Morning Prayer: 08 Jun – Proverbs 8:12 ~ hidden treasure

Peanut Gallery: During the month of June we are reading through the Book of Proverbs, one chapter per day. “Growing in Character” is the theme; each day we will look for practical advice on living a wise and godly life in this present age.

I recommend that you begin by reading through the entire chapter for the day yourself (a link will be included, see below.) There is something for everyone in the Book of Proverbs. I will focus on what speaks to me in the chapter and follow that theme for the day. But the verse that speaks to me, on any particular day, may be different from the wisdom God has for you… and you don’t want to miss out.

Growing in Character: Proverbs 8

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Opening sentence and prayer

One thing I have asked of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life; to behold the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple.
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Open my eyes, Lord, to see the wonderful truths in your instructions. Psalm 119:18 (NLT)
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A reading from Proverbs: Proverbs 8:12, (NLT)

“I, Wisdom, live together with good judgment. I know where to discover knowledge and discernment.”
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A reading from the Letters: Colossians 2:3 (GW)

God has hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge in Christ.
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Reflection:

Wisdom here is Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge; it is Christ in the word and Christ in the heart, not only Christ revealed to us, but Christ revealed in us. It is the word of God, the whole compass of divine revelation; it is God the Word, in whom all divine revelation centers; it is the soul formed by the word; it is Christ formed in the soul; it is religion in the purity and power of it. Glorious things are here spoken of this excellent person, this excellent thing.
(Matthew Henry’s Commentary)
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Prayer:

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Canticle

Christ, as a light illumine and guide me. Christ, as a shield overshadow me. Christ under me; Christ over me; Christ beside me on my left and my right.

This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful. Be in the heart of each to whom I speak; in the mouth of each who speaks unto me. This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.

Christ as a light; Christ as a shield; Christ beside me on my left and my right.

Blessing

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you, wherever He may send you. May He guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm. May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you. May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Morning Prayer: 07 Jun – Proverbs 7:4-5, 24-27 ~ the road to ruin

Growing in Character: Proverbs 7

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Opening sentence and prayer

One thing I have asked of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life; to behold the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple.
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Open my eyes, Lord, to see the wonderful truths in your instructions. Psalm 119:18 (NLT)
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A reading from Proverbs: Proverbs 7:4-5, 24-27 (NLT)

U.S. Public Health Service, United States, 1940s.

Love wisdom like a sister; make insight a beloved member of your family. Let them protect you from an affair with an immoral woman, from listening to the flattery of a promiscuous woman.
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So listen to me, my sons, and pay attention to my words. Don’t let your hearts stray away toward her. Don’t wander down her wayward path. For she has been the ruin of many; many men have been her victims. Her house is the road to the grave. Her bedroom is the den of death.
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A reading from the Gospels: Matthew 5:27-28 (NLT)

“You have heard the commandment that says, ‘You must not commit adultery.’ But I say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”
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Reflection:

Excerpted from “Flames of Desire” by Chip Bell (see full message here)

It is not amazing that men and women get involved in sexual sin. What is amazing is how much they are willing to pay for it….

What would make someone do that—risk so much to gain so little? Three things.

First, you usually don’t realize how much sexual sin is going to cost. It rarely comes with a visible price tag attached. The cost is hidden, and besides that, it’s pleasure purchased on credit, with unmentioned payments due for the rest of your life.

Second, sex is a powerful force. It compels people to voluntarily do things that they would never think themselves capable of doing under normal circumstances. The combination of sexual and emotional attraction is an undertow that captures people who are merely wading by the beach, sweeps them out to sea and does everything possible to drown them. Sex is powerful, but also deceptive, because those who are being swept out to sea are willing and excited about going on this adventure into deep water.

Third, sexual sin doesn’t begin with glaring and blatant transgressions. It starts with something very small and innocent—something that looks so harmless, it’s easy to allow. It starts with a desire.
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Prayer:

Almighty God, who alone gave us the breath of life, and alone can keep our hearts filled with Your holy desires: I ask You, trusting in Your infinite compassion, to sanctify my thoughts and endeavors; that I may neither begin an action without a pure intention nor continue it without Your blessing. And grant that, having the eyes of my mind opened to behold things invisible and unseen, my heart may be inspired by Your wisdom, and my work upheld by Your strength, and in the end, that I may be accepted by You as Your faithful servant; through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
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Canticle

Christ, as a light illumine and guide me. Christ, as a shield overshadow me. Christ under me; Christ over me; Christ beside me on my left and my right.

