Psalm 78:1-20 - For the Coming Generation

Psalm 78:1-20

Listen, O my people, to my instruction; incline your ears to the words of my mouth. ² I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter dark sayings of old, ³ which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us.⁴ We will not conceal them from their children, But tell to the generation to come the praises of the Lord, and His strength and His wondrous works that He has done. 

⁵ For He established a testimony in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel, which He commanded our fathers that they should teach them to their children, ⁶ That the generation to come might know, even the children yet to be born, they may arise and tell to their children, ⁷ That they should put their confidence in God and not forget the works of God, but keep His commandments, ⁸ And not be like their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that did not prepare its heart and whose spirit was not faithful to God. 

⁹ The sons of Ephraim were archers equipped with bows, they turned back in the day of battle.
¹⁰ They did not keep the covenant of God And refused to walk in His law; ¹¹ They forgot His deeds and His miracles that He had shown them. ¹² He wrought wonders before their fathers In the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan. ¹³ He divided the sea and caused them to pass through, and He made the waters stand up like a heap. ¹⁴ Then He led them with the cloud by day and all the night with a light of fire. ¹⁵ He split the rocks in the wilderness and gave abundant drink like the ocean depths. ¹⁶ He brought forth streams also from the rock and caused waters to run down like rivers.¹⁷ Yet they still continued to sin against Him, to rebel against the Most High in the desert. ¹⁸ And in their heart they put God to the test by asking food according to their desire. ¹⁹ Then they spoke against God; They said, “Can God prepare a table in the wilderness? ²⁰ “Behold, He struck the rock so that waters gushed out, And streams were overflowing; Can He give bread also? Will He provide meat for His people?”

Message: For the Coming Generation; Warning to the Stubborn and Rebellious

Time: The psalms were written by many different people across a period of a thousand years in Israel's history. They are thought to have been compiled and put together in their present form by some unknown editor shortly after the captivity ended about 537 B.C.

What the Lord is Saying:

Overview
This Psalm begins with the words Listen, O my people, to my instruction; incline your ears to the words of my mouth. This is a beginning that seems similar to words found in the book of Proverbs. But, it is clearly a call to the people to pay attention to what is going to be said. He says that he speak with a parable. He will pass on words that our fathers have said to us.

Pass on these words to future generations
Actually, in reading this Psalm, at least these first 20 verses, it is a call out to the people of God to carry forth the Word of God from generation to generation. I will utter dark sayings of old which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us. We will not conceal them from their children, but tell to the generation to come the praises of the Lord, and His strength and His wondrous works that He has done. I have a responsibility before my children to continue to pass on the word of God. I do not think I've ever read this verse or taken it very seriously. 

Stubborn and Rebellious People
There was a warning in verse 8 to not be like a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that did not prepare its heart and whose spirit was not faithful to God.  Stubborn and rebellious is a people that are stiff-necked, ungovernable; inclined to revolt. Therefore, a people that do not pass on words to their children and future generations are described as this. Stubborn and rebellious is synonymous with not being faithful to God.

We come across people all the time that say they believe in God and pray, but I wonder if they believe they are faithful to God. Its one thing to believe and pray, but quite another to be faithful. I just think of this as I speak to people. I am not sure I am even faithful to God and his promises. I think I do this on a part-time basis. I'm not sure if this describes me completely. But, I also think, for the most part, it is a goal of mine to be this way.

This stubborn and rebellious way is further understand through the description of a people group. In verse 9, the sons of Ephraim was one of the largest tribes of Israel. They were a large tribe and therefore had the platform and means to be independent of the other tribes. They were archers equipped with bows. They were armed and they were ready to defend only themselves but they turned back in the day of battle or they did not stand by their brethren. They were a proud people and a selfish people. The Christian life is to be about community and serving others and ministering to people.

These people rejected God

• They did not keep the covenant of God
• refused to walk in His law
• They forgot His deeds and His miracles that He had shown them

These people ignored God:

• He wrought wonders before their fathers in the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan.  
• He divided the sea and caused them to pass through, and He made the waters stand up like a heap.  
• Then He led them with the cloud by day and all the night with a light of fire.  
• He split the rocks in the wilderness and gave abundant drink like the ocean depths.  
• He brought forth streams also from the rock and caused waters to run down like rivers

They put God to the test:

• asking food according to their desire.  
• Can God prepare a table in the wilderness
• Can He give bread also
•  Will He provide meat for His people

Conclusion
This chapter describes fathers preparing their children for the future, teaching them God's word. I wonder how I do this as a father or rather I think about this and see that I need to improve in this area. I'm having difficulty right now talking to my youngest. Yet, there are still stories I could communicate from God's word. Perhaps I need to look at my Bible again and think about the stories that are within it and what it can teach. Help me God. Give me strength and courage to pass these truths onto my children. They all need it. Help me with my youngest and even though he does not voice an interest in God right now, show me how I can still use words from our lives.

