2 The terror of a king is like the growling of a lion;    whoever provokes him to anger forfeits his life. God has placed people in authority for a reason.We are to respect that authority over us, and we are to yield to it, as long as it isn't asking us to go against what God has told us to do, because the authority has been given the power to give us consequences for not yielding to it.Reflected ...  Read More

15 Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord,    and he will repay him for his deed. The Lord loves a generous heart.He loves a generous heart because His heart is generous.When He sees a generous heart caring for the poor, He blesses those who bless others.When it comes to paying the debt of the poor, God paid a debt we couldn't afford. He sent His Son to die in our place.We give to other...  Read More

15 Slothfulness casts into a deep sleep,    and an idle person will suffer hunger. We learned that putting things off and being lazy often leads to trouble.The Lord made rest, but He also made work.We honor God by the work of our hands.We need for Him to give us wisdom to know when to work and when to rest. Dear Heavenly Father,Help us not to avoid doing hard things, but to be diligent about them....  Read More

11 Good sense makes one slow to anger,    and it is his glory to overlook an offense. It is wise to be slow to anger and overlook an offense.Sometimes that pressure of overlooking an offense can build up.Jesus wants us to pour out that hurt to Him so the pressure doesn't build up in us.We weren't built to take that pressure, but He can. Dear Heavenly Father,Help us be slow to anger.Help us to over...  Read More

2 Desire without knowledge is not good,    and whoever makes haste with his feet misses his way. Impulsiveness can lead to a bad end.We need Jesus to help us think things through with wisdom instead of looking before we leap.We need to pray for God to give us the "want to" to follow Jesus. Heavenly Father,Help us not to make quick decisions based on our desires.Instead, give us the "want to," the ...  Read More

13 If one gives an answer before he hears,    it is his folly and shame. We can sometimes be so focused on what we want to say or so focused on ourselves that we speak before we listen.Other times we think we know it all already and spout off an answer without really listening to what people need.We need to ask the Lord to give us hears to truly hear what others are saying and not answer (even in ...  Read More

10 The name of the Lord is a strong tower;    the righteous man runs into it and is safe. When someone challenges us or provokes us there are a lot of places we can run.We can run to mean words. We can run to challenge them. We can run to our own strength, but God doesn't promise safety there. God promises safety when we run to His Name, when we trust His character instead of our own strength.Let'...  Read More

24 A man of many companions may come to ruin,    but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. Brothers (and sisters) are the kind of people who stick closely by our side in good times and bad.As great as brothers and sisters are, Jesus is the friend who sticks closer than any relative. He loves us, saves us, and defends us. Dear Heavenly Father,Help us to remember that Jesus is present ...  Read More

5 A faithful witness does not lie,    but a false witness breathes out lies. If we want to be a faithful witness, we need to tell the truth, even when it isn't comfortable.To do that we need to ask God to give us the courage. Dear Heavenly Father,Give us the courage to be faithful witnesses and tell the truth, even though there are times we want to hide the truth.Help us to do the uncomfortable th...  Read More

17 A friend loves at all times,    and a brother is born for adversity. The heart of a true brother or sister is to stick with someone through difficulties. Sometimes that person is innocent and we still by them when everyone else thinks they aren't.Sometimes they are guilty and, though we don't excuse what they have done, we love them and try to minister to them even so. Heavenly Father,Give us t...  Read More

12 Let a man meet a she-bear robbed of her cubs    rather than a fool in his folly. Following a fool is dangerous— more dangerous than taking a MamaBear's cubs away from her!When we feel like we have to prove ourselves or "save face" we must remember: itdoesn't matter what everyone else thinks of us, it is more important what Jesus thinks of us.Knowing we are important to Him means that we have no...  Read More

28 A dishonest man spreads strife,    and a whisperer separates close friends. Sometimes there are people who like to stir up trouble and separate close friends with untrue rumors.We must always remember the source and ask the Lord to give us discernment... or eyes to see what is true.Discernment helps us know who we can trust and dismiss those who whisper untruths to hurt us. Dear Heavenly Father...  Read More