Today is day 24 of the #iheartBible challenge that I’m hosting. If you have joined up, hooray! I’m glad you’re here. If you want to join up, then awesomesauce! Check out the challenge post for details and join in on the linky so we can all read one another’s posts during the challenge. I love Jesus and blogging, so I’m glad to see people joining in. We’d love to have you join, too. It’s never too late!
Today’s verse is Proverbs 2.21. Read it below in its context (Why do I care about context?):
20 So you will walk in the way of the good
and keep to the paths of the righteous.
21 For the upright will inhabit the land,
and those with integrity will remain in it,
22 but the wicked will be cut off from the land,
and the treacherous will be rooted out of it.
I love how this verse brings out that God rewards integrity. It can be tough to maintain integrity in a world with so many reasons to lie or deceive. I mean, even a person who has nothing to hide can be tempted to deceive.
Why is it so easy to abandon integrity in favor of, well, favor?
I recently realized learned what it means to fear the Lord. Previously, I had no clue why we would ever be afraid of God; He saved us, afterall. But I learned that we have multiple types of fear; for instance, we may worry more about our friends’ opinion of how we live than what God’s word says about how we should live.
God’s word should always trump popular opinion. Especially as our culture drifts farther and farther away from respecting God’s word or seeking His face.
Have you faced this issue? As I grow up, I face these situations more often than ever. I spring for the opportunity to share the Gospel, but the opportunity to share the truth of Jesus’ desire for our lives is often more challenging to stand for.
Why?
It’s tough to do the right thing when the wrong thing is easier.
It’s tough to explain to someone you love that their actions do not please God.
It’s tough to figure out how to share painful truths while still expressing Godly love for my brother or sister.
It’s tough.
The truth is tough.
I wish it were easier. But if it were easy, everyone would do it.
With love,
