#119 - Avoid the TRAP!

Good morning! Actually... good afternoon! We had a wonderful weekend. Celebrated Mama's 90th Birthday in Georgia, and had the Ewing Christmas party! (Tyler's mom's side of the family) It was fun. We actually stayed in a 2-bedroom hotel suite with a full kitchen. That was nice. It allowed us to be close to the parties, but also allowed Mama to do some baking! Apple pie, pumpkin pie & mashed potatoes was my contribution to the Christmas Party. They did get good reviews, so I was happy about that! Thank you Grandma for your pie crust recipe that continues to live on! Love you Grandma! 


Well... let's get started... 

Proverbs 20:25 - It is a snare to a man to utter a vow [of consecration] rashly and [not until] afterward inquire [whether he can fulfill it]. 

Proverbs 31:16 - She considers a [new] field before she buys or accepts it [expanding prudently and not courting neglect of her present duties by assuming other duties]; with her savings [of time and strength] she plants fruitful vines in her vineyard. 

I think this is a very appropriate topic with New Year's around the corner. I'm sure you have been thinking about what you want to change for your 2011. How do you want to improve? Who do you want to be? What projects to you want to start & finish? Pounds that you want to shed. It's that time of year when we think about CHANGE. IMPROVEMENT. 


Well, as it says in Proverbs 20:25 & 31:16, I want to CAUTION you when deciding upon your upcoming goals or changes you want to make. Picture the YELLOW FLASHING sign that reads, CAUTION. Look at the warning in Proverbs 20:25, and look at how the Proverbs 31 woman applies this verse to her life! In Proverbs 20:25 we could read it this way, An impulsive vow is a trap (The Message Bible) or Don’t trap yourself by making a rash promise to God and only later counting the cost. (NLT) A VOW is more than a promise. It is a SOLEMN promise. It is a pledge. It is serious. 


Let me tell you a story about that. I have been taking two groups of people through a program called New Way New You. On a weekly basis I meet weekly and teach/coach each of these classes. One in person, one via conference call. The program involves proper nutrition, exercise, supplementation, weekly goal setting and changing one's mentality about themselves. It's a FULL program that encompasses everything that leads to Optimal Health. It's been a very eye opening experience for me as I have watched people who were very excited when we started and wouldn't you know it, week by week, many of them have disappeared. Sure, I know sometimes life gets in the way, other obligations come up and maybe some did not fully "commit" from the beginning. 


Personally, when I am looking to add something to my plate, the Holy Spirit and I have to have a serious talk. I don't want to add something in "vain." I don't want to add something that I cannot see through, or be committed too. I definitely do not want to do something if I am not suppose to do it because then it would definitely be TOIL! What is toil? The dictionary defines it as: to move or travel with difficulty, weariness, or pain. That is NOT my idea of a good time. When you commit to something on your OWN without the direction or approval of the Holy Spirit, it begins the series of disappointment. Let's just take a fitness goal. When you make a commitment or goal and then do not see it through, what does it do to you? It takes a hit at your self-image. And each day as you do not do that "thing", whatever it is, your self-image takes another hit. You go to bed thinking, "Oh dang it. I didn't do it again. I'm going to bed another night and I did not complete my goal. Arghhhh. I feel terrible. Dang it." Some people may have this battle in their head of thinking they are a loser. All of it could have been avoided had they not made a commitment on their OWN. By making a vow or promise that you are not suppose to make Proverbs says that you are setting a TRAP for yourself. You set the trap, and you walk into it. 


I recently had a really great opportunity. An opportunity that could have been VERY VERY profitable. As I was asking the Holy Spirit about it, I continued to have a lack of peace about moving forward. The Holy Spirit continued to tell me, "You will not have time for it. You will not have time. It is to great of an obligation to take on. I have other things for you that will be better." I continued to question him because it did sound like such a great opportunity, but peace never came. So... for now, it is something that I am passing on. 


The Proverbs 31 woman expands PRUDENTLY. She expands, yes. But, she does not expand before it is taken into careful consideration. Does she have the time to do it? Will the other obligations REALISTICALLY still be able to get done? Does she have the energy to do it? Does she have the resources? The faith? I would anticipate many things come into play when she is CONSIDERING expanding.... taking another thing on.... adding one more thing to her already full but productive plate/time. 


As you go into this New Year. CONSIDER what your promises are. Consider what goals you should set. Set yourself up for VICTORY not for FAILURE. Be realistic about your goals. If you are not working out at ALL right now, maybe you shouldn't set a goal to work out 6 days a week. Maybe your goal should be 3 days/week. That is AFTER you have asked the Holy Spirit about it. 


