Monday's Devo - The Seventh Thing

Read Pro. 6:16-19
God lists six things that he hates but the seventh is absolutely disgusting to him. So let's look at these six things: a proud look, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked imaginations, feet that run to do mischief, and a false witness. These boil down to men full of pride, liars, murderers, and premeditated sinners. God hates these things but the thing he abhors even more is a person who tries to divide his people and bring strife among them. We will judge a serial killer and talk about someone in our church. God says he hates the sin of the later more. We judge outward sins but the sins of the heart are the worse in the eyes of God. He loves his children to live together in unity. I understand that as a mother. I could handle strife with other kids outside our family much easier than I could the fights inside our house among ourselves. So may we remember this the next time we are tempted to talk about one of our Christian brothers or sisters in our church or in Christ's body. This is disgusting to God.
Lord, give us your eyes to see ourselves in the light of your Word. Examine our hearts and cleanse us of any wrong attitudes we have about those in the house of faith. Forgive us of judging our own body and help us to live together in unity.

Fri.'s Devo - The Worthless Man

Read Pro. 6:12-15
In these verses we get a description of a worthless, evil person. It is amazing in our theology of grace that God would call anyone worthless, but he does. He told the children of Israel to kill all the inhabitants of the promised land. He didn't tell them to try to introduce them to him; he just told them to destroy the Ammorites, the Hittites, the Jebusites, etc. Why? Because he created some people to worship him and some to be adversaries. It is beyond our comprehension which is why he says in Rom. 9:21, "Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?" Anyway, I don't want to get into "election" but it is all in the Bible.
So let's look at this evil person: he winks with his eyes which means he lies and is deceiving. He speaks with his feet, which means he can't look eye to eye and his walk (where he goes and how he lives) speaks volumes. He teaches with his fingers which means the things that he does are evil. He speaks perversely because perversity, fraud, and evil is in his heart. He instigates strife. Calamity is his reward.
Lord, we want to be a righteous man called by your name and wholly devoted to you. Open our eyes and discernment to know good from evil so that we wont be deceived by those who aren't called by your name.

Thur.'s Devo - Consider the Ant

Read Pro. 6:6-11
Everything God created is to show us who he is. So if we meditate on his creations we will gain knowledge of the details about God and his wisdom. Solomon did and he learned even from the ant. He tells those who tend to be lazy to study the ant. The ant colony is a well organized group which has no ruler, they just all do their job and the work gets done. I don't think I have ever seen an ant just standing around. If you mess up their pile they don't sit around and mope and complain, they just immediately get to work to build it back. They carry food on their backs which are heavier than their weight and they never quit. But they are never without food or companionship and they all get along in their colony. We could learn a lot from them. Wikipedia states that "ant societies have division of labor, communication between individuals, and an ability to solve complex problems. These parallels with human societies have long been an inspiration and subject of study."
So, Lord, may we be like the ant and do our part in the body of Christ.

Wed.'s Devo - Humble Confrontation

Read Pro. 6:1-5
In these verses he is talking to anyone who has loaned something from a friend, had conflict with anyone, promised something they couldn't fulfill, or said something that he wished he hadn't. There is a way out and it is to go humbly to the other party and ask forgiveness or freedom from the vow we hastily gave. Confrontation is something we all try to avoid but it is the best way to handle most situations. Our fear keeps us from facing our situations head on but the Bible says to face them before the day is over. It will set us free. Humble confrontation, bathed in prayer and guided by the Holy Spirit will gain you a friend and respect. If it doesn't then God is working in that other person to shape them and God is using us to do it. In time it will reap the benefits God designed it for. In return, we need to be forgiving to anyone who asks us and set other people free from their unfulfilled vows to us.
Lord, help us to give to others what we need for ourselves. We need grace and forgiveness so help us to give it freely to others.

Tues.'s Devo -Blessed Fountains

Read Pro. 5:18-23
Our fountain is our off-spring and anything that proceeds from us. It is to be blessed and satisfied with our "wife of our youth". I wonder if God says that because he knew that we would be tempted to stray from our first spouse and find someone more suited to us later in life. He uses words like loving and pleasant to describe this first wife. We are to be ravished always with her love. Marriage is the prime example of God's relationship to us, so it is telling us to stay true to the commitment you made as a child to follow God. Never get tired or bored with our relationship with God. Don't be tempted to go after other lovers. God knows that if we are left to our own ways we would be bound in sin and our fountain would overflow with wickedness so we need his wisdom and his map for our lives.
Jesus, fill our fountains with you and may our off-spring have this same living water flowing through them. May we stay true to our first love.

