Good Morning Everyone,
Our theme for this month: “Friends and Associates”
Our Bible verse for today: “At the end of your life, you will lament when your physical body has been consumed, and you will say, “How I hated discipline, and how my heart despised correction. I didn’t obey my teachers or listen closely to my mentors. I am on the verge of complete ruin before the entire community.” Proverbs 5:11-14 (HCSB)
Our thought for today: “Listen to the people who speak words of truth to you.”
Yesterday we began a discussion about the importance of establishing and maintaining a trio of vital relationships in order to live the Christian life well. We thought about the importance of having in our lives a “Paul”, a “Barnabas”, and a “Timothy”. I also pointed out that most of us probably already have a Paul and at least one Timothy, but many of us do not have that Barnabas figure – the person who has the boldness and the permission from us, to speak straight truth to us whether we want to hear it or not.
Today I want to address the issue of what happens when we don’t listen to the influential people God has placed into our lives. In Proverbs 5:11-14 Solomon wrote about a man at the end of his life who was reflecting back with regret about the mistakes he had made and the damage he had caused by living a life of sin and debauchery. His body was wasted away and evidently his life was in shambles, “a complete ruin before the entire community.”
Please don’t miss the point that God had obviously placed into his life people who spoke words of truth and offered correction and guidance but he had rejected it, “I hated discipline … I didn’t obey my teachers or listen closely to my mentors.”
As I write this I’m thinking of a man I know who fits this description. He has been a drug addict and petty criminal since his teenage years. He has spent years in and out of jail for minor offenses, and there was one serious prison term as well. He is now approaching the age of fifty; his body is breaking down with multiple health issues; his first marriage ended in divorce and his second is hanging by a thread; he doesn’t work; and he is still using drugs. Oh, and his young son is following in his footsteps.
Like the man in Solomon’s proverb, God has repeatedly brought into this man’s life people who love and care about him and who have spoken words of truth to him over and over again. They have offered him lots of love and support and they have done what they could to help him turn his life around. But he still persists in his destructive ways and his life is ending badly. What a shame. What a senseless tragedy. Also, he’s not the only one being hurt by his actions. Those close to him, those who love him, have suffered, and continue to suffer, because of his destructive lifestyle.
It doesn’t have to be that way – in his life or in yours. God has placed people into your life who have the boldness to speak words of truth to you. Listen to them! Accept their help! Change your ways! If you don’t, then Proverbs 5:11-14 just might describe the final chapter of your life too.
Listen to the people who speak words of truth to you.
God Bless,
Pastor Jim
Oak Hill Baptist Church 