Christ as a light; Christ as a shield; Christ beside me on my left and my right.

Blessing

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Morning Prayer: 06 Jun – Proverbs 6:16-19 ~ seven things God hates

Growing in Character: Proverbs 6

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Opening sentence and prayer

One thing I have asked of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life; to behold the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple.
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Open my eyes, Lord, to see the wonderful truths in your instructions. Psalm 119:18 (NLT)
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A reading from Proverbs: Proverbs 6:16-19 (NLT)

There are six things the Lord hates — no, seven things he detests:
+ haughty eyes,
+ a lying tongue,
+ hands that kill the innocent,
+ a heart that plots evil,
+ feet that race to do wrong,
+ a false witness who pours out lies,
+ a person who sows discord in a family.
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A reading from the Epistles: Galatians 5:16, 24-25 (NLT)

So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves.
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Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives.
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A reading from the Gospels: John 16:8-11 (NLT)

When the Holy Spirit comes, he will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment. The world’s sin is that it refuses to believe in me. Righteousness is available because I go to the Father, and you will see me no more. Judgment will come because the ruler of this world has already been judged.
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Reflection:

Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary: Proverbs 6:16-19 – Here is a list of things hateful to God. Those sins are in a special manner provoking to God, which are hurtful to the comfort of human life. These things which God hates, we must hate in ourselves; it is nothing to hate them in others. Let us shun all such practices, and watch and pray against them; and avoid, with marked disapproval, all who are guilty of them, whatever may be their rank.

Haughtiness, conceitedness of ourselves, and contempt of others — a proud look. Pride is at the bottom of much sin and gives rise to it… they overvalue themselves and undervalue all about them.
Falsehood, and fraud, and dissimulation. Nothing more sacred than truth, nor more necessary to conversation than speaking truth.
Cruelty and blood-thirstiness. The devil was, from the beginning, a liar and a murderer… so hands that shed innocent blood are hateful to God, because they have in them the devil’s image and do him service.
Subtlety in the contrivance of sin, wisdom to do evil, a heart that… and knows how to carry on a covetous, envious, revengeful plot, most effectually. The more there is of craft and management in sin the more it is an abomination to God.
Vigor and diligence in the prosecution of sin — feet that are swift in running to mischief, as if they were afraid of losing time or were impatient of delay in a thing they are so greedy of.
False-witness bearing is one of the greatest mischiefs… and against which there is least defence. There cannot be a greater affront to God (to whom in an oath appeal is made) nor a greater injury to our neighbor (all whose interests in this world, even the dearest, lie open to an attack of this kind) than knowingly to give a false testimony.
Making mischief between relations and neighbors, and using all wicked means possible, not only to alienate their affections one from another, but to irritate their passions one against another. The God of love and peace hates him that sows discord among brethren, for he delights in concord. Those that by tale-bearing and slandering, by carrying ill-natured stories, aggravating every thing that is said and done, and suggesting jealousies and evil surmises, blow the coals of contention, are but preparing for themselves a fire of the same nature.

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Canticle

Christ, as a light illumine and guide me. Christ, as a shield overshadow me. Christ under me; Christ over me; Christ beside me on my left and my right.

Christ as a light; Christ as a shield; Christ beside me on my left and my right.

Blessing

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Morning Prayer: 05 Jun – Proverbs 5:18 ~ rejoice in the wife of your youth

Growing in Character: Proverbs 5

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Opening sentence and prayer

One thing I have asked of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life; to behold the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple.
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Open my eyes, Lord, to see the wonderful truths in your instructions. Psalm 119:18 (NLT)
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A reading from Proverbs: Proverbs 5:18 (NLT)

Let your wife be a fountain of blessing for you. Rejoice in the wife of your youth.
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A reading from the Epistles: Ephesians 5:25, 28-29 (NLT)

Husbands love your wives just as Christ loved the church. He gave up his life for her to make her holy and clean, washed by the cleansing of God’s word…. In the same way, husbands ought to love their wives as they love their own bodies. For a man who loves his wife actually shows love for himself. No one hates his own body but feeds and cares for it, just as Christ cares for the church.
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A reading from the Gospels: Matthew 19:4-6 (NLT)