Promise: God's word is present and living. We can't just ignore it or even question it without it yielding stubborn and rebellious people.

Proverbs 17:17 - True Friendship

Proverbs 17:17
A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.

Message: True Friendship

Time: It seems that Proverbs was written and then compiled sometime between the tenth and sixth centuries B.C. Proverbs was probably written during the reign of Solomon, 971-931 B.C.

What the Lord is Saying:

I don't think I realized completely the importance of having good friends. For the past 10 years, starting in 2006 I have been meeting with other men weekly for reflection on the week and prayer. We have also had times of study together going through various books, but overall, what makes this discussion most beneficial is simply the time we spend talking about life and then praying for one another. I believe that my spiritual growth has been different in these last 10 years than other years and I believe that time with these men has been the catalyst in the growth of me and my faith. I am very thankful for them. In addition, I'm thankful for weekly witnessing that I have been doing with another friend in which we go to the mall to share truth with people and gauge where they are spiritually. I think we have been doing this for about 5-7 years now. It is through these relationships that I have begun to understand and realize this verse more that a friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity. 

There is nothing more special that to have a friend by your side. We need each other. I have been blessed with many special friends over the years. I so appreciate having these men in my life. I'm not sure why I have so many, but it is definitely good for my soul.

God, thank you for bringing other people into my life and proving men that I can speak to and will encourage me and challenge me. Thank you for the older men friends I have and their wisdom. I'm very thankful for this and I pray that Pamela would grow to have similar friendships in her life. Thank you for the people that have reached out to her and thank you for the time of late that we have been able to share time together doing a book study on the Word of God.

Promise: Jesus is the one friend that will never leave us or forsake us.  

Promise:

Psalm 119:89-96 - God's Fixed and Enduring Word

Psalm 119:89-96

⁸⁹ Forever, O Lord, Your word is settled in heaven.
⁹⁰ Your faithfulness throughout all generations; You established the earth, and it stands.
⁹¹ They stand this day according to Your ordinances, for all things are Your servants.
⁹² If Your law had not been my delight, then I would have perished in my affliction.
⁹³ I will never forget Your precepts, for by them You have revived me.
⁹⁴ I am Yours, save me; for I have sought Your precepts.
⁹⁵ The wicked wait for me to destroy me; I shall diligently consider Your testimonies.
⁹⁶ I have seen a limit to all perfection; Your commandment is exceedingly broad.

Message: God's fixed and enduring word

Time: The psalms were written by many different people across a period of a thousand years in Israel's history. They are thought to have been compiled and put together in their present form by some unknown editor shortly after the captivity ended about 537 B.C.

What the Lord is Saying:

We continue to look to God's word. His word is a lamp unto our feet (v. 105). It is here in this passage today that we remember and see that the sacred Scripture reflects the steadfastness of our Maker.

It endures
Your word is settled (or fixed) in heaven (v. 89). God and his word is a forever source of our life, both for today and in the future in heaven.

God is faithful throughout every generation. You established the earth, and it stands (v. 90). We can also expect the same thing for the Word of God. It has been established and it stands.

All of these words and commands are under your servants (v. 91).

Without God's word, we would have perished (v. 92).

It is for me
I will never forget Your precepts (v. 93). To all eternity they shall be the object of my meditation. For by them You have revived me. God's word is the light to our life. As we learn it and study it, it will speak to us in a way different from anything else in our life.

I am Yours (v. 94). This is the statement of a pious person. All that I am is God's. I am a follower of God. I am his. Save me. Deliver me from my enemies. For I have sought your precepts. I am guided by your Words. 

It is my security
The wicked wait for me to destroy me (v. 95). Through it all, I find my support upon Your testimonies. Where is my security? I am secure and safe in my position as a Christ follower. This is where I sit and reside. I am not a creature of circumstances waiting for something good to happen to me first. I rest on God's word and its proclamation to my life. 

