An Idea Borrowed

Years ago on a radio program someone shared that they read a chapter in Proverbs every day. Since there are 31 chapters and the longest month has 31 days it allows you to read through Proverbs on a regular basis. I use it as the launch pad for my personal worship time and branch out from there. On this blog I will try to share some of the insights I have in the Word. I will try to organize them in the archive by reference.

Wednesday, November 28, 2018

Danger on Defense

(Proverbs 28:14 KJV)  Happy is the man that feareth alway: but he that hardeneth his heart shall fall into mischief.

A very real threat to my eternal soul is a tendency to “harden” (7185) my “heart” (3820).  It is the natural result of raising our defenses to attack.  On one level having defenses is good, on another it is destructive.  This is referring to the destructive way in which a healthy defense can morph into a rigid rejection.

We see this demonstrated in our personal relationships.  Someone criticizes us.  It could be a spouse or a co-worker.  The person criticizing may genuinely not think of it as criticism, but we feel it in our gut.  The first level is to grab hold of our emotions.  It is the second step that causes the benefit or harm.  We can take what is said and prayerfully consider it.  That involves setting the emotional soup aside and looking for truth.  That enables us to learn and grow.  Or we can automatically reject what is said, put up unsurmountable walls and go on the attack.

That leads to “calamity” (7463a).

So?  When you feel that inner defense rising it is time to grab hold, step back and look for the nugget of truth that might be hiding in the mud.  Hard but important. 

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