Mon.'s Devo - Our Own Cisterns

Read Pro. 5:15-17
I have always thought of drinking waters out of your own cistern to be referring to enjoying your own spouse but I think it means that and more. In 2 Kings 18 the king of Assyria came up against Israel's king, Hezekiah, and threatened them. In his speech to intimidate the people to surrender he promised them that under his rule they would all eat from their own vine, and their own fig tree and drink from their own cistern. Today that would be like promising everyone a car under their garage. To own a vineyard, and your own well spoke of wealth and self-sufficiency. So in our reading today it is telling us to provide for yourself and not have to depend on the government or someone else's wealth. Be fruitful yourself. Read your Bible and know what it says so that you can live in the blessings of the Promise Land, not leaning on someone else's spirituality or blessing. When we are blessed like God wants us to be blessed then we have enough for ourselves and those around us. Then our fountains are scattered out to the world and our ministry pours out to the streets.
Lord, may we not be broken cisterns that hold no water but may we be stable and solid so that we can be filled with the living water to overflowing. May our waters water many thirsty souls.

Fri.'s Devo - Don't be Deceived

Read Pro. 5:1-14
Proverbs tells us many times to choose wisdom but this chapter seems to go a step deeper. He tells us to prick up our ears to hear truth and stretch our hearing to understand so that we won't be deceived, and be guarded because he is warning us against sexual sins which can be the most deceptive. It goes on to explain why: the temptress whether man or woman is very seductive in their speech. They know just what to say to push our buttons but the future of pursuing that relationship is very detrimental. It leads us down the path to destruction and misery; not happy bliss. So when we find ourselves tempted to follow after wrong relationships we should run as far as we can in the other direction. If we don't, we will end up giving our beauty, our youth, our wealth and our hard work to others and our end will be shame and regret.
We see this play out so often in real life. I remember years ago I ran into an old friend who was single and she excitedly told me about a new boyfriend she had. When she told me his name I told her to run as fast as she could in the other direction. She didn't believe me and continued the relationship. I saw her months later and she told me she wished she had done what I had advised. It is so hard to see the truth when you are emotionally involved which is why we should listen to the wisdom of God's Word and other people we trust.
Lord, we are so vulnerable and need your wisdom and discernment. Teach us your wisdom so that we won't be tempted to be deceived.

Thur.'s Devo - Hidden in our Hearts

Read Pro. 4:20-27
Over and over God tells us to read and eat his Word. The Bible is not just a book we read, it is a living organism that infects our whole being with the being of God. Verse 21 says that we should not let the Word depart from our eyes but we should keep it in the midst of our hearts. David said, "Thy Word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against thee." David knew the power of hiding God's Word in his heart and was able to draw from its strength in very hard times. If we hide God's Word in our heart then truth will come from our mouths. Pro. 18:21 says that life and death are in the power of the tongue; and they that love it shall eat . We have a destiny and God's Word will help us to keep on the path looking toward the mark God has set before us. Like Paul we can say, "I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus."
Lord, we choose to hide your Words in our hearts. Lead us by your Word because your Word is life and power.

Wed.'s Devo - Light vs. Dark

Read Pro. 4:1-19
I love how he starts this chapter like he is our father sitting down and having a father-son/daughter talk about life. Solomon, who wrote this was referring to his talks with his father, David. He comments of his father's love for his mother. One of the greatest things we can give our children is a love for our spouse. A good marriage gives our children stability, confidence, and security. David's advise to Solomon is to get wisdom above all things. No wonder that is what Solomon asked for when God appeared to him in 2 Ch. 1:7-11. David was right; wisdom promoted Solomon and he was one of the greatest kings ever to live. It will also promote us and be our ornament of grace and crown of glory. It will prolong our life. It will keep us on the right path and keep us from stumbling. It will give us discernment so that we will not be deceived.
Those who reject God's wisdom are bent on doing evil. They stay awake at night trying to conceive a plan that will make us fall. They eat and drink wickedness and violence. But the path of the just is illumined with God's light and it just gets brighter and brighter. The more we walk with God the easier it is to hear his voice and obey. The path of the evil gets darker and darker and they lose all direction.
Lord, thank you for the light of your Word. May it illumine our paths today.