It exposes me
Verse 96 - I have seen a limit to all perfection; Your commandment is exceedingly broad. This is where man rests and allows God to take over. I see a limit in being perfect. God's word is significant when I look upon it. People often will say they are a good person, until the light of God's word shines upon their lives. God's word is exceedingly broad and because of it, I see that I am not perfect. If anyone thinks they are perfect, then they have not really considered God's word. This is a perfect verse to be found in this chapter 119 which speaks of the Word of God. After we examine God's word, we clearly see that we are not perfect and so how can we face God. We can't. This is why we need a savior. 

Promise: God's word not only endures, but it shines a light onto my life. 

Psalm 119:81-88 - God's Sustaining Word

Psalm 119:81-88

⁸¹ My soul languishes for Your salvation; I wait for Your word.
⁸² My eyes fail with longing for Your word, While I say, “When will You comfort me?”
⁸³ Though I have become like a wineskin in the smoke, I do not forget Your statutes.
⁸⁴ How many are the days of Your servant? When will You execute judgment on those who persecute me?
⁸⁵ The arrogant have dug pits for me, Men who are not in accord with Your law.
⁸⁶ All Your commandments are faithful; they have persecuted me with a lie; help me!
⁸⁷ They almost destroyed me on earth, but as for me, I did not forsake Your precepts.
⁸⁸ Revive me according to Your lovingkindness, so that I may keep the testimony of Your mouth.

Message: God's Sustaining Word

Time: The psalms were written by many different people across a period of a thousand years in Israel's history. They are thought to have been compiled and put together in their present form by some unknown editor shortly after the captivity ended about 537 B.C.

What the Lord is Saying:
 
The outcry of Psalm 119 is looking to God's word and in that Word we have comfort (v.82). My hope is the Word of God (v. 81). We have safety. When we are feeling forgotten or alone due to the evil that we see in our world, we can remember that God will execute judgment (v. 84). The word of God is on the highest plane in our life and those that reject it will eventually be thrown down (v. 85). We need God's word to show us that our lives are more about ourselves. It is his word that confronts us and reveals who we really are (v. 86). And we see that God can restore us, so that our lives are marked by doing God's word (v. 88).

My eyes fail with longing for Your word, While I say, “When will You comfort me?” (v.82)
The Psalmist knows the word of God will bring him comfort and yet he waits for this comfort. It is as when we look for a ship long expected, or for a friend long absent, or for help when in danger. Our eyes are ever on the lookout. How often in the life of the believer now are similar expressions appropriate! God often seems greatly to try the faith and patience of his people by mere delay; and the strength of faith and the power of religion are shown in such circumstances by persevering faith in the divine promises, even when there seems to be no evidence that he will interpose. As children, we often do not understand what our parents are doing when they speak to us and it takes time to figure it out and then we see that there strong words were valid. Verse 84 echoes the same idea - How many are the days of Your servant?

Though I have become like a wineskin in the smoke (v. 83)
As I am being afflicted, I can persevere. A wineskin that is dried out and covered with soot is useless for storing wine. Yet this condition will not last forever. 

The bottom line is we all struggle. We all lose our patience and we don't understand the waiting. I struggle. I struggle with God who often wants me to wait. But even in that waiting I can trust Him. 

Promise: To believe in God's word and hold fast to it and find comfort in it, we must know what it says. Lord, keep me anchored in Your Word so that I do not lose sight of all that you have provided for me. You are near.

Job 42 - Job's Repentance and Restoration

Job 42

Message: Job's Repentance and Restoration

Time: The time of Job is unclear and commonly debated. Often the language of the book can give clues. It seems to be that Job had a lifespan of close to 200 years as Job 42:16 says he lived 140 years after the events in the book.

What the Lord is Saying:

I've been studying these chapters in Job, somewhat selectively, based upon the readings of Tabletalk. It's taken me a while to get through them for the words are poetic and generally are tough for me to understand. As I saw last time, Chapter 42 concludes the book with Job answering the Lord, the Lord speaking the truth about his friends and then God restoring Job's fortunes.

There are 17 verses in this chapter.

Job's Confession
The first 6 verses Job answers the Lord and in his response he admits his error before the Lord. He has listened to the words from the Lord, like chapter 38 that I looked at, and he now understands better. He says in verse 2, I know you that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted. It is a rather simple proclamation that Job makes stating that he knows that the Lord can do all things. He is omnipotent, meaning God can do anything or he has unlimited power. I can go about each day with the simple understanding that God is in control.

