“The generous will prosper; those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed.” (Proverbs 11:25, NLT)
This is a win-win for all of us: Prosper through our own generosity, and assure our own refreshment by helping others!
Now, all that is left for us to do is to get out there and do it — and be it! Yea!!! – Luther
“God saw that human evil was out of control. People thought evil, imagined evil — evil, evil, evil from morning to night. God was sorry that he had made the human race in the first place; it broke his heart.” (Genesis 6:5-6, The Message)
God had made humans in His own image and after His likeness. The potential for immense good was resident within every creature, and it broke God’s heart to see divine inspiration squandered, and human potential corrupted. Yet, it was this apparent disregard of goodness, justice, and mercy by the very people that God had created, that He regretted having created us. Moreover, God was about to hit the “reset” button on the world that He had called “good” at the dawn of Creation.
Yet, even in the midnight of divine reckoning, God does not extinguish the flickering hope of reconciliation. In the case of today’s scripture, God’s immutable righteousness required the “reset”; as His unfathomable mercy allowed a “restart” through the faithful obedience of Noah and his family members.
God continues to seek us — even in our rebellion. God continues to loves us — even with a broken heart. How can we resist such love? – Luther
“Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly. . .” (Psalm 1:1a, KJV)
There is a lot of bad advice out there. Some of it is “conventional wisdom.” Some of it is based on superstition. Some of it is based on half-truths. All of it is beneath the disciple of Jesus.
The children of God have a higher, truer, more enduring counsel: The word of God.
Obtaining the counsel (advice) that blesses us, and those around us, is not hard to obtain; but it challenges our resolve to spend time in the presence of God’s Holy Word.
Like an attentive father to his child, the Lord God will guide our steps toward everlasting life, peace, and joy; the things that ungodly counsel promises, but never delivers. – Luther
Daily Encouragement 