Tues's. Devo - The Power of Help

Read Pro. 3:27-35
When we see a need and know we can help, we are to help. If we put it off then we will lose the urge to give or forget. We could be someone's answer to their prayer. We have the power to do good in our hand and are to honor those who deserve it. When I read verse 29-30 I think of raising my boys. It boils down to this: don't pick a fight. We are not to envy those who are bullies and wish for their power. Their ways are disgusting to the Lord but he has intimacy with the ones who choose the right way. Those who rebel from God live under His curses but those who follow God's Word live under his blessings. He will mock those who mock him and pour his favor on the humble. To choose God is to inherit the copious weight of God's Spirit; but fools will inherit shame.
The other day I was in need of help. I was going to the gym to work out when a storm hit. I thought I could make it to the front door before the heavy rain hit but I was wrong. Instead the rain and wind were so bad I could hardly walk and my rain hat flew off. I tried to chase it but gave up when I saw it headed for an open field. I was so disappointed because that rain hat cost me $40 and matched my rain coat. I finally battled the rain and wind and made it into the gym. A few minutes later the rain abated! If I had only waited. I was complaining to the man at the front desk about my hat. A few minutes later he walked up to me holding my hat! I was so excited. A guy had seen it fly by his truck and ran after it for me. He had the power to do good and chose to do it. I will always think of the kindness of that person every time I wear my hat.
Lord, so many times it is the small things that you give us to do like retrieve someone's hat from the tornadoes of life. What ever you place in our path to do I pray that we would seize the moment and do it.

Wed.'s Devo - Light vs. Dark

Read Pro. 4:1-19
I love how he starts this chapter like he is our father sitting down and having a father-son/daughter talk about life. Solomon, who wrote this was referring to his talks with his father, David. He comments of his father's love for his mother. One of the greatest things we can give our children is a love for our spouse. A good marriage gives our children stability, confidence, and security. David's advise to Solomon is to get wisdom above all things. No wonder that is what Solomon asked for when God appeared to him in 2 Ch. 1:7-11. David was right; wisdom promoted Solomon and he was one of the greatest kings ever to live. It will also promote us and be our ornament of grace and crown of glory. It will prolong our life. It will keep us on the right path and keep us from stumbling. It will give us discernment so that we will not be deceived.
Those who reject God's wisdom are bent on doing evil. They stay awake at night trying to conceive a plan that will make us fall. They eat and drink wickedness and violence. But the path of the just is illumined with God's light and it just gets brighter and brighter. The more we walk with God the easier it is to hear his voice and obey. The path of the evil gets darker and darker and they lose all direction.
Lord, thank you for the light of your Word. May it illumine our paths today.

Mon.'s Devo - How excellent is Thy Name!

Read Pro. 3:18-26 5-17-10
Have you ever stopped to meditate on the wisdom it took to create this world? God made everything to need each other. Take the seed. God provided dirt, sunshine and rain to nourish the seed. God came up with seasons to tell us when to plant the seed and when to harvest it and he sends rain and sun in the right season so that the seed can mature. He has a specific benefit from each seed. Everyone and every thing is blessed from the produce of seeds whether it is for shelter or food. And seeds are just a small part of what God made. Who but God, full or wisdom could have thought of all this! Then there is the heavens: we know so little about the heavens, but what we do know is far above our comprehension. That same wisdom and understanding is offered to us if we choose to eat its fruits. Here are just some of the benefits of embracing God's wisdom: life to our soul, grace, freedom of fear of the night, sweet peaceful sleep, peace in times of sudden terror and the devastation of the devil. God will be our confidence and keep us from stumbling.
What a wonderful God you are! Who can understand your great wisdom and power? What is man, that you are mindful of him? and the son of man, that you visit him? For you have made him a little lower than the angles, and has crowned him with glory and honour. You made him to have dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under his feet. O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! (Ps. 8)

