Sensible people . . . earn respect by
overlooking wrongs. Proverbs 19:11 nlt
Today’s Scripture Proverbs 19:8-13
Today's Insights God told Solomon,
“I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have
been anyone like you, nor will there ever be” (1 Kings 3:12). Over time,
Solomon authored many of the proverbs. His divine wisdom, however, didn’t
prevent him from great acts of foolishness. In Deuteronomy 17:16-17, God warned
that when Israel had a king, he wasn’t to multiply horses (a symbol of military
security) or foreign wives (political alliances for security of the throne).
The clear implication was that the king was to find his security in God,the one
true king of Israel. Solomon foolishly ignored those warnings, acquiring so
many horses that he needed to build cities for their keeping and care (1 Kings
10:26). In addition, he accumulated seven hundred wives and three hundred
concubines (11:3). These women turned Solomon’s heart away from God (v. 4). Due
to Solomon’s foolishness, God dealt with him in judgment (vv. 9-13).
Today's Devotional
When I entered my church after
several months of quarantine, I was excited to see members I hadn’t seen in a
while. I realized that some members, especially older ones, just wouldn’t be
back—some due to safety reasons and others, unfortunately, because they’d
passed from this life. So I was quite excited when I spotted an older couple
coming into the sanctuary and taking their normal seat behind me. I waved at
them both. The man returned my greeting, while his wife stared at me without
even smiling. I was hurt and wondered why.
It was a few Sundays later that I observed the same woman (who hadn’t
returned my greeting) being helped by a friend who was showing her when to
stand or sit—acting as her caregiver. My old church friend was apparently very
sick and hadn’t recognized me. I’m glad I didn’t approach her or even get upset
when she didn’t return my enthusiastic greeting. Proverbs offers a lot of advice for living
wisely, and not being easily offended is one of its gems. In fact, it says
“sensible people . . . earn respect by overlooking wrongs” (19:11 nlt).
Choosing not to get offended and learning to “control [our] temper” (v. 11 nlt)
can bring us honor. It may require patience and “wisdom” (v. 8), but the
rewards also are well worth getting over ourselves and choosing to love others.
Reflect & Pray When werefense?
God of mercy, thank You for overlooking the times I’ve offended You. Please give me the wisdom to do the same for others. Katara Patton
“人有见识就不轻易发怒，宽恕人的过失便是自己的荣耀。”（箴言 19:）
今日经文 箴言 19章8-13 节
今日心得 上帝告诉所罗门，“我 you offended by someone’s actions?
When is it the right thing to overlook an offense?
God of mercy, thank You for
overlooking the times I’ve offended You. Please give me the wisdom to do the
same for others. Katara Patton
“人有见识就不轻易发怒，宽恕人的过失便是自己的荣耀。”（箴言 19:）
今日经文 箴言 19章8-13 节
今日心得 上帝告诉所罗门，“我必赐你聪明智慧，甚至在你以前没有像你的，在你以后也没有像你的”（列王纪上
3:12）。此后，所罗门写下了许多箴言。然而，神赐他的智慧并没有阻止他做出愚蠢的事。在申命记
17:16-17 中，上帝曾警告说，以色列的国王不要增加马匹（军事安全的象征）或娶外国妻子（为王位安全而结成的政治联盟）。这显然意味着，国王应该在以色列唯一真正的国王，上帝那里找到他的安全感。所罗门愚蠢地无视这些警告，他养了太多马匹，以至于需要建造城市来饲养和照料它们（列王纪上10:26）。此外，他还娶了七百个妻子和三百个妾（11:3）。这些女人使所罗门的心远离上帝（4节）。所罗门的愚蠢使上帝的审判临到他（9-13节）。
今日灵修 经过几个月的隔离后，当我走进教堂时，我很高兴看到很久没见过的成员。我意识到有些成员，尤其是年长的，不会回来了，有些是出于安全原因，有些是因为他们不幸已经离开了这个世界。所以当我看到一对老夫妇走进圣所坐在我身后他们常坐的位上时，我非常兴奋。我向他们俩挥手。那位男士回应了我的问候，而他的妻子盯着我看，甚至没有笑。我很伤心，不知道她为什么这样。几个星期后，我看到这位没有回应我问候的女士正在被一个朋友照顾着，这个朋友扮演她的看护者，告诉她什么时候站着或坐下。显然，我教区的这位老朋友病得很重，她没有认出我。我很高兴我没有接近她，甚至没有因为她不回应我热情的问候而感到不安。
箴言为明智生活提供了很多建议，而不要轻易生气就是其中的精华之一。事实上，它说“人有见识就不轻易发怒，宽恕人的过失便是自己的荣耀”（19:11）。选择不生气并学会“控制[我们的]脾气”（11节）可以为我们带来荣誉。这可能需要耐心和“智慧”（8节），但是，克服自我，选择爱他人的，是有回报的，是值得我们这样做的。
反思和祈祷 你什么时候被某人的行为冒犯了？什么时候忽视冒犯是正确的？
仁慈的上帝，感谢您忽略了我冒犯您的那些时刻。请赐给我智慧，让我也能为他人做同样的事情。
卡塔拉·巴顿
