Happy Obscure Holidays!

I have been very bad about writing here lately.  I was noticing that the last blog post I did was back at Christmas.  I'm sorry.  I have hopefully found an inspiration to post every day.  At the end of that post at Christmas I was saying that I have a "Word of the Year" project to actively seek out and express joy this year.

The search engine Google does something for some little-known anniversaries and birthdays of historic proportions.  They will redesign their site logo for the day in honor of it.  So, a week ago I decided one way I could actively seek and express joy was to find something fun to celebrate every day myself.  I came across a website that lists some of the lesser known holidays some people celebrate.  I knew of some already.  My son (who is left-handed) was born on International Left-Handers Day.  Star Wars fans have Star Wars Day on May 4th -- a spoof on one of the movie's most famous lines.  August has National Black Cat Day.  It turns out this site has something to celebrate every day.  In fact, most days have several to choose from!   I rolled out this onto my Facebook timeline the next day, on January 8th.  The timing was perfect in fact.  January 8th is, among a few other things, Joy Germ Day.  To celebrate, I used my Office skills and created my first meme. Also on the 8th is Bubble Bath Day.   


I posted my meme and changed my profile picture to some bubble bath bubbles.  I have only missed one day this week.  I figure if I'm doing ok about doing these holidays on Facebook, I can write a post for my blog every day, too.

The two obscure holidays I chose for today  are Strawberry Ice Cream Day and Hat Day.  I posted a ten year old picture of me in one of my baseball hats and changed my profile picture to a bowl of strawberry ice cream.  To celebrate in the real world, I am wearing another of my (many) ball caps.  I have a small group study gathering tonight and I was thinking of getting some individual-serving strawberry ice cream bowls to take with us if they make them.  I'll share the joy by explaining to them what I'm doing and why I thought to bring ice cream to a group meeting in the middle of January in Western New York!  Granted the weather for my little spot in it isn't bad (yet), but ice cream really isn't on most of our minds right now.

I will end this for today.  I look forward to sharing insights from tonight's group and another holiday to celebrate tomorrow.  See you then!

What is My Visibility?

I am not very good about schedules, as you can see.  I realize now that I can't say when I'll write a post.  Honestly, I really wanted to write before this.  The ideas were there -- but the love wasn't.  I was hurt, angry, or apathetic.  I have wrote some things, but it wasn't appropriate for sharing here.

Sometimes there are things I write that are just for me, myself, and God to see.  If, by some weird turn in the world as we now know it, many years from now, my journals become historically significant -- then they'll become public.  It won't be by my design.  I'm not knocking publishing one's journals, but I don't see the significance in mine.  Sometimes I wonder, though - as I'm reading through the book of Psalms ... as I think about the songwriters I've known - did David ever think that some of what he was writing was private, too?  I feel a sense that maybe some of the songs David wrote were also just for he, himself, and God.

Songwriters and poets I've known or seen interviewed talk about how sometimes it is a particular raw, pure emotion driving a particular piece.  The creatives I know (people from any form of this kind of communicative displays; writers, poets, musicians, artists) have said there is almost always a "folder" somewhere that contains their versions of this concept, too -- things made that were releasing and freeing, an unburdening of their hearts you might say.  These sort of pieces are uncontrollably created and not intended for a public's consumption.

This is how I feel about my writing.  My priorities are such that I want this place to be for my "polished jewelry" to be "on display," if you can see the visualization.  The button I click when I am finished is labeled "publish" for a reason.  With the world of technology the such it is, there aren't the culling {read sometimes crushing} procedures of the major publishing companies any more.  Absolutely anyone can become a published author.  What I keep "in the back" is what is either not finished yet (way too many of those kinds!) or is something I want kept private.

I strive for authenticity and transparency.  But with that being said, no one should be transparent to the same degree all the time.  Let's see if I can explain what I mean.  There are subjects we will talk about with absolutely anyone - but to what level of details?  I'll share about my children with my husband in greater detail than I would with my friends.  And the person sitting in the stands next to me at a NHL hockey game will get even less detail.  The world of technology has it's place in the list, too.

Our presence on social media sites and blogs should be honest representations of who we are and what we believe.  The details about some things shouldn't be shared.  There was the running joke in a commercial several years ago about a pair of parents who got involved with their children's social media site.  The father who kept {over} sharing about every little thing he did - going to the kitchen, having dinner, going to the patio. That is what I'm talking about right now.  It is a place that levels of transparency REALLY needs to be taught.