Fri.'s Devo - Get Wisdom

Read Pro. 3:13-18
Happiness is found in pursuing wisdom and understanding. It's rewards are more profitable than silver or gold and more precious than rubies. Only a wise person can understand this. If you chase after wisdom and understanding then the rewards are long life, riches, and honor. So why wouldn't anyone want that? It is because wisdom and understanding come over time - it is a process, and our world is in to the get-rich-quick syndrome. I've seen people who get things quick in life before they have the wisdom to know what to do about it and they can't maintain it so it becomes a stumbling block instead of a blessing. God wants his blessings to be just that - blessings. So if we pursue wisdom and understanding first, we will be able to handle the blessings when they come. They will be pleasant and bring peace because all the paths of wisdom lead to peace. The tree of life is ours for the taking through wisdom because wisdom is God's character. It is who he is and to get wisdom is to get God. He promises happiness to everyone that stays close to Him. What a wonderful promise.
Lord, thank you for being such an indescribably awesome God. You lavish us with good things. We seek your wisdom and understanding today.

Thurs.'s Devo - The Lord's Delight

Read Pro. 3:11-12
God is speaking to us as his son; one who builds the family name, which could be an individual or a nation. So to us or to our nation we are not to spurn the Lord's reproofs. I hate it when I know I have missed God's mark; but I love Him to tell me so I won't do it again. A couple of months ago I found myself playing God and trying to manipulate a situation because I though I knew best. When God chastised me and showed me what I was doing I was so ashamed and vowed I would never let that happen again. Well now I have a similar situation and found myself doing the same thing till I woke up and realized it. Thank God I stopped before it was too late. Being corrected by God hurts for the moment but is cleansing and joyful in the end. God only corrects us because he loves us and wants the very best for us. Verse 12 says that he corrects us because he delights in us. This means that he is pleased with us like the satisfaction you get when a debt is payed off. If our debt is fully paid to God then we can fellowship with nothing awkward or obligatory between us. That sounds like friendship to me.
Lord, help us to be builders of your holy name. Discipline us as the children in whom you delight. We delight to do your will.

Wed. Devo - Extravagant Giving

Read Pro. 3:9-10
I've always heard that a person's lordship is tied to the generosity of their wallet. It seems distorted that we would trust a financial investor which is always a risk and balk at giving to God our tithe when we are promised a sure return. God tells us the return: storehouses full of abundance and vats bursting with new wine. This is a physical return and a spiritual one. I am not saying we should not invest in the businesses of our world but our first investment should be the kingdom of God, then he will bless our other endeavors. If we have reservations about giving to the kingdom then it reveals our lack of understanding of God. He is the generous Father who is looking for ways to bless us but he has put that key in our pocket. We turn it by being generous. I often think when I'm at Sonic or somewhere where I can give a tip that I should be as generous and extravagant to them as I would want God to be with me. It is a freeing thought because it really is the greater blessing to give than to receive. Lord, increase our opportunities to invest in your Kingdom and may we be extravagant in our giving as you have been with us.

Tues.'s Devo - Bellybuttons and Bones

Read Pro. 3:7-8
It's hard not to be "wise in your own eyes" when the world teaches you to get an education, learn all you can, be the best, etc., etc. But the truth is we don't have anything God didn't give us and there is nothing new under the sun. The only way man discovers any new invention is because God reveals that knowledge to him. So the smartest thing we can do is fear God and depart from doing evil. God is the only thing that is true and he is wisdom personified. Departing from evil means choosing God and all the benefits that come with following him. When we do this it is health to our navels and marrow to our bones. Our navels, if we are female, are where the life that we carry gets nutrients to live. If we are male, then it is the center of our strength. Either way, choosing to follow God is our feeding tube to life and strength. The marrow of our bones is the tissue in our bones that gives our bones vitality like the Holy Spirit gives us God's life.
Lord, help us to remember that we can do nothing apart from you but with you nothing is impossible. Annoint us to impart your life to every person we encounter today.

