Ecclesiastes 12:13-14; Luke 12:34

 Ecclesiastes 12

¹³ Now all has been heard;
    here is the conclusion of the matter:
Fear God and keep his commandments,
    for this is the duty of all mankind.
¹⁴ For God will bring every deed into judgment,
    including every hidden thing,
    whether it is good or evil.

A reminder that God will eventually deal with all those people who are trying to cheat me and take advantage of me. Also, i too should be careful myself regarding what i do.

Luke 12

  ³⁴ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 

 

In my devotion with my wife, we were brought to read the Parable of the Rich Fool - and the devotion material was talking about buying houses!!! It's amazing how God uses our devotion to speak to us directly on what is on our hearts. Another wonderful reminder that our hearts shall not be on earthly material temporal things. While we can enjoy them, it should not cloud our view on what is eternal.

1 Kings 3:11-14

¹¹ So God said to him, “Since you have asked for this and not for long life or wealth for yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies but for discernment in administering justice, ¹² I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be. ¹³ Moreover, I will give you what you have not asked for—both wealth and honor —so that in your lifetime you will have no equal among kings. ¹⁴ And if you walk in obedience to me and keep my decrees and commands as David your father did, I will give you a long life.”

2 thoughts - first, in verse 13, it was a reminder that God gives lovingly and freely - and sometimes even when we do not ask for it!!! God's grace is shown when he gives to me even tho i do not deserve it.

Second, in verse 14, i note that Solomon did not live a particularly long life. The reason is obvious (see previous post here. I am reminded how important it is to obey the Lord. And alotho i may fail at times and sin, i can pray that he will reveal it to me so that i may confess them to him and receive forgiveness.

Ecclesiastes 2:4-11, Hebrews 13:5

Ecclesiastes 2
 ⁴ I undertook great projects: I built houses for myself and planted vineyards. ⁵ I made gardens and parks and planted all kinds of fruit trees in them. ⁶ I made reservoirs to water groves of flourishing trees. ⁷ I bought male and female slaves and had other slaves who were born in my house. I also owned more herds and flocks than anyone in Jerusalem before me. ⁸ I amassed silver and gold for myself, and the treasure of kings and provinces. I acquired male and female singers, and a harem as well—the delights of a man’s heart. ⁹ I became greater by far than anyone in Jerusalem before me. In all this my wisdom stayed with me. ¹⁰ I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my labor, and this was the reward for all my toil. ¹¹ Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.

Hebrews 13

⁵ Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”

These 2 passages spoke to me reminding me that contentment in God is more important than whatever material things we can have in this world - which are just temporal. Like houses.

1 Kings 11:1-4, 14, 23

¹King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women besides Pharaoh’s daughter—Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians and Hittites. ² They were from nations about which the Lord had told the Israelites, “You must not intermarry with them, because they will surely turn your hearts after their gods.” Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in love. ³ He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines, and his wives led him astray. ⁴ As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been.

The wisest man who ever lived!!! I was wondering how could he have been soooo stupid? Perhaps this could be attributed to lies he told himself? That it was alright? Still, how could he have justified such actions? A direct disregard of God's clear command.

I better take note of this - that if the wisest man who ever lived could fall for sin like this, how much more someone like me? I must continue to pull out tempatation triggers and put in holiness habits to avoid this. 

¹⁴ Then the Lord raised up against Solomon an adversary, Hadad the Edomite, from the royal line of Edom.

 ²³ And God raised up against Solomon another adversary, Rezon son of Eliada, who had fled from his master, Hadadezer king of Zobah.

What struck me about these 2 verses is that it was God who raised up adversaries against Solomon!!! Why? As a punishment? Perhaps it was more as an act to discipline him. In my life, I can think of "adversaries" whom God raised up against me - and while it was not pleasant, it was used to make me into a better person. 

Proverbs 24:19-20

¹⁹ Do not fret because of evildoers or be envious of the wicked,
²⁰ for the evildoer has no future hope, and the lamp of the wicked will be snuffed out. 

This was a timely reminder from God that although some people may seem to get away with their wrong-doing, they will not escape God's righteous judgement. They will get their just-deserts in the end.

Proverbs 21:31

³¹ The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests with the Lord. 

This reminded me a little of the camp message - God has a role and so do we. God' role is to do the work of God. Man's role is to do the work of man. Man cannot do the work of God. God will not do the work of man.

I must prepare myself - but at the same time realise that it is God who will give me the result.

Proverbs 18: 22, 19:14, 21

Proverbs 18  

²² He who finds a wife finds what is good
    and receives favor from the Lord.  

Proverbs 19

 ¹⁴ Houses and wealth are inherited from parents,
    but a prudent wife is from the Lord.

Thank you Lord for your blessing on me! =) Help me to appreciate her more and more each day.

 Proverbs 19

²¹ Many are the plans in a person’s heart,
    but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.

Lord, let your will be done in my current situation - and help me to have the strength to accept it.