All of this, I guess, has been a giant "I'm Sorry" for not writing for so long.  I don't want this to sound like I'm making excuses.  I did want to give you the reason, though.  As part of my "Word for the Year" project, I am going to actively seek out and express JOY this coming new year.  I'll right more about it later.  It's lunchtime and my sushi awaits!

Connecting into Community

I don't do well with deadlines, even when I've personally set them.  "I love deadlines.  They make a beautiful woosh as they fly by!"  I have been toying with ideas of what I want to write about.  I thought about writing my reactions to what a visiting pastor shared at our service Sunday.  He talked about how our potential for growth requires being connected into community.  Then I was on the subject of priorities and how they are demonstrated.  I had gotten so adamant about it that the only appropriate outlet I had was to write in my journal about it.  I have also played with the idea of discussing transparency.  For some reason I'd begun thinking I may be able to work the three together - community, priorities, and transparency.  I'm not sure I want to do that, though.  It would either be a shallow scrape across the top of three very important topics or it will be a very long entry.  I will put the subjects of transparency and priorities as some other entries.

Pastor David Hertweck basically broke the topic of growth requiring community into two points but I'm going to focus on just his first one.  His first point was about the things and beliefs that can have a way of breaking down someone's sense of community.  In a community, people are known to each other.

Technology has created a false sense of connection together that honestly, just isn't enough for a person's emotional health.  Social media is slowly replacing actual physical interaction between people.  Facebook is estimated to have over a billion active users.  If it were an actual country, it would be third in population - behind only India and China.  People on social media only show what they want others to know about them.  It becomes more and more difficult for good social interactive training.  Social media doesn't encourage us to try to work things out.  All a person has to do is 'unfriend' or 'unfollow' another person who is difficult to communicate with.  The problem is "solved."

But physical closeness isn't connection either.  A couple doing something together is not the same thing as two people participating in the same activity at the same time.  Riding the same bus, at the same time, to the same stop didn't create the connection I had with a few people several years ago.  We needed to be "built together" over time and through the conversations we had.

We need to connect with one another and work on keeping those connections.  Connecting with someone else is risky.  When we connect together, we begin to show our "less than" moments - thin spots in our emotional armor, vulnerabilities are exposed. Relationships can be messy.  Interactions can become painful.  We will find other people can prove to be rather inconvenient.  Connecting with someone also means we learn about the weak spots the other person has, too.  The good thing about making these links is that we become joyful when our friend has a triumph and we celebrate together.  But also, we feel pain when our friends face a defeat.  The connection joins us together in mourning.

I have been realizing over the last couple of weeks just how disconnected I have become.  I'm not sure if it is my doing - a result of my pulling away - or if they have pulled back from me.  That is an evaluation I will have to make. If they are responsible, I will give them what they wish and exit their lives.  If I am responsible, I will work to fix it.  Either way, though, I need to work building new connections.  Others deserve the privilege of getting to know the real me!

Let's have tea together some time!

Exhortation? Really?

I am sorry that I haven't written since Sunday.  I have been working -- contemplating about things and mulling them over -- and thinking about you.  What should I write to you?  What do I feel I NEED to tell you?  Then I realized: just do what you said you were going to do.

So with that, I went and rated my responses to the questions in the survey we received.  In all transparency, I did go online to our church website and completed it there - where it did all the organizing and math for me.  I was surprised by my results.  Like I said before, it focused in 16 different gift areas.  I had a slight, opinion, about what my number one was going to be.  And boy, was I wrong!  My "opinion" came in at a five-way tie for THIRD!  What I always thought was my greatest gift, teaching, was tied with other things for third.  That meant I was really better at (or could be overcoming fear) two other things.  Right now I'm focusing on what was my top fit -- exhortation.

Really?  Exhortation, God?  You do know that means TALKING to other people, right?  But I was reminded that others hadn't been all that comfortable speaking before others, too.  Also, "talking" to others didn't have to mean actually speaking.  What?