Job is now a humble person. I think it takes a lot to be humble these days. We are a proud and puffed up people and we think our intellect and knowledge puts us in control. Job mentions in verse 3, I have declared that which I did not understand. He admits that he has made an opinion on things that are beyond his understanding. It's one thing to talk about God through the words of a song, like Chris Tomlin does in God is incomprehensible or rather indescribable. We need this. We need to realize that God doesn't need to be described completely. We need to let there be things about God that are indescribable. We need to admit that there are things we do not know.

For me, this becomes clearer and clearer with each new day. God, I don't understand what is going on in people's lives. I don't understand why some people have and some people have not. I must admit, I am weak, in that my mind wants to ponder this and wants to examine this and figure it out, but O God, help me to turn from that and simply acknowledge that you are omnipotent and I need not understand every tit and tattle. Help me to accept the unknown. Help me to stay in what I do know. Give me wisdom in the day to day. That's where I want to live. If I don't know it, then I need to bring it before you and pray for it. This should be my calling card for life. Forgive me for being so quick to thinking that I must understand it all before I can step forward.

Lord, verse 4 of this chapter, seems to put forth this sentiment well. Hear, now, and I will speak; I will ask you, and You instruct me. This is how I should come before God. I come before Him praying and asking and waiting for His instruction. Help this to be all I need.

I like what Albert Barnes says here:

The most holy men may have occasion to repent of their presumptuous manner of speaking of God. We all err in the same way in which Job did. We reason about God with irreverence; we speak of his government as if we could comprehend it; we discourse of him as if he were an equal; and when we come to have any just views of him, we see that there has been much improper boldness, much self-confidence, much irreverence of thought and manner, in our estimation of the divine wisdom and plans. The bitter experience of Job should lead us to the utmost carefulness in the manner in which we speak of our Maker.

Even the most holy men have occasion to repent. 


God Displeased with Job's Friends
God speaks to Job's friends and simply says, you have not spoken of Me what is right and he asks them to repent by offer(ing) up a burnt offering for yourselves. When God confronts us, we need to repent.

O God, forgive me for thinking I know better than you. Forgive me for thinking that I know how to raise my children. Forgive me for thinking that I have it all figured out and that I even have you figured out. Help me to be on my knees more and studying Your Word and accepting of your ways. Keep me anchored in a path of not questioning. I am to father and care for my children. Show me God what this means more and more.

God Restores Job's Fortunes

Job needs to have a right understanding of God. This is what I need in my life. The Lord restored the fortunes of Job. This restoration wasn't necessarily immediate, but it was lifelong. God is more interested in my character than my wealth or social position. I must be focused here.

Job had it all, but then lost it all. He questioned God, but then had a right understanding of God. And God blessed Job. His later days were greater from his beginning. The hallmark of his life was putting his trust in God.

Lord, help me to trust you. Help me O God. Keep me focused on you. 

Promise: Expect restoration while we persist in faith and do not speak ill of the Lord. God will keep his promises.

Job 38 - The Lord Answers Job

Job 38

Message: The Lord Answers Job

Time: The time of Job is unclear and commonly debated. Often the language of the book can give clues. It seems to be that Job had a lifespan of close to 200 years as Job 42:16 says he lived 140 years after the events in the book.

What the Lord is Saying: 

As I continue to look at this book, it seems that chapter 38 begins the conclusion of this book. God will now speak and answer Job in chapter 38 and 39. In these verses he will talk about his mighty power over the earth and over creation. Job responds briefly at the beginning of chapter 40 and then the Lord continues by addressing Job and his duty as a man and his role over the creatures of the earth. In chapter 41, the Lord continues by speaking of the power he has over the creatures of the earth, the created beings. Chapter 42 concludes the book with Job answering the Lord, the Lord speaking the truth about his friends and then God restoring Job's fortunes.

Currently, I am looking here at chapter 38 and the Lord is speaking to Job. The Lord makes these statements, I think, because of Job's murmurs and complaints. We have a God that corrects us or wants to set us straight. In order to have fellowship with God, man must first understand his need for God. Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said. He speaks to Job from a whirlwind or from a powerful force of nature. 

Preface to His Words
He addresses the counsel that Job has been receiving. It is counsel that has darkened Job's understanding of the justice of God. Verse 2 - Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? But instead God will bring forth words to show the true knowledge of Him - Now gird up your loins like a man, and I will ask you, and you instruct Me!