Mon.'s Devo - Trust in the Lord

Read Pro. 3:5-6
In my walk with God I have come to understand that I have to trust God with my heart and obey even when it doesn't make sense. I was reading today in 1 Kings 17 where God told Elijah that there was going to be no dew or rain for the next few years. God had provided a brook where he hid Elijah and the ravens brought him food each morning and evening. When the brook dried up God told Elijah to go the the village of Zarephath where he had instructed a widow there to feed him. But, when he got there the widow was preparing her last meal for her and her son then she would be out of food. Did God forget to tell her that she was suppose to feed Elijah? And did God forget that the woman had no food? Elijah doesn't seem to stumble over this because he has learned that when God says something He has it figured out. He just told the woman to fix him something first, then themselves, and God would never let her run out of food again. She did and God did. What a lesson to not get discouraged when things don't exactly happen as you think they will.
I shared a while back about our mold in the house we are going to do a make-over in. The first mold expert came and said there was mold all up in the wall. I thought that was smart of God to document it first then do his miracle. Then the scientist came last week and said that there was no mold by the dryer at all and the mold around the windows was due to the faulty windows. So now they are planning to cut the sheet rock out around the windows and just replace that. This news is a miracle and I am praying that when they cut the sheet rock out they won't find any mold there either. Sometimes the way God does his thing is not the way we want him to but he is in control and our part is to trust him and invite him into our situations and let him direct us.
Thank you Lord that as the world gets more and more uncertain you become more and more certain.

Fri.'s Devo - The Tablets of Our Hearts

Read Prov. 3:1-4
Verse one is the key that the Israelites kept forgetting to do. They were to remember the laws that God had given them and keep them in their heart. It is one thing to know what is right to do and do it, but another thing to obey from the heart. Obeying from the heart was what God was looking for and still is. It is foolish not to obey God's laws because obeying them come with the promise of a long peaceful life. All the money in the world cannot buy peace and longevity but it is ours for the choosing. And if we want mercy and truth (God's kindness and stability) to stay with us we must bind them to our neck and write them on the tablets of our heart. When I think of binding something about my neck, I think of putting on a necklace. I absolutely love jewelry and sometimes it takes longer for me to pick out my jewelry than my clothes. It has to complement my outfit which is what mercy and truth does. If we wear it in our hearts it will embellish our outward appearance also. Our bodies are to be the temple of the Holy Spirit which means we have all the instruments of the Tabernacle in us. We have a brazen altar where we go to God and repent of our sins and give him the sacrifice of our lives. We have a laver where we wash ourselves and renew ourselves through the water of His Word. We have a table of shew bread where we partake of Christ's body through the Word and through our sacrificed lives. We have a candlestick where the Holy Spirit is lit in our lives and he gives us insight and understanding. We have an altar of incense where we pray and our prayers are like incense and we have a Holy of Holies where the altar of God dwells in our life and we can come boldly before him in prayer. Inside this altar is our heart where God has written his words. God has taken the words he wrote on stone tablets and written them on the fleshly tables of our hearts.
Lord, may we bind your words and your ways about our hearts so that we might find favor and understanding in the sight of God and man.

Thurs.'s Devo - Choose Life

Read Prov. 2:8-22
If we choose God's wisdom He will guard our path and put up a hedge around us. Wisdom helps us understand how to live a righteous life and make the right decisions. It leads us to the good path that is where we will prosper. God's way protects us from evil intentions and perversion. Those who refuse to choose the wisdom of God will walk in misery and destruction because of their ignorance. The irony of it is that they deceptively love their distorted ways. They seduce others to do the things they are doing because they have forsaken wisdom and God. All they have to look forward to is death. Those seduced by them spiral down the same path that leads to death and destruction.
But, those who choose righteousness will live in truth and enjoy a full life. Verse 21-22 says that we who are righteous shall dwell in the land and remain in it but the wicked shall to cut off from the earth and rooted out of it. I sometimes forget that in the end God is going to create a new heaven and a new earth and we will live on that earth again. God promised this new earth in Is. 65 and Peter said that the new earth would be a place where righteousness dwells (2 Pet. 3:13). John saw the new heaven and earth and the new Jerusalem coming down from God out of heaven. (Rev. 21:1) It would be inherited by those that overcame but the sinners would inherit the lake of fire. So like Duet 30:19 says, "I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your seed may life. Tomorrow is the National Day of Prayer and we choose life for our nation and call our nation back to the true and living God.