Avoid the trap of over-committing to the wrong things or even overcommitting to the RIGHT things, but at the wrong time! Set yourself up to win in 2011 & every year that follows!

#114 - Are You the TARGET?

Good morning! Sometimes I just marvel at how blessed I feel! What a good boy I have! He is just so good! He did two kinda "new" things this morning. While he was eating breakfast, he took a drink of his drink and then PUT IT BACK in the cup-holder on his tray! WHOA! Go Tyler Jr! That is definitely a step up from throwing it on the floor! ha! AND, he very obviously did the sign language sign for "all done." It was so good! So, we celebrated and clapped and yelled about how good he did! He liked the praise! He clapped too! Then... we went upstairs after breakfast and read HIS Bible... now he is in his bed talking, playing with his toys and reading his books.... and having the rest of HIS Quiet Time! :) He's so good! I never imagined being a mom would be this fulfilling and joyous! Praise the Lord! 


Well, let's get started today! :) 

Proverbs 9:13-18 - The foolish woman is noisy; she is simple and open to all forms of evil, she [willfully and recklessly] knows nothing whatever [of eternal value]. ¹⁴For she sits at the door of her house or on a seat in the conspicuous places of the town,
    ¹⁵Calling to those who pass by, who go uprightly on their way:
    ¹⁶Whoever is simple (wavering and easily led astray), let him turn in here! ....
    ¹⁸But he knows not that the shades of the dead are there [specters haunting the scene of past transgressions], and that her invited guests are [already sunk] in the depths of Sheol (the lower world, Hades, the place of the dead).

Proverbs 31:25a - Strength and dignity are her clothing and her position is strong and secure... 

I thought today's reading was very interesting. In the scriptures above we have 3 different main people it is talking about. 

(1) The Foolish Woman - AKA: Sin, Temptation, Evil, Lust, the Wicked 

(2) The Proverbs 31 Woman - Strong, Sure, Confident, Secure, Stable - Nothing is moving this woman! She is steadfast & knows who she is.  

(3) The Wavering - This person is unsure of themselves. They are unstable, on rocky ground. They are wavering, like the verse talks about in James 1:6-8 - this person is tossed to and fro, has two minds or is double minded, lives in a constant state of doubt. 

The big question... Who is the Target? Who is the Target here in Proverbs 9? Who is the "Foolish Woman" looking for and WHERE is she taking the person she finds? Well, just reviewing the verses above, the target is simple, the TARGET IS THE SIMPLE. The Target is the person who is wavering! They are the TARGET! 1 Peter 5:8 tell us, "Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." What type of prey would the a lion look for? If he saw a herd of gazelles, which one is the lion going to lock a TARGET on? The WEAK one. If there is a gazelle that looks weak, is hurt, is limping or struggling to run, the lion knows that lunch is just a few seconds away. The devil is looking for the weak! If he sees you are weak, he will attack you in that area. The foolish woman, she was looking for those who look unsure, the wavering, because she KNOWS she could persuade them with her cunning words and get them to come down her path. They lack confidence. They lack vision, they do not know where they are going and since they seem to be "wandering" about anyways, THEY are an EASY TARGET for the foolish woman. So what did the foolish woman do? She locked TARGET on the Wavering, and led them down her path. Unbeknown to them, the Foolish woman's other "invited guests are already sunk in the depths of Hell, the lower world, the place of the dead." As she spotted the WAVERING person, she led them like a calf being led to slaughter, she led them to their death. 


Why is this all so important? As a believer, we can look at this section of scripture and determine, Which one are WE? Has life been a series of instability? Do we really know WHO we are in Christ? If we were spotted, would we look like the WAVERING? Would the enemy lock TARGET on us because we appear to be unstable? Would the lion see us and then seek to devour us because we look weak? 


With New Years coming around the corner, a lot of people begin to think about New Year's Resolutions. Now may be a good time to evaluate if you are truly the Stable, Confident, Unwavering. As you search yourself internally, if you feel like you may be the "Wavering", maybe it's time to determine this year that it is going to be a year to develop STABILITY & STRENGTH. Maybe this be the year that you NOT focus on loosing the same 20 pounds you've wanted to loose for the last 5 years, but maybe this is the year that you focus on being STABLE & SECURE like the Proverbs 31 Woman. Men, like the Proverbs 31 Husband. Maybe NOW is the time for you to determine that the buck stops here, "I WILL NOT BE A TARGET!" 


So... which category do you fall into now? Which category are you going to be in next year?