Corona Devo 1274

Ouch!  I am being prodded.  I know that God is using His Word (the Bible) and His people to drive me in His direction and for His glory.  

But it's painful.  

And...it's helpful--if our desire is to become more like our Savior.

The words of the wise are like cattle prods—painful but helpful. Their collected sayings are like a nail-studded stick with which a shepherd drives the sheep.  ~Ecclesiastes 12:11

Lord, You prod us, and we need it.  Our plans...our today...our lives-- are not ours...but Yours.  Let us--let YOU today.  You are moving in our lives.  You are prodding and driving us to realize that You have a plan and we are not at the center of it--You are.  Thank you for your wise words and for driving us closer to You...for Your glory.  Amen.

~~~

The closest I get to understanding this idea is as a parent.  We do our best to invest in our children by following the words of the wise from the Bible.  God's word is full of His love for us (His children), but there is much prodding as well.

Any good in our children today is a result of both the love of God through us and also our prodding (and sometimes driving) them.  Yes, it can be painful but in the long (spiritual) run, it will be helpful.

But I am reminded (as an adult!) of this verse and the Scriptural Truth of it all over again today:

The words of the wise are like cattle prods—painful but helpful. Their collected sayings are like a nail-studded stick with which a shepherd drives the sheep.  ~Ecclesiastes 12:11

Are we running into the same problems over and over again?  Or maybe they change, but there's always a barricade in front of us it seems?  Almost like God has put up a wall in that direction?  Or perhaps He is prodding us in a different direction.  

A guy named Balaam (in the Bible) couldn't see an angel in his path, but his donkey could, and his donkey would not proceed, and so Balaam beat and beat the donkey.  Until finally-- Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the roadway with a drawn sword in his hand. Balaam bowed his head and fell face down on the ground before him  (Numbers 22:3).

God "opened" Balaam's eyes to see (what the donkey had already seen): Balaam was not supposed to be going in that direction.   

Is God prodding us today?  Maybe even using a nail-studded stick with which (our) shepherd is driving us, His sheep?

~~~

Sometimes the prod or nail-studded stick is not physical, but emotional or spiritual.  We know something is not quite right.  We know we are in-sin, allowing-sin, or with-sin, or that we are in opposition to God.

We feel God's prod.  We are being poked by His spiritual nail-studded stick.

But are we changing our ways or softening our (prideful) stance?  Are we realizing that WE are the issue--not others, not society, not ____?

The words of the wise are like cattle prods—painful but helpful.  ~Ecclesiastes 12:11

Ouch!  I am being prodded. 

~~~

The words of the wise are like cattle prods—painful but helpful. Their collected sayings are like a nail-studded stick with which a shepherd drives the sheep.  

(13) That’s the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty. (14) God will judge us for everything we do, including every secret thing, whether good or bad.  ~Ecclesiastes 12:11, 13-14


There are no more "wise" words than those found in the Bible.  And those words (of our wise God) are like cattle prods—painful but helpful. Their collected sayings are like a nail-studded stick with which OUR shepherd drives HIS sheep.  

Lord, You prod us, and we need it.  Our plans...our today...our lives-- are not ours...but Yours.  Let us--let YOU today.  You are moving in our lives.  You are prodding and driving us to realize that You have a plan and we are not at the center of it--You are.  Thank you for your wise words and for driving us closer to You...for Your glory.  Amen.


Blessings,

sarah

https://sarahsundy04.blogspot.com 

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