Alright, so what DOES exhortation mean?  According to Dictionary.com, it is a noun - yeah, knew that.  Meaning 1 is the act or process of exhorting - yeah, no help.  So, meaning 2 is an utterance, discourse, or address conveying urgent advice or recommendations - yeah, better but still.  Further down the page, though, was the British dictionary's definition.  Its second definition is a speech or written passage intended to persuade, inspire, or encourage.  BINGO!  Now that one makes sense!  A written passage intended to persuade, inspire, or encourage I can do!  And I noted the continuation of the theme: writing.

For about two years now, I have been using a personal vision statement; a life purpose.  "My life purpose is empowerment - of myself and others."  In light of that, really, it shouldn't have come as a surprise to me that my top gift was suggested to be exhortation.  I had kind of known it already but didn't put a name to it.  "How" is still a little shifting but I know it has to do with writing and this blog.

There were some suggested Bible references about the gift of exhortation.  I liked the one Paul wrote in the letter to the Hebrews.   It says: "And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deed, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another - and all the more as you see the Day approaching." (Hebrews 10:24-25 NIV)  It's in a section where Paul is writing a comparison about the body of a human and the body of The Church.  Like each part of the human body has a different purpose (liver, lung, hand, foot), the people who follow Jesus each have a different purpose, too.  Some work together rather closely but each are still individual.  The verses talk about lifting each other up to their own purpose through Jesus.  I feel encouraged to press forward and step up.  I am made to use my "voice" - in whatever form it takes - to encourage others and inspire where I can. 

Today's Service Inspiration

Good afternoon.  I'm back again with a few thoughts about the message our pastor gave this morning.  Pastor Bob (well, that's what he goes by.  His 'official' name is Robert.) started a series about unlocking our potential.  Today's message was called "Finding Your Fit" and talked about spiritual gifts.

For a little background, spiritual gifts are God-given abilities.  There are about 16 categories they'll fall into, but I'm not getting into what they all are right now.  I'll have other blogs about my introspection into my ability or not to use each one.

I think that, following the path of my last post, I'm going to write today about a Bible verse from the selection he quoted.  1 Peter 4:10 in the New International Version (NIV) states: "Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms."  This was written in a section of a letter to Christian groups in what now is Central Turkey.  Peter was writing to encourage them in the way they were living for God.

This verse grabbed my attention because, like I said, it seems to be a Biblically-based confirmation of what has been seeping into my awareness this last week.  It feels like I'm getting a little nudge in this.  You know what I mean?  You saw the type in those "Rocky"-types of movies -- the fighter is standing back into the corner of the ring.  He's not sure if he wants to go out there for another round.  But there's his trainer, and he's SURE the fighter can take out the other guy.  The trainer's up behind the fighter, rubbing his shoulders, and giving the fighter a little pep talk.  The trainer, of course, ends with a "now, go get 'em!" And the hands that were just massaging and supportive are now down on the fighter's shoulder blades and lovingly, but firmly shoving the fighter back into the center of the ring to fight.  That's how it felt this morning as I was listening to Pastor Bob read it out loud.

I now realize how much I have been neglecting my gifts.  My abilities have been gathering dust.  I know a few of them and I've been given the perfect opportunity to discover more.  It feels like this week has been "the pep talk" and today's verse is Jesus saying "now, go get 'em!"  The difference between the fighter and me -- my Trainer is out here in the ring with me and together we'll get through anything.

Pastor Bob's message today gave me a lot of encouragement and some practical and applicable information about looking for, developing, and properly using my gifts.  I have gotten some things to mull over.  Ultimately though, I love getting presents from people and I appreciate them.  How much more then that I love, appreciate, and share the gifts I have received from God!

Here's to New Beginnings

Hello, again.  I am going to try this blogging thing again.  I am leaving any expectations of having readers behind. I am not doing this for anyone else.  I have been reminded two days ago what it is to be an artist.  This reminder appeared on my Facebook newsfeed.  This is what I saw and what I said regarding it.

"Yes, it is a way of life and also very rarely a way to make a living. Even some of the most famous creators' (painters/writers/poets) work did not earn/cost a lot of money until after the creator passed.
A person HAS to want to do it for the creative outlet that it is - not for large amounts of fame or money because it is most likely not to come - and for the creation's ability to touch another soul."

I am sitting here to put action behind my words.  During a small group discussion at a recent Bible Study, I was reminded that I AM a writer.  I have a way with putting words together that is descriptive and can be quite elegant.  Writing IS my outlet.  I haven't quite worked out how this is going to blend with my journal quite yet, but I will figure it out.  After all, I am creative!