Wed.'s Devo -The Big Three

Read Pro. 2:1-7
All through Proverbs you see the three words wisdom, knowledge and understanding so let's see if we can define them. Websters says that wisdom is the power to judge rightly. Job said that the fear of the Lord was wisdom (job 28:28). The Psalms say that the fear of the Lord was the beginning of wisdom. Our scripture today says for us to incline our ear to wisdom. Wisdom is mentioned 234 times in the Bible and 53 times in Proverbs. I believe that wisdom comes with maturity. It is experiential knowledge which is why the older you become the more you should have. The only true wisdom comes from God.
The definition of knowledge is all about gaining facts and knowing information and principles. It is learned but not necessarily experienced. Knowledge is what we get at school and through reading our Bible. Wisdom is what we get when we apply that knowledge. Knowledge is mentioned 172 times in the Bible. There was a tree in the garden of Eden called the tree of knowledge of good and evil. If you ate its fruit you knew the facts about what was good and what was evil.
Understanding has to do with intelligence. You can listen to a teacher teach math all day but if you don't understand what she is saying it is unfruitful. Websters defines understanding as your mental quality; the power or ability to think, learn, judge, etc. It is mentioned 160 times in the Bible. Job said that to depart from evil was understanding.
We have different amounts of each of these qualities but reading the Bible and understanding the Proverbs can increase our capacity in each of these areas. With every piece of knowledge we gain God will give us a way to experience it so it will become wisdom. As we grow in knowledge we will gain the ability to understand and develope wisdom.
It is God that gives us wisdom, knowledge and understanding. Our part is to open our eyes to what he has made, observe it and ask questions. He has given us His Word which is the essence of Him so if we incline our spiritual ear to listen He will teach us.
Lord, we put our ear near to your mouth; cause us to hear and understand. We seek your wisdom, knowledge and understanding with all our hearts. May your wisdom be our shield and buckler that we may walk in innocence.

Tues.'s Devo - Listen...it will come.

Read Prov. 1:20-33
"Wisdom cries without." When I looked up what the Hebrew word "without" meant I found that it meant "to sever or properly separate by a wall". That is the purpose of wisdom: to separate God's ways from the worlds ways. He is shouting out his ways every where we go. We can't miss it if we are looking for it. But, the people who are not looking for God's wisdom are described as silly, simple, scoffers, and fools. They love being silly and delight in speaking slander against people who don't believe like they do and hate knowledge. Wisdom cries out to these people to turn from their foolishness and turn to her. Wisdom longs to pour out its spirit on those who will listen. God is so generous and long suffering that he calls out and reaches out his hand to everyone till he finally has to pull it back and judge them for refusing his wisdom. He, who wanted to be their god will become their enemy. He will laugh at their misfortune and dread. He knows that when devastation causes them to be afraid and destruction comes like a hurricane and they are in anquish that they will finally call on him, but he will not answer. He won't answer because they refused his words before all this happened. This is the fruit of their labor. They thought they didn't need God so they will have to make it on their own.
BUT, if we do listen to wisdom and do what it tells us to do, then we will live in safety and it shall be peaceful where we live. We will not live in fear or dread. What a comfort to us in the days we are living in. Thank you Lord for not disserting us. We choose to hear and follow your wisdom.

Mon.'s Devo - Chains about your Necks

Read Prov. 1:7-19
I'm sorry, I forgot to post Fri's devotion before I went out of town so here it is today.
Being able to really understand and see life as God made it, we must have a reverence of God. Fear of God is the first fruit of knowledge. The Bible calls a person who doesn't worship God a fool. People who are silly hate reproof and wisdom. If we are going to build the name of God and be a son or an heir we must hear our father's instruction and obey it. God made it so easy for us by writing it down and making it accessible to everyone. God's word adorns us with His favor. His Word is like a chains about our neck. I wonder if that is so we won't be easily turned or distracted. If we are enticed by sinners we are to resist. He gives us a great description of the tactics of the enemy:
1. They look for some innocent person to attack and kill
2. They prey on those who are alive and whole, full of integrity and strength
3. They entice them with wealth and other people's possessions
4. They promise unity and brotherhood but they are selfish and murderous
God says to walk away from them and choose another path to follow. They are quick to find evil and murder.
I just got back from visiting friends and relatives in Monroe, Shreveport, and Texarkana. I came home with 3 necklaces, two that were gifts from friends and one that was a fundraiser for a foundation set up after the loss of their son due to a boating accident. So each of them had meaning. I was contemplating the meaning of getting these necklaces when I just reread what I had written before I went that God's instructions are like chains about our necks. How sweet of God to manifest that truth in an physical way.
Lord, let your Words be our adornment.