Month: April 2024

Our Scripture for today is Proverbs 14:12.

“There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.”

“How many legs does a calf have, if you count his tail as a leg?”

Abraham Lincoln once asked his opponent this question. His answer was five. Lincoln corrected him with the answer of four. He said, “Saying that a tail is a leg doesn’t make it a leg.”

Today’s proverb made me think of that old story, because we too often assume a thing to be so, when it is not. Sometimes bad thinking brings no bad results. Sometimes, when we think something is right but it is not, it ends badly.

For example, when the Titanic set sail in 1912, its builders believed it to be “unsinkable.” This belief was not blind but based on state-of-the-art safety features and advanced design. The builders were so confident that they did not even provide enough lifeboats for those who set sail.

You know what happened. The Titanic struck an iceberg, and more than 1,500 people lost their lives in the disaster. 

From this proverb, there are four great lessons for our hearts.

1. We must be cautious of our own ways. Seek advice.
2. Deceptive paths can look appealing: The proverb says It “appears” to be right.
3. Don’t trust appearances, look deeper. Sometimes, we want something so badly that we see things that are not there.
4. Examine your choices: Once you have made a decision, take one final look.

Lonnie Davis

We all grew up learning proverbs. Maybe they are just wise sayings from your parents, but you have heard them. Have you heard any of these?

The early bird gets the worm.
Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.
A stitch in time saves nine.
Better safe than sorry.
Actions speak louder than words.
Two heads are better than one.

Most of these come from the wisdom of the crowd. They are things that everybody says and don’t know where they came from. 

What if you could talk to the wisest man who ever lived and ask him to share some great proverbs with you?

According to 1 Kings 3, the wisest man who ever lived was Solomon.

God told him, “I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there has never been nor will ever be another like you.” (1 Kings 3:12).

Solomon had 3,000 proverbs. He listed some of them in the book of Proverbs.

I wish we had all of them, but I am thankful for the few we do have. Over the past few weeks and in the coming weeks, we have read and will continue to read some of his proverbs. Knowing them and having them at our command will give us wisdom too.

For today, let’s read Proverbs 13:20,

“Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm.”

In other words, the people we associate with influence our behavior, so choose your friends carefully.

One modern writer said, “Today I have grown taller by walking among the trees.” I’ll bet he didn’t know he got that from Solomon.

I’m Lonnie Davis
And these are thoughts worth thinking.

Today’s Scripture is Proverbs 24:10.

“If you falter in a time of trouble, how small is your strength!”

I often have heard people excuse their rage, or depression, or whatever, by saying,

I don’t usually:
Get angry, but this was just too much.
Scream at others, but she wears me out
Lose it, but I couldn’t help it this time.

Today’s proverb calls all of that baloney. 

You are what you are when you face a hard time. When you squeeze an orange, orange juice comes out. When you squeeze a lemon, lemon juice comes out. You are what you are when times are hard, when you are in the middle of the squeeze.

What do people get from you when you are squeezed? That is what you are. Not some hypothetical of how I would act if, but rather what you actually did..

I knew a man who lost a great deal of money and explained to his bride. “I guess God thought I wasn’t ready to handle it yet.”

God says, “If you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small.” 

When times are hard, we are stripped of the distractions and comforts that can mask our true selves. In a squeeze, we are forced to rely on our core values, beliefs, and coping mechanisms. It is in these moments that we see what we are truly made of and what truly matters to us. Our actions and reactions under pressure reveal our priorities, our resilience, and our moral fiber.

I’m Lonnie Davis

And these are thoughts worth thinking.

Our Proverb today is Proverbs 11:3.

“The integrity of the upright guides them, but the perversity of the faithless destroys them.“

To better understand this proverb, let me give you an example from history.

In 1939, the Nazis were invading the Netherlands. The first people to be affected were the Jews who lived in the Netherlands. A group of Christians came to the Dutch theologian Henry Cramer and told him, “Our Jewish neighbors are missing from their homes.” They then asked, “What must we do?”

 Cramer answered, “I cannot tell you what to do. I can tell you who you are. If you know who you are, then you will know what to do.”

 Read those last words again, “If you know who you are, then you will know what to do.” The Nazis are not marching in our streets, but those words should still convict us. When Satan sends temptations, you do not need to ask what to do. You only need to remember who you are.

 Sometimes, you are confronted with a temptation. It sounds holy and righteous to say, “I will pray to God for an answer about what I should do.” It is not holy and righteous. God has already told us what to do with sin. We only need to remember who we are and what we are.

Remember, “The integrity of the upright guides” us.

I’m Lonnie Davis
And these are thoughts worth thinking.

Our Scripture for today is Proverbs 20:11.

“Even a young man is known by his actions, whether his activity is pure and whether it is right.”

This verse is not just about a young man; it is about all of us. Even as adults, our actions reveal who we really are. Our behavior, whether pure and upright or not, is a clear indicator of the state of our character. 

As mature individuals, we have a responsibility to ensure that what we do aligns with what we believe. After all, it is not enough to simply claim to be righteous – we must live it out in our daily lives. The Lord sees all, and He will ultimately judge each person according to their deeds.

Someone pointed out that we often judge others by what they do and judge ourselves by what we meant to do. That makes leaves us with bad habits and few friends. Our habits are bad because we don’t really see what we did wrong. We have no friends because we have judged them all. 

My favorite quote from Maya Angelou puts it this way. “When people show you who they are, believe them the first time.” We might change it just a bit to point to ourselves. When our actions show us who WE are, believe them. It is only by believing what we see in our selves, that we can really work on making things better.

I’m Lonnie Davis

And these are thoughts worth thinking.

Proverbs 21:5: “The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance, but everyone who is hasty comes only to poverty.”