“Haven’t you read the Scriptures?” Jesus replied. “They record that from the beginning ‘God made them male and female.’” And he said, “‘This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.’ Since they are no longer two but one, let no one split apart what God has joined together.”
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Reflection:

“Rejoice in the wife of your youth.” Proverbs 5:18 (Ray Ortlund is senior pastor of Immanuel Church in Nashville, Tennessee, and serves as a Council member with The Gospel Coalition.) (click here for original article)

It does not say, “Rejoice in your young wife,” though that is biblical and delightful (Deuteronomy 24:5). It says, “Rejoice in the wife of your youth” — that girl you married when you both were younger. By now, time has gone by. Maybe a lot of time. But nothing important has changed. She is still that girl who gave herself to you on your wedding day. She put herself in your arms. She could not have been more vulnerable and trusting. Remember that. Dwell on that. Marvel at that.

Remember how you used to laugh and have fun, because you so liked each other? You can have that again. Go back there. Yes, so much in life has changed. You both have seen trouble and sorrow, maybe more than you ever dreamed you would. But you still have her, and she counts for more than all the troubles in the world. Look at her. Look closely. Notice how much about her has not changed. Dwell on that. Think about her faithfulness to you through the years, despite your weaknesses and failings, through the many hardships, all by the grace of God. Meditate on the divine mercy she represents to you. Let your heart melt again, and rejoice in God and in her.

Your marriage is not a prison, and you have not received a death sentence — except to your selfishness. Your marriage can be a God-given source of rejoicing. How wonderful of God that release from shallow Self is a pathway into ever deeper joy with her, as long as you both shall live.
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Canticle

Christ, as a light illumine and guide me. Christ, as a shield overshadow me. Christ under me; Christ over me; Christ beside me on my left and my right.

Christ as a light; Christ as a shield; Christ beside me on my left and my right.

Blessing

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Morning Prayer: 04 Jun – Proverbs 4:23 ~ guard your heart

Growing in Character: Proverbs 4

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Opening sentence and prayer

One thing I have asked of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life; to behold the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple.
_____

Open my eyes, Lord, to see the wonderful truths in your instructions. Psalm 119:18 (NLT)
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A reading from Proverbs: Proverbs 4:23 (NLT)

Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.
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A reading from the Letters: Philippians 4:6-8 (NLT)

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.
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A reading from the Gospels: Luke 6:45 (NLT)

A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. What you say flows from what is in your heart.
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Reflection:

Garbage in, garbage out (GIGO) in the field of computer science or information and communications technology refers to the fact that computers, since they operate by logical processes, will unquestioningly process unintended, even nonsensical, input data (“garbage in”) and produce undesired, often nonsensical, output (“garbage out”).

The underlying principle was noted by the inventor of the first programmable computing device design:

On two occasions I have been asked, “Pray, Mr. Babbage, if you put into the machine wrong figures, will the right answers come out?” … I am not able rightly to apprehend the kind of confusion of ideas that could provoke such a question. — Charles Babbage, Passages from the Life of a Philosopher

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Treasury of a Good Heart (23/09/2011 by Gary Burton)

I have observed people in the body of Christ for years. I have seen how God uses those that fill themselves with God’s word and seek to faithfully do what the word says by applying it in their daily lives. What it has produced is a treasury of a good heart, and what comes out of their mouth is careful, timely and good, prepared for the moment. Having this treasury of a good heart is not a one time deposit in our hearts – but is gained on a daily basis as we transact business with Jesus. Relationships such as spouses, children, coworkers – and all of life’s drama draw on the treasury that is built up in our hearts.

To help refill the treasury of my heart:

Read the word daily
Apply it to my heart and life
Be refilled with his Holy Spirit daily
Worship
Gather weekly with other believers

Prayer

Lord refill me today with your Holy Spirit and may the words that come out of my mouth be a reflection and evidence of your goodness, gentleness and kindness that is deposited in my heart.
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Canticle

Christ, as a light illumine and guide me. Christ, as a shield overshadow me. Christ under me; Christ over me; Christ beside me on my left and my right.

Christ as a light; Christ as a shield; Christ beside me on my left and my right.

Blessing

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

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