My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry. — James 1:19
Everyone. should be quick to listen.
Actively listening to our friends, family members, and neighbors.
Then biting our tongues.
And taking our time to respond.
Asking God to direct our words.
Slow to speak.
Slow to become angry.
All in the Lord.
For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. — Jeremiah 29:11-12
And His plans are better than mine.
They include giving hope and a future.
When I call on Him and come and pray to Him, He listens to me.
And He knows my requests before I even voice them.
Even though I often put myself first instead of God, God puts me first every day.
The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him. — Deuteronomy 18:15
And all their prophecies pointed toward the coming of Jesus.
Since that was God's plan from the beginning.
To sacrifice His only Son for me.
The best Christmas present ever!
And completely undeserved.
Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction and do not forsake your mother’s teaching. They are a garland to grace your head and a chain to adorn your neck. — Proverbs 1:8-9
After all, He is a disciple of Jesus and he has years of wisdom.
And I was careful to listen to my mother's teaching.
I loved late-night discussions with her.
She also had the mind of Jesus and years of wisdom.
I still miss her, even though it's been over 20 years since she died.
God gives us a wonderfu promise when we listen to our parents.
Their teaching will be a garland to grace our heads.
And a necklace to adorn our necks.
We will live in beuaty and grace.
Today I made scones to celebrate my coworkers' two-year anniversary.
The catch was that they had to be gluten free, dairy free, and sugar free.
So they aren't as good as the cream scones - I made some of those too!
But they'll do in a pinch.
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. — Ephesians 4:29
Build them up according to their needs.
That whatever you say may help those who listen.
My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, — James 1:19
We are brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus.
As such, we should be quick to listen.
That's not always easy, but it is what God calls us to do.
And to think before we speak.
Taking our time before responding.
Perhaps asking God the best way to respond.
And taking a deep breath or going for a walk instead of getting angry
If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over. — Hebrews 15:18
We want to spread the word.
And show that we're in the know.
But when we point out someone's fault privately, they can work on it themselves.
When we gossip, it's just like this alligator at the zoo.
Way too much to handle.
If they listen, you have won them over!
Praise the Lord.
For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. — Jeremiah 29:11-13
Plans to prosper us.
Not to harm us.
Plans to give us hope and a future.
So we will call on God and pray to Him and He will listen.
We will seek Jesus and find Him when we seek Him out with all our hearts.
So thankful that we have found Jesus.
Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction and do not forsake your mother’s teaching. They are a garland to grace your head and a chain to adorn your neck. — Proverbs 1:8-9
She would stay up late when I was in high school so I could ask her all kinds of life questions.
And as I grew older, she would give me sage advice on everything from starting a retirement account when I got my first job, to choosing our first home, to raising our daughter.
She was not overbearing or opinionated, but she let me know her views on politics - don't vote for anything that will raise our taxes - to faith, to relationships.
Her teaching was a garland to grace my head and a chain to adorn my neck.
I miss her wisdom and her delicious cooking.
But at the same time, I'm grateful that she was such a large part of my life and that of my family.
Listen to advice and accept discipline, and at the end you will be counted among the wise. Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails. — Proverbs 19:20-21
I don't always read my Bible every day, but I try to.
And God wants me to accept His discipline.
That's much harder for me.
He reminds me that I have many plans in my heart.
But not all of them are the Lord's.
And it's the Lord's purpose that prevails.
Whether I'm part of that purpose or not.
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. — Ephesians 4:29
The waves were strong and the beach was rocky.
But the water was warm and the sun was shining.
It was a beautiful day in God's creation.
God commands us to not let any unwholesome talk come out of our mouths.
But only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs.
So our conversation may benefit those who listen.
Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. — James 1:22
But not just to listen.
If we only listen and do not act, we deceive ourselves.
Instead, God asks us to do what God's Word says.
To take action.
To obey God's commands.
And to be willing to get outside my own comfort zone.
And to rely on God instead of myself.
Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. — Jeremiah 29:12
He listens to us when we talk to Him.
God knows our thoughts before we even speak them out loud.
He may not answer in the way we expected, but He knows what's best for us.
This is the wedding we attended with friends in April.
A perfect night for a wedding and a reception and dancing under the stars.
Listen to advice and accept discipline, and at the end you will be counted among the wise. — Proverbs 19:20
I'm apt to ignore it.
But God asks me to listen to advice.
To pay attention to it and to accept discipline.
Something I often try to avoid.
But God tells me if I accept discipline I will be counted as wise.
Go figure.
God's discipline will help to prune me into the person He intends for me to be.
Pruning can be painful.
But once the deadwood is trimmed away, new life has the opportunity to grow in me.
Listen to advice and accept discipline, and at the end you will be counted among the wise. — Proverbs 19:20
And for me, it's even harder to accept discipline.
However, we will be counted among the wise when we accept discipline from God.
Today we hiked to the top of Cowles Mt.
Then we continued on to Pyles Peak.
It was quite the hike!
Fortunately, the air was cool.
It was a beautiful day.