It is Saturday.  That means Doctor Who and The Last Kingdom on BBC America.  I will post this and I will be back soon.

Karen

Personal Perceptions

Proverbs 21:2 (NKJV) => Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, But the Lord weighs the heart.

This verse intends to remind me that if I use the human system of right and wrong, I will pretty much always be on the right side.  I can always find someone who is worse than me -- "well, at least I'm not like Soandso!".  Or I can always rationalize it away -- "I HAD TO lie.  It would have been rude to tell her how that REALLY looked on her!".  People usually see someone else's bad behavior (otherwise known as sin) as being "more bad" than their own.  It is a sliding-scale so to say.  God is consistent about what is wrong and what is right.  The same things that were sinful 3000 years ago is still sinful now and will still be sinful 3000 years from now.  He looks into our hearts to see our motivations and attitude.  Something that appears to be right, like helping another person out, could be wrong when done for selfish, self-serving reasons, like for the publicity. I need to do a quick heart check before I do something.  Is the reason I want to do this because it will help someone with a need or is it so I can get something out of it?  I do not think it is completely bad to get something out of helping someone else ... I think it's even talked about somewhere in the Bible that there are win/win scenarios.  I know that I feel better emotionally when I help someone else out with something.

Heavenly Father, thank You for being the consistent measure of what is right and wrong.  Show me where I am not seeing that in my life.  Show me ways that I can reach out and help others in a way that creates a win/win situation.  Strengthen me to do what You have put onto my heart to accomplish.  Amen.

Resurecting the Past ... Stepping Into Future

Hello again.  I can not believe it has been a year and a half since I made a blog post.  I'm sure most of my readers have forgotten about me, if I had any to begin with.  This really isn't about anyone else, though, is it?  The trend I had set out for with this blog was a lot more personal.  I am going back to that premise.  I am going to use this to record my personal Bible study (sometimes journal entry insights) and hopefully others will read it, be encouraged, and be led to comment so myself and others can also be encouraged.

This specific post is more about a reintroduction.  I am not in the midst of a specific book of the Bible.  I am using a list generated by the Logos Bible software.  The list I chose was a list focusing on hope.  I have been feeling without much hope lately.  I am trying to focus on reading my Bible more consistently.  I have been given all the advice I can tolerate about it.  I know I need to do it every day.  I know I should do it first thing in the morning before distractions and busyness can get into the way.  But if I hear that stupid Nike slogan applied to my struggle to follow through and accomplish something, I think I just may SCREAM!  Telling someone who battles with depression to "Just Do It" shows your lack of knowledge about depression, it shows your lack of attention to the personality of your so-called friend.  I am realizing that I have just such an acquaintance in my prayer circle.  I call her "acquaintance" rather than "friend" because of her insistence that if she can do it -- with 'it' being anything from praying and Bible reading daily to making it to work out at the gym regularly -- I certainly should be able to, also, since I am so much younger than she is.  But I am digressing.

I want this to be about encouraging myself and others who struggle with Major Clinical Depression, suicidal tendencies, or Bi Polar I and the roller coaster ride that is life with these disorders.  I will be using Christian / Bible references because that is where I have found the greatest support.  Beyond the obvious support of fellow believers, I find that knowing there is encouragement and support written in the Bible show me that this is not something new, I am not alone, and Jesus is there with me no matter how far down I drop.

If you would like to, read my initial post introducing the blog to see the layout I use for writing out my Bible study entries.  You can find it quickly by clicking the label "Introduction" below.  The post is titled "31 Days in Proverbs."

Sunday Randomness 7-21-13

I am really struggling this last few days with getting my Bible reading done. Today I have been struggling period.

I have been busy with a new job -- I'm doing a temp job for an Etsy company. Etsy is a home for a lot of very small businesses. A lot of home crafters have them. I am working for one. Her site is www.casephile.etsy.com and I'd love it if you checked her out and gave her some business. She makes all sorts of cases and cozies around all sorts of things. Right now I am helping her with earbud cozies. Yes, I am wrapping earbud headphones in knitting. Its worked in as I knit. I get piecework on it so I'm setting aside projects to work on this -- not that I had much I could work on.

I am struggling today because I can not get motivated to be doing anything. I have the posts started for my "31 Days in Proverbs" series, but I am just not getting any insights into the verses. I have had problem all day getting motivated and staying on task. 

