Devotional Song: … GO TO THIS LINK … Please once again take the time to once again take in a video of Frank Sinatra singing the anthem of fools My Way, declaring the course in life take by fools … to do life my way rather than God’s … and THEN TO THIS LINK to hear Hillsong singing the anthem of wisdom when life is difficult, singing I Surrender .
Highlight Passage 2nd Kings 5: 13 [NKJV] …
13 And his [Naaman’s] servants came near and spoke to him, and said, “My father, if the prophet had told you to do something great, would you not have done it? How much more then, when he says to you, ‘Wash, and be clean’?”
… Good advice from Naaman’s servants - truth is sometimes hard to take because of pride.
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Highlight Context - 2nd Kings 5: 1-15 [NKJV] … USE THIS LINK …
… Naaman’s pride almost causes him to fall to self rather than be cured by the Savior
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Reference Passage #1 - Proverbs 3: 5-6 [NKJV] …
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths.
… His way - ALWAYS!!
Reference Passage #2 - Proverbs 3: 34 [NKJV] …
34 Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.
… God’s advice when life is hard.
Reference Passage #3 - Luke 9: 23 [NKJV] …
23 Then [Jesus] said to them all (His followers), … “If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me. ... "
… Tough to do when we want to do life our own way.
Reference Passage #4 - Proverbs 16: 18 [NKJV] …
18 Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.
… God’s advice when life is hard.
Reference Passage #5 - James 4: 6-7 [NKJV] … USE THIS LINK ...
… Not MY WAY … but God’s
My Journal for Today: Today’s Our Daily Bread author, Marion Stoud, uses an illustration of how children often handle conflict when playing a game. He writes: Two small boys were playing a complicated game with sticks and string. After a few minutes the older boy turned to his friend and said crossly, “You’re not doing it properly. This is my game, and we play it my way. You can’t play anymore!” The desire to have things our own way starts young!
It’s true, isn’t it … that we so often get hung up on pride and let our desire to have life go our own way lead us over the precipice to a fall? All too often I’m afraid I would rather live by the song of Frank Sinatra, linked above, which turns out to be the anthem of fools, that is, doing life “My Way,” rather than doing our lives as Hillsong sings in the other song linked above, by surrendering all to God and letting Him lead the way for us in life (see all of the Proverbs above).
The ODB author today uses the story of Naaman’s pride [see highlight passage] and how, when he finally yielded to God’s way rather than trying to do life his own way, God gave him healing. And all of this begs the question, … just Whom are we following [see Luke 9: 23]? Because if we want to do life as Frank Sinatra sings above, we’re going to head ourselves toward a fall. But if we’re willing to do life in surrender to our Savior, He will lead us in the way everlasting.
Our