My friend has been Mayor of his Texas town for 19 years. He is running because he has an opponent. The strange thing is this opponent has never served before. Well, I guess that is okay, but he has never attended meetings or done anything for the city. It reminds me of the joke I used to tell about how I tried to join the army, but it turned out they don’t need any more Generals right now. Don’t be that way. “Hasty comes only to poverty.”

Remember the story of David and the Giant. He told King Saul that he would fight the giant. Saul’s response was, “You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a boy, and he has been a fighting man from his youth.” (1 Samuel 17:33)

I might have agreed, but David had a ready response. 

“Your servant was tending his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and took a lamb from the flock, I went out after him and attacked him, and rescued it from his mouth; and when he rose up against me, I seized him by his beard and struck him and killed him.” (34-35)

 David believed that he could kill the giant because, with God’s help, he had already killed a bear and a lion. There is a great principle here – one victory grows to another. 

Before you can kill a giant, kill a bear. Before you kill a bear, kill a wolf. Before you kill a wolf, kill a mouse. If you cannot kill a mouse, you are not ready to fight a giant. Victories grow little by little.

 Learn to win the little victories, and then when a big battle confronts you, you will be ready. When you get ready, God will be waiting for you.

 I’m Lonnie Davis,

These are thoughts worth thinking.

Our proverb for today is Proverbs 26:24–25.

“A hateful man disguises himself with his speech, but he lays up deceit in his heart. When he speaks graciously, do not believe him.”

When caught in a half-truth, a deception, people might say, “Well, technically, it is not a lie.” Maybe we need to define a lie; a lie is an untruth spoken or implied in order to deceive. 

Keeping that in mind, here is one of the more famous “half-truths.” 

In Genesis 12, When he is around the Pharaoh, Abraham refers to his wife Sarah as his sister. He does the same thing in Genesis 20 to another king.. 

While Sarah was indeed Abraham’s half-sister, Abraham’s statement was a half-truth intended to deceive others. This half-truth leads to great pain for others and shame for himself. Lies usually do. 

There can be a bit of Abraham’s deception in us all. People will say, ”I was just joking,” as a method of covering up a mean-spirited comment. Others will say, “Everyone is saying.” No, they are not. Maybe a couple of people said it, or maybe only you said it.

Often, the half-lie or deception is not used to influence you but is one you tell yourself. We say, “I had no other choice,” to justify a decision or action that actually had alternatives. We even say or tell ourselves, “I did my best,” when we know it isn’t true.

Being honest with ourselves is always helpful. Anything else is simply deceit.

I’m Lonnie Davis

These are thoughts worth thinking.

Our text for today is Proverbs 16: verse 9.

“A man’s heart plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps.”

We begin by reading the best example of this verse.

“At that time Jesus went with His disciples to a place called Gethsemane…Going a little farther, He fell facedown and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me. Yet not as I will, but as You will.”

Jesus did not want to die on the cross. He asked the Father to let it pass. After this request, he acknowledges that His Father knows best and determines his steps. He prays, “Yet not as I will, but as You will.”

Years ago, a friend was trying to get a preaching job in Texas. He tried, but the doors kept closing. He prayed for God’s help, but nothing happened. Finally, he prayed and told God that he would go anywhere. Almost immediately, a work opened up that was a thousand miles away. He spent more than 20 years in that work and had the greatest work of his life.

In whatever you do, pray, “Yet not as I will, but Your will be done.”

Why? Because, as our proverb says, “the Lord determines our steps.” He knows best.

I’m Lonnie Davis
And these are thoughts worth thinking.

Our Scripture today is Proverbs 15:3.

“The eyes of the LORD are in every place, observing the evil and the good.”

Sometimes, we treat this verse like a threat. Some may feel like God is spying on us. When you think that way, I remind you that there is great comfort in the all-seeing eye of the LORD.

Here is a story that explains what I mean. My brother was big and strong. I confess that I always felt safer when he was with me. I was not a little kid, but still, his presence made me even safer. We never had to fight anyone, but I knew he was there to help me.
I remember a time when a man came speeding down our street. It was a neighborhood with children, so I hollered at him to slow down. He went about 100 yards down the road, hit his brakes, and then headed back toward me. I walked out to the edge of the street. My brother came with me, and we stood there. The speeder came by and never slowed down. As he zoomed past, I remarked, “He is a coward who would not even stop.” My brother responded, “Would you have with two big men like us standing there?” Good point!

God is not my brother, but he is my Father, and he sees me when the world is a dangerous place. He is standing beside me.

“The eyes of the Lord are in everyplace.”

I’m Lonnie Davis
And these are thoughts worth thinking.

Todays proverb is found in Proverbs 18:17
“The first to state his case seems right
until another comes and cross-examines him.”

I admit that I love the Amazon review. I often take my phone with me when I go to a store to buy a product. I don’t ask the salespeople for their opinion because they often give only one side of the story, and it is what they have been told to say. While standing in the store, I look up the product on Amazon because the reviews there will have hundreds or thousands of opinions. Of course, I never believe the first opinion. I read others before I buy the product. Unfortunately, companies sometimes post fake reviews, and even some real legitimate reviews are wrong, with both pros and cons.

If they might be fake or wrong, why do I do this? Because getting MANY other views is helpful.No one believes this is not so.

The idea of listening to only one opinion is so powerful in marketing that most of you have been offered free stuff, hotel nights, money, passes or whatever, if you will just come and listen to a sales presentation for a few hours. It works!
If you understand today’s proverb, you will not be trapped in this way.

By the way, if I look up a product and it has only one review, I consider the one opinion to be unhelpful in making a decision.

After all, that is the meaning of today’s proverb.
“The first to state his case seems right until another comes and cross-examines him.”

I’m Lonnie Davis
And these are thoughts worth thinking.