For the Love of a Brother

Proverbs 17:17 (NKJV) => A friend loves at all times, And a brother is born for adversity.

This verse isn't referring to just my blood relative brother, which I am grateful for. Maybe others feel this way about their family members but I just never was close to my family and hard times seem to drive them farther away. There is hope though. I have friends that have become like a second family to me. They are my life proof of this verse. They cared for me through my deepest depression and have become closer through the car accident we had in February. Others have stepped up through this, too, and have become like sisters.

Heavenly Father, thank You for the friends I have that are like family to me. I appreciate them greatly. As I complete this transition from my day program to college, help me to seek support from them in a way that is not over draining for them. Help me to see where else I can form these close relationships. Help me, Jesus, to have this kind of relationship with You. You died for me because you love me. Help me to spend time in appreciation with you. Amen.

Sweet as Honey

Proverbs 16:24 (NKJV) => Pleasant words are like honeycomb, Sweetness to the soul and health to the bones.

This verse is convicting me about how I speak to, or don't speak to, others and myself. I know the power of uplifting, positive comments. I need to be more generous with them. I need to be speaking the uplifting words that I want to hear. I need to stop my negative self-talk. I need to remember to be more kind. I should be sharing positive comments of appreciation more.

Holy Spirit help me to be a kinder, more appreciative person. Help me to get over my anxieties and tell others what I appreciate about them. Foremost though, I need Your help to start being more appreciative and positive with myself. For as little as I compliment others, I compliment myself even less. Jesus, help me to see myself and others with Your eyes. Amen.

A Matter of Heart

Proverbs 15:13 (NKJV) => A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance, But by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken.

This verse is talking about being happy or sad is a matter of my heart condition. At first I was having trouble with this verse. I have to battle with depression. I want to be happy, somedays I just can not. After some meditation and conversation with Jesus, I realize this isn't about my depression -- that is another discussion on spiritual warfare -- but about the overall matter of my heart. When I am in a good place, I am outwardly happy and cheerful. When I let the little things begin to bother me, that spirit of joy is broken. I am in a sorrow-filled place and have to fight even more.

Heavenly Father, thank You for the time I spent with You today. Thank You for the clarification of how this verse can be applied to my life, Holy Spirit. Help me to always see how the condition of my emotions has such a profound effect on my outward appearance. Thank You for the reminder that my emotional shape is never really out of view. Amen.

Being a Wise Builder

Proverbs 14:1 (NKJV) => The wise woman builds her house, But the foolish pulls it down with her hands.

This verse is about the ability I have to choose whether I will be lifting up or tearing down others. I need to be sure I remember that, especially with my family. I need to be a source of encouragement and love to my husband and my children. 

Holy Spirit, help me to always be a wise woman and lift up my family and friends.

Where the Rubber Meets the Road

Proverbs 13:4 (NKJV) => the soul of a lazy man desires, and has nothing; But the soul of the diligent shall be made rich.

This verse is speaking to me the difference between Dreamers and Achievers. THere is nothing wrong with dreaming. A key to anything humans have accomplished is the fact that, at some point, someone asked and dreamed a possibility. My point tonight is there has to be a time where 'the rubber meets the road' and actions turn dreams into realities. I dream of a better and closer relationship with Jesus. I know (and this verse reminds me) that unless I put my actions into my desire, I will remain with nothing but dreams. If I consistently seek Jesus, I will receive God's riches.

Heavenly Father, I thank you for this reminder that my desires are nothing without actions put behind them. Holy Spirit, help me to be better with spending time with You. Help me, Jesus, to see the actions you want me to take to be consistent and spread Your wealth. Amen.

Depression and the Word

Proverbs 12:25 (NKJV) => Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression, But a good word makes it glad.

I don't know how much more straightforward this can be, I know from experience with anxiety attacks and depression. I have had crippling attacks of fear so great I had to fight to breathe. By surrounding myself with positive people who lift me up, I have turned the depression around and have made the attacks not as severe or as frequent. In the therapies I have been receiving, there have been decades of scientific research coming to the same conclusion that Solomon had centuries ago. This verse tonight is speaking to me as a praise to God that the burden of anxiety and depression can be lifted. It all comes down to whom I choose to surround myself with.