1. Creation - Job was not present at the beginning of the world so he did not aid God, give counsel, or understand what he was doing. Verse 4 - Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?Tell Me, if you have understanding.   
1. It has a predetermined plan. It is not by chance. But by an infinite and wise plan. Verse 5 - Who set its measurements? Since you know. Or who stretched the line on it? 
2. It has a rock solid foundation. A well constructed house has a firm foundation. So it was in bringing forth creation. It has the right foundation. Verse 6 - On what were its bases sunk? Or who laid its cornerstone.  
3. The angels praise the works of God. They were and are there, shouting in praise and joy at the work that God has done. Verse 7 - When the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?  
4. The oceans were born. God controls and mandates the inner workings of the ocean. Verse 8 - Or who enclosed the sea with doors when, bursting forth, it went out from the womb. But we see a great cloud over it when it was formed - verse 9 - When I made a cloud its garment And thick darkness its swaddling band. God fixed the limits of the ocean by his own purpose or please - verse 10 -  
1. And I placed boundaries on it and set a bolt and doors. The Lord fixes the limits and boundaries which they may pass - verse 11 - And I said, ‘Thus far you shall come, but no farther; and here shall your proud waves stop’?
5. He puts the morning in motion. He speaks of the morning, or the start of the day, and the sun waking us up and shining into our lives and beginning the day. Have you ever in your life commanded the morning, and caused the dawn to know its place (v. 12)
1. The light spreads to the remotest parts of the earth. That it might take hold of the ends of the earth (v. 13a).
2. The light ruins the plans of the evil. The early chapters of Proverbs mention a warning to the young men about staying up late and that tawdry things happen during the late hours, but then the sun comes out and they are lost again. And the wicked be shaken out of it? (v. 13b)   
3. The light reveals things like a piece of clay that can be formed into different things. It is changed like clay under the seal (v. 14a).  In the dark, hills, flowers, trees, houses, and fields all take on a boring, unclear appearance, but as the light shines forth there is clarity and beauty. And they stand forth like a garment. (v. 14b) 
4. The light sends the wicked back into their crawl spaces. The wicked have enjoyed their darkness, but light moves them to sleep and hide in their sin waiting for the darkness to cover the earth again - verse 15 - From the wicked their light is withheld, and the uplifted arm is broken.
6. Have you entered into the deep part of the sea. Here is transitions back to the sea or oceans but speaks of the deepest parts of the sea where here are probably interesting scenes of fountains. Have you entered into the springs of the sea or walked in the recesses of the deep? (v. 16). 
7. Have you entered into the deep of the graves that are beneath us. The idea here is like the sea, the Lord knows what is underneath us as well. He understands death and the grave and what goes on beneath us. The points is that God knows it all, even what we do not see with our eyes. Have the gates of death been revealed to you, or have you seen the gates of deep darkness? (v. 17). 
8. God knows the extent of the earth. At this time, the earth was unknown as to how far it had expanse and where it would end up. But God knew. Have you understood the expanse of the earth? Tell Me, if you know all this (v. 18). 
1. Where does light reside? God knows. Verse 19 is very poetic and not so much literal. Where is the way to the dwelling of light?And darkness, where is its place. The idea is to think about where does light live. It shows up in the morning and then runs away at evening. As Albert Barnes says - Who can explain the causes of its rapid flight from world to world? Who can tell what supplies it, and prevents it from being exhausted? Who but God, after all the discoveries of science, can fully understand this? -- This is a good reminder. Science works so hard to understand what God knows.  And verse 20 - That you may take it to its territory and that you may discern the paths to its home? No, Job can't follow its path or way. 
2. God is eternal. Staying with the subject of light, the Lord asks Job how long he has been on this earth. Verse 21 - You know, for you were born then, and the number of your days is great! We think we are so smart in the 50-100 years we reside on this earth. Yet, God is eternal and all time is under his knowledge. 
9. God has his hand in weather. Verse 22 speaks of snow and hail. It says - Have you entered the storehouses of the snow, or have you seen the storehouses of the hail. The idea here is that the snow that falls and the hail that comes maybe a mystery to us, but it is not a mystery of God. He knows when it will fall. It appears that there are storehouses that God has and at the right time he unveils it all to us. It is like silver and gold laid up for us. Over time we will discover more and more the meaning of why snow falls, but this will just shift our amazement of God's wonder and majesty to praising him. Science is great and understanding things is great, but this doesn't diminish God. Science can speak to how it works, but never as to why it is this way. And verse 23 just speaks to the idea that God uses snow and hail for his purpose - Which I have reserved for the time of distress, for the day of war and battle?
