proverbs 11:20 (NIV))

Have we become a people of perverse hearts? Do we accept what the world calls okay even though God’s Word tells us that it is not okay? Do we have a desire to intentionally disobey God’s Word? How can we truly call ourselves part of the Body of Christ when we do not do what He tells us to do? Basically, how can we ignore the fact that we are not obeying His command to go and sin no more as He told the woman caught in adultery?

When we have perverse hearts, we think that we can do whatever we want. We think that God will overlook what we do. Sadly, many in today’s church and in the non-believing world think this is how God works. Proverbs 11:20 tells us differently.

But wait!

Didn’t Jesus come to forgive our sins?

Jesus did come to offer us grace and mercy. The key word is offer. We have to accept that offer and accept the terms that go with that offer. We are to repent. Just like what Jesus told the woman caught in adultery, we are to go and sin no more. He did not tell us that to get salvation we turn to Him and beg for forgiveness and then keep on deliberately sinning. Too many people falsely believe that believing in Jesus will earn them salvation no matter what they do from that point on. Jesus told us that He would tell these type of people to get away from Him because He never knew them.

With so many passages telling us that we are to turn away from our sin, how can anyone honestly believe that Jesus condones a perverse heart? How can we believe that people who simply give lip service to Jesus will actually see the salvation and grace that they think they will get?

Jesus did not come into this world, live as one of us, teach us, and die on the cross so that we can continue in our sin. We have to have a change of heart. We have to accept all conditions of the offer of grace.

What is the condition of your heart?

Copyright 1998 – 2020 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Is the Lord delighted in you?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

the LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love.
(Psalms 147:11 (NIV))

How do you think the Lord feels about society in today’s world?

Is He pleased? Is He delighted, or is He saddened by what He sees?

In all reality, our world is in a pretty disheartening state. Society states that anything goes, and it often does. It saddens me to say that some groups who claim to follow Jesus have allowed sin to infiltrate what they teach and preach. How do you think the Lord feels about this?

I want to ask those of you who are parents a few questions.

Do you love you children unconditionally? Would you say that your love for your children is unfailing? How do you feel about your children if they do something that is against all that you have taught them? Would it break your heart? Would you still love them if they rebelled against you? Do you think that your children fear you? Let me rephrase that last question if your children are adults. I realize that fear is a harsh word, but do you think that your children feared you when they were growing up? Is it possible for a child to love their parents yet still fear them? Is it possible to love someone and realize that the one who is the center of that love is also rightfully the one who is in authority over you?

Going back to the concept of parents with children, if you have a child who rebels, do you delight in them? You still love them, but they cause heartache and not delight.

Is the Lord delighted in you?

Copyright 1998 – 2018 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Are your steps firm?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living

The LORD makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him; though he may stumble, he will not fall, for the LORD upholds him with his hand.
(Psalms 37:23-24 (NIV))

I have two questions for you.

Do you delight in the Lord and lift up His name in joy and thanksgiving?

Have you ever faced a situation where you did not see any logical way for you to come through it unscathed? You just knew that the outcome was not going to be pretty!

I just love how if your answer to the first question is yes, it will lead to a successful outcome for the situations described in the second question.

When you delight in the Lord, He delights in you! Think about this from the viewpoint of an earthly father with multiple children. He loves all of his children, but the ones who seek to bring joy to their father are the ones who make the father the happiest. He loves them all, but if any are aloof, they don’t have the intimacy with the father and the father is saddened by this. How can he guide them if they will not come to him? Does this sound familiar? Does this help to paint a picture of how the Lord makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him? Could it be due to the desire to be close to the Lord? When you draw close, you begin to know the very heart of the Lord, and when you know the very heart of the Lord, you begin to walk where He leads.

When you were young, did you ever walk with your father and hold his hand? You relied on the guidance, the strength and the stability to help you make it to your destination. You followed where he led. You might have stumbled, but you never fell. You were firmly holding onto your father’s hand! Because you relied on the guidance, the strength and the stability of your father, you were confident in your steps. There was a firm and bold faith in your steps. Walking with the Lord should be just the same. Step out boldly and firmly in faith as you hold your Father’s hand!

Are your steps firm?

Copyright 1998 – 2017 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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Do you delight in your walk with God?

Be Still . . .
Devotionals for Daily Living ^©

The father of a righteous man has great joy; he who has a wise son delights in him.
(Proverbs 23:24 (NIV))

What is wisdom?

Do you think of it as the world thinks of it? Do you look upon wisdom as the ability to deal with people and come out better off than they do? Do you look upon wisdom as knowledge and power? Take a serious look inward and reflect on what is wise in your eyes.

What is righteousness?

Do you look upon this the way our society now looks upon it? Righteous now means something completely different in today’s slang than it does to God.

Righteousness and wisdom are traits that should denote a fear of God. This fear is not one that makes you stay away from God, but, rather it is a healthy respect and reverence for the Creator by the creation. The worldly definitions of these words place the creation above the Creator. Leave it to the enemy to turn what God has called good and make it have a meaning that is completely opposite of the truth.

Don’t give up hope. There is true wisdom and true righteousness! It is available only through God’s gift of His Son, Jesus, as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Accepting this gift of grace and mercy truly makes you wise no matter what the world thinks of you or what your IQ may be. This wisdom is the only wisdom that matters, for it is a wisdom of recognition of authority and submission and not a wisdom that seeks its own authority and for everyone to submit to it.

The words written in Proverbs 23:24 are true. Righteousness and wisdom do bring great joy and delight. Do you delight in those whom you love? Do you delight in your walk with God?

Copyright 1998 – 2013 Dennis J. Smock
Daily Living Ministries, Inc.
http://www.dailylivingministries.org
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