Heavenly Father, tonight I thank You and praise You that the burden of Anxiety and Depression are not the strangling chains that my friends and I once experienced them to be. I thank You, Lord, for the friends and supporters that I have found to walk with me through the difficult times of my days. Holy Spirit, help me to always remember, above all and anyone else, You are my greatest and most powerful support of all. Amen.

Generosity to Share

Proverbs 11:25 (NKJV) => The generous soul will be made rich, And he who waters will also be watered himself.

I need to remember that I should be as generous as I can. Not just with money -- which I have little of -- but also with my time, friendships, or even just a smile to a stranger I pass on the street. I was reminded of this today as I rode home from an appointment. I need to be more friendly and not always so absorbed into my headphones. My smiles are free and it may be all the more pick-up that some people need (like myself!) to turn around a 'less than' day. I also need to remember that smile is a two-way street. I will feel better by helping someone else's day go well.

Heavenly Father, thank you for the lesson you taught me today about extending myself. Help me to remember that I will be 'watering myself'' when I 'water' the spirit of others.  Holy Spirit, help me to always keep my kindness at the front and help me to be Your light into others life. Amen.

Being Random Tonight

Tonight isn't going to be one of my regular posts. I was hoping to be a little random-like and just write. I was hoping for some feedback about what you think about my blog. I know my posts may not leave a lot of ground on which to comment. I thank you, Friends, who have tried to comment for me. I would like to take this opportunity to make a post that you can feel free to comment. I would love to get some feedback from you about what you think of my blog now that its a week old. {wow, already?}

I was once advised by a friend to be sure I don't "share my disease" and use the word 'we' when I am sharing about something. I hope this doesn't come across as being self-centered in my writing. I feel it is right to say in Bible study because it is a very personal experience and exchange between a person and God. My reactions to verses are different than what you may take from the same ones. In fact, with writing these realizations down, I am seeing that I am not reacting to the same verses the same way myself. I have highlighted passages that, while moving to me at one point, aren't what God is trying to get through to me right now. So please, reread my posts. I'm not saying it for any sort of numbers - I truly want you to get the most out of this and would absolutely love to hear that you are reading along with me. I would love to hear how God is using other verses in the chapter to speak into your life.

Tomorrow and Sunday I will catch back up with the 31 Days of Proverbs. Tomorrow I'll be reading and making two posts from Proverbs 11 and 12. Sunday will be two posts from Proverbs 13 and 14.

 I will see you again.
Karen

Get the Point

Proverbs 10:17 (NKJV) => He who keeps instruction is in the way of life, But he who refuses correction goes astray.

I am supposed to keep to the lessons of the Bible. The things I learne from the Bible will help me to keep to the correct path in life. If I don't learn and remember the purposes of what is said in the Bible, I will easily lose my way.

Holy Spirit help me to always remember the life lessons I learn from reading the Bible. Help me to always see how these words of wisdom can be applied to my life. Help me to not go astray. Amen.

Walk This Way

Proverbs 9:6 (NKJV) => Forsake foolishness and live, And go in the way of understanding.

Solomon is starting to transition. He is still writing about wisdom but he is beginning to introduce the foolish man into his work.

I need to work at being less foolish. I need to be more aware of what choices I am making. I really need to be aware when I am not making choices. When I stop making my own choices and therefore make others make them for me, I am acting foolishly. I am not acting with understanding. I am usually acting out of fear. God did NOT give me a spirit of fear. (2 Timothy 1:7)

Heavenly Father, thank you for giving me understanding about my decision making. Holy Spirit guide me away from the foolishness this world has to offer me. Help me to understand Your ways are the ways of understanding. Show me the pathway to life. Amen.

The Fear of the Lord

Proverbs 8:13 (NKJV) => The fear of the Lord is to hate evil; Pride and arrogance and the evil way And the perverse mouth I hate.

This verse is out of a section where Solomon is writing as the voice of Wisdom. It has declared that wisdom comes from fear of the Lord. This verse explains what 'Fear of the Lord' looks like.

I need to remember what it is to fear the Lord. I need to be sure I am doing what I say I should be doing. I need to try harder with my thoughts and words. I do not want to be seen as prideful or arrogant.

Holy Spirit, thank You for Your help improving my self-worth. Please help me to be sure to never go too far into pridefulness or arrogance. I want to fear You correctly. Amen.