The Lord detests the sacrifice of the wicked
but the prayer of the upright pleases him
Proverbs 15:8
Which is better, to sacrifice or to pray? It depends on your character and your heart. Sacrifice is of no value and is even rejected by God for those who are godless and evil. Prayer from those who are upright pleases God. So the lesson here is that God sees your character and your heart more than your actions and your performance.
A soothing tongue is a tree of life
But a perverse tongue crushes the spirit
Proverbs 15:4
What does a healthy tree do ? The tree bears fruit so can provide nourishment and healing. The leaves provide shade and protection. A soothing tongue therefore brings the same benefits, the tongue when used wisely provides spiritual nourishment, encouragement and healing. However we know as humans we can't always rely on our own strength to have a soothing tongue. Words are often an expression of what is inside one's heart. If the tongue is perverse it can cause damage to the spirit. When our hearts are softened and filled with the Holy Spirit, that moves us to express words that bring life and healing onto others. Ezekiel 36:26 - I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you. I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.
The eyes of the Lord are everywhere,
Keeping watch on the wicked and the good. Proverbs 15:3
God sees everything. He knows what is going on in our lives. Not only does he know but He is in control. He sits on His heavenly throne (Psalm 11:4). There is both evil and good in the world. If our lives are troubled, we may say where is God? Why is He not doing anything? Yet as believers we have access to God's sanctuary and that helps us to see things from His perspective. He is always with us. He holds us by the right hand. He is the strength of our hearts.(Psalm 73 :17, 23,26)
A gentle answer turns away wrath ,
but a harsh word stirs up anger. Proverbs 15:1
In order to give a gentle answer in heated situation, one has to be calm and patient. It is only natural to feel angry or frustrated when you feel wronged. Responding with a harsh word makes the situation worse. How do we handle this? Remembering God's gentleness and grace to us when we don't deserve it can help us deal with the situation. Praying for the Holy Spirit to motivate us to respond gently. By receiving from God what we don't deserve we can then respond in a gentle manner to people who has trespassed against us. Anger is healed in this way. I recall a situation early this year where a motorist thought it was my fault for knocking his car. It wasn't my fault but at the end of it I decided to give him grace and my heart felt sorry for him. The Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love. Psalm 145:8
This autumn, I would like to share some devotions from the book of Proverbs.
Better a dry crust with peace and quiet,
than a house full of feasting , with strife
Proverbs 17:1
If we are poor but have peace in our lives , this is more important than having wealth but having full of conflicts in our lives. This is about relationships, which is more important than materialism. How do we have a right relationship with people? By anchoring ourselves in the word of God, by regular prayer, being a good listener and being still. Wealth alone will not bring you to a right relationship with people, in fact it can cause the opposite and bring ruin to relationships.
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Genesis 1:1
And God said, 'let there be light,' and there was light. Genesis 1:3
The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Psalm 19:1
