11.3 Soul - Endangered Chocolates

Hey, are you a fan of chocolate? Yeah, me too! I just wanted to share with you this chocolate I found. It’s tasty. It’s called Endangered Species Chocolate. It’s all natural. And it doesn’t have junk in it like high fructose corn syrup. It’s got good stuff like Regular, some with Fruits or Nuts. Each one has a different animal on the wrapper because the proceeds go to God’s endangered species. If you would like to visit their site, follow this link.

Well, I hope you enjoy it someday. And I hope you come back again.

11.2 Mind - Proverbs 11

Proverbs 11

1 The LORD detests dishonest scales,
but accurate weights find favor with him.
2 When pride comes, then comes disgrace,
but with humility comes wisdom.
3 The integrity of the upright guides them,
but the unfaithful are destroyed by their duplicity.
4 Wealth is worthless in the day of wrath,
but righteousness delivers from death.

7 Hopes placed in mortals die with them;
all the promise of their power comes to nothing.

10 When the righteous prosper, the city rejoices;
when the wicked perish, there are shouts of joy.
11 Through the blessing of the upright a city is exalted,
but by the mouth of the wicked it is destroyed.
12 Whoever derides their neighbor has no sense,
but the one who has understanding holds their tongue.
13 A gossip betrays a confidence,
but a trustworthy person keeps a secret.
14 For lack of guidance a nation falls,
but victory is won through many advisers.

17 Those who are kind benefit themselves,
but the cruel bring ruin on themselves.
18 A wicked person earns deceptive wages,
but the one who sows righteousness reaps a sure reward.
19 Truly the righteous attain life,
but whoever pursues evil finds death.
20 The LORD detests those whose hearts are perverse,
but he delights in those whose ways are blameless.
21 Be sure of this: The wicked will not go unpunished,
but those who are righteous will go free.
22 Like a gold ring in a pig’s snout
is a beautiful woman who shows no discretion.
23 The desire of the righteous ends only in good,
but the hope of the wicked only in wrath.
24 One person gives freely, yet gains even more;
another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty.
25 A generous person will prosper;
whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.
26 People curse the one who hoards grain,
but they pray God’s blessing on the one who is willing to sell.
27 Whoever seeks good finds favor,
but evil comes to one who searches for it.
28 Those who trust in their riches will fall,
but the righteous will thrive like a green leaf.
29 Whoever brings ruin on their family will inherit only wind,
and the fool will be servant to the wise.
30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life,
and the one who is wise saves lives.
31 If the righteous receive their due on earth,
how much more the ungodly and the sinner!

11.1 Heart - You can't stand on quicksand

Here’s one of Jesus’ most famous parables, followed by some of my personal comments and applications on the same subject and how it relates to today’s world.

Build Your House on the Rock

24 "Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. 26And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it."

This parable is applicable to our personal lives, but I think the Holy Spirit dropped into my heart that it can be applicable to countries and their leadership as well. Take the United States for instance. It was founded on the rock of Judeo-Christian values. That means prayer in schools, Bible reading, etc. But recently, for the last 50 years of our history, certain people want to do away with our heritage and build our country upon weak sand, by relying on such falsehoods as atheism, socialism, and evolution. And look at all the crazy stuff like school shootings. These are some of the consequences of having sand underneath our feet instead solid rock. We as citizens need to do our part before it's too late.

I'd like to share something someone said about the recent earthquake on the east coast. According to this person(s), after the earthquake, the Washington Monument had no foundational damage, but there were cracks on the top in three out of four spires. I would like to think this is a possible sign or sign of the times. Maybe we need to make some changes in leadership in this country before the Godless decisions cause the cracks to travel all the way down to the foundation. The only reliable rock is God, His word, and salvation through His one and only Son. It doesn't matter where you live or where you're from, that's the truth.

Proverbs 1:7

7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Proverbs 9:10

10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.

But even countries that serve God, bad things happen to them sometimes. Just like in our personals lives, God will get you through it and help us learn from our hard times. But if you don’t rely on the Lord, there’s a chance your country won’t recover from hard times. Why wouldn’t you want to bless your own people, by trusting the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob?

Proverbs 10:25

25 When the storm has swept by, the wicked are gone,
but the righteous stand firm forever.