1. Verse 24 once again speaks of the light of the morning, but it appears upon the earth in like manner to what he spoke about in the 2 previous verses concerning the snow and the hail. Where is the way that the light is divided. As Albert Barnes commentary says - Philosophy has done little to explain this, and the mode in which light is made to travel in eight minutes from the sun to the earth - a distance of ninety million miles - and the manner in which it is “divided” or “parted” from that great center, and spread over the solar system, is as much of a real mystery as it was in the days of Job, and the question proposed here may be asked now with as much emphasis as it was then.  
2. Or the east wind scattered upon the earth. The second half speaks of wind. To me, it is the same idea -- Hey Job, explain this. Can you? We must praise God continually for that which he has provided. It is amazing. He does it all. We should reverence him more. 
3. In the same way that it mentions storehouses of snow and hail, how he mentions the channels of flood, like the flow of the rain was in certain canals formed for them. Verse 25 - Who has cleft a channel for the flood, or a way for the thunderbolt. A path seems to open up in the dark cloud for the passage of the flash of lightning. Who could trace out these paths and these canals? Who could it be but the Almighty God? Even with what science has now determined, we still look to God for why it occurs. 
4. Rain falls everywhere, not just where man resides, but throughout the earth providing nourishment to the land. Verse 26 - To bring rain on a land without people, a desert without a man in it. It falls to satisfy the waste and desolate land (v. 27) or the thirsty ground and to make the seeds of grass to sprout? In the dessert is where we see God clearest because it is in the barren land that God is there and caring for the ground just like he does where there are people. Has the rain a father? Or who has begotten the drops of dew? (v. 28)
5. Ice and frost, in the same way, have its origin in God. He gives birth to both. He is the author of these as well. Verse 29 - From whose womb has come the ice? And the frost of heaven, who has given it birth? Verse 30 - Water becomes hard like stone, and the surface of the deep is imprisoned. God forms the ice and makes it solid and congeals it together. 
10. God holds the constellations of the stars. God created the bands that hold the stars together. Verse 31 - Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades, or loose the cords of Orion? Orion is here described as a man girded for action, and is the pioneer of winter. It made its appearance early in the winter, and was regarded as the precursor of storms and tempests.
11. This verse mentions a constellation of stars that plays a significant role in providing a prelude to the seasons. The point in these verses is whatever the meaning, God is in control of the stars in the sky as well. Verse 32 - Can you lead forth a constellation in its season, and guide the Bear with her satellites? And verse 33 - Do you know the ordinances of the heavens, or fix their rule over the earth?
12. God is in control of the rain and the lightning coming down; verse 34-37 - Can you lift up your voice to the clouds, so that an abundance of water will cover you? Can you send forth lightnings that they may go and say to you, ‘Here we are’? Who has put wisdom in the innermost being or given understanding to the mind? Who can count the clouds by wisdom, or tip the water jars of the heavens, when the dust hardens into a mass and the clods stick together?
13. He gave the animals their appetite and their hunting ability. Have you provided the needs of the animals? (v. 39-41) Can you hunt the prey for the lion, or satisfy the appetite of the young lions, When they crouch in their dens and lie in wait in their lair? Who prepares for the raven its nourishment when its young cry to God and wander about without food? 

Promise: God is in control, everywhere we see and don't see. He orders the creation.

Proverbs 26:15 - Finish

Proverbs 26:15 

The sluggard buries his hand in the dish; He is weary of bringing it to his mouth again. 

Message: Finish

Time:  It seems that Proverbs was written and then compiled sometime between the tenth and sixth centuries B.C. Proverbs was probably written during the reign of Solomon, 971-931 B.C.

What the Lord is Saying:

Many of us, especially me are good at starting but bad at finishing. I think of this often in my life. I love to start, but I struggle finishing. Sometimes in reading or studying I see starting as getting a handle on something to see how I will like it. I don’t need to finish every movie I start, but right now even working on painting and other various projects outside, I’m starting to do several of them at once, then hit a rough patch and stopping. Basically, it gets difficult, so I stop. And I end up reverting back to that which is easier. Or I just go start something else. 

Promise: Believe in the outcome.