Proverbs.

I've never been so intensely interested in reading Proverbs. I wonder how many people read Proverbs daily in addition to their daily devotions or Bible reading.

Proverbs**
can be read over and over again and it only gets better every time you read it. Daily instruction to daily living for God. A pathway to gaining wisdom and understanding which in turn helps you to understand God more and exactly why Solomon told God he wanted wisdom when asked what he wanted. Solomon must have wanted a knowledge of God, to understand God better, and to live the life God wanted him to live. A very successful, prosperous, and blessed life! God gave Solomon just that.

Now, don't forget; Solomon, being human, fell. So, read Proverbs, study it, and APPLY it to your life. Ask God to help you, ask the Holy Spirit to fill you and guide you. You cannot live a life of wisdom and understanding alone; you must have God to help you. You must be humble. Get rid of pride. Its a very hard thing to do. Getting rid of pride is like grating parmesan cheese with a very fine grater, expecting it to erode quickly. But it can be done.

Begin with a fear. A respectful, reverent fear of the Lord. Love Him. God is love. His love will flow through you and you in turn will love others.

Hunker down and listen for God

In the past two weeks, I've spent a lot of time just reading and analyzing. I think I analyze too much, but nevertheless, it's helped. I read two books. Shine: Make them wonder what you've got and Heaven is for Real. These two books have helped me tremendously and I believe it will help you as well.
I've been able to look at people and life from a different perspective and changed how my heart "works". From the book, Shine, I've learned to pray for the Lord to help me to decrease myself, die to self, and to let Christ increase. The book speaks of letting the light of Christ shine through your actions and overall lifestyle, but there is difficulty letting that light shine when there are obstructions, i.e., pride, selfishness, indulgences, etc. So, I've put into practice praying after waking and asking the wonderful Lord to help me start my day by being filled with the Spirit. No wonder Jesus spoke of the Holy Spirit as the Comforter! It is comforting! He helps me through the day and my heart swells with a new vigor to truly love and serve the Lord.