Bible Reading
Proverbs 30
1 The words of Agur the son of Jakeh, even the prophecy: the man spake unto Ithiel, even unto Ithiel and Ucal,
2 Surely I am more brutish than any man, and have not the understanding of a man.
3 I neither learned wisdom, nor have the knowledge of the holy.
4 Who hath ascended up into heaven, or descended? who hath gathered the wind in his fists? who hath bound the waters in a garment? who hath established all the ends of the earth? what is his name, and what is his son’s name, if thou canst tell?
5 Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him.
6 Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar.
7 Two things have I required of thee; deny me them not before I die:
8 Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me:
9 Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the Lord? or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.
10 Accuse not a servant unto his master, lest he curse thee, and thou be found guilty.
11 There is a generation that curseth their father, and doth not bless their mother.
12 There is a generation that are pure in their own eyes, and yet is not washed from their filthiness.
13 There is a generation, O how lofty are their eyes! and their eyelids are lifted up.
14 There is a generation, whose teeth are as swords, and their jaw teeth as knives, to devour the poor from off the earth, and the needy from among men.
15 The horseleach hath two daughters, crying, Give, give. There are three things that are never satisfied, yea, four things say not, It is enough:
16 The grave; and the barren womb; the earth that is not filled with water; and the fire that saith not, It is enough.
17 The eye that mocketh at his father, and despiseth to obey his mother, the ravens of the valley shall pick it out, and the young eagles shall eat it.
18 There be three things which are too wonderful for me, yea, four which I know not:
19 The way of an eagle in the air; the way of a serpent upon a rock; the way of a ship in the midst of the sea; and the way of a man with a maid.
20 Such is the way of an adulterous woman; she eateth, and wipeth her mouth, and saith, I have done no wickedness.
21 For three things the earth is disquieted, and for four which it cannot bear:
22 For a servant when he reigneth; and a fool when he is filled with meat;
23 For an odious woman when she is married; and an handmaid that is heir to her mistress.
24 There be four things which are little upon the earth, but they are exceeding wise:
25 The ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer;
26 The conies are but a feeble folk, yet make they their houses in the rocks;
27 The locusts have no king, yet go they forth all of them by bands;
28 The spider taketh hold with her hands, and is in kings’ palaces.
29 There be three things which go well, yea, four are comely in going:
30 A lion which is strongest among beasts, and turneth not away for any;
31 A greyhound; an he goat also; and a king, against whom there is no rising up.
32 If thou hast done foolishly in lifting up thyself, or if thou hast thought evil, lay thine hand upon thy mouth.
33 Surely the churning of milk bringeth forth butter, and the wringing of the nose bringeth forth blood: so the forcing of wrath bringeth forth strife.
Daily Devotion
The Word
By Sarah Seagraves
The Bible reading plan we are following has scriptures 28 or 29 days out of each month. The months that have more days than this are used for catch up or reading ahead. Following this plan will have us reading the entire Bible by November 19th.
Have you ever read the Bible through more than once in a year? I accomplished this goal in 2021. I used the You Version plan called “Bible in 90 Days” as well as the plan we read together as a church. I was amazed at what I gleaned reading the Bible through in 90 days. It gave a BIG PICTURE to me and I was able to see themes that flowed from the Old Testament to the New Testament. Next goal is reading the Bible through in 30 days! Anyone want to join me?
Pastor has focused on the importance of the WORD since the beginning of the year. What a powerful message he preached in our Thursday night message. If you missed it you can watch it here: https://eastsideapostolic.com/sermons/?sapurl=Lys2YzNyL2xiL21pLytwemozbWZ6P2VtYmVkPXRydWUmcmVjZW50Um91dGU9YXBwLndlYi1hcHAubGlicmFyeS5saXN0JnJlY2VudFJvdXRlU2x1Zz0lMkI5aG0yZ25m
Proverbs 30:5 (KJV) Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him.
Proverbs 30:5 (AMP) Every word of God is tested and refined [like silver]; He is a shield to those who trust and take refuge in Him.
Proverbs 30:5 (ERV) You can trust this: Every word that God speaks is true. God is a safe place for those who go to him.
Proverbs 30:5 (NLT) Every word of God proves true. He is a shield to all who come to him for protection.
I love the word “every” in this verse. It means all or whole. So when you look at your Bible you can know that the whole thing is tried, true, tested, purified and proven. The word of God never changes!
The second part of this verse has brought me comfort on more than one occasion. God and His word is my protection. This doesn’t automatically happen though. In order for us to find that safety we must go to Him.
Proverbs 18:10 (KJV) The name of the Lord is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe.
When I read this verse I think of being caught in a rain storm. When the rain is POURING from the heavens we don’t just stand there getting drenched. We RUN to a place of safety, whether that is a store, our car, or our home.
When I am faced with a storm, do I RUN to God? Or, do I run to Molly Moons for some ice cream? To the kitchen for some comfort food? To the phone to tell my friend about the stressful situation I find myself in?
Proverbs 30:5 reminds us if we want the safety only God can provide, we need to run to HIM!
How do we run to God?
- We grab our Bibles and spend some time reading His words to us.
- We shut off our phones and spend some time talking to the Creator of the universe, the One who has allowed the storm to come, asking him to align us with His plan and purpose.
- We push away from the table for a few meals, spending that time focused upon God speaking to us. Instead of feeding our flesh, we feed our spirit.
- We attend services even when we don’t feel like it. God speaks through the preacher giving us the important “next steps” in our journey out of the storm.
I want to encourage us all today. “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble” (Psalm 46:1) So let’s run to HIs Word. He knows what the day will hold. Often our morning reading will give us the wisdom and strength we need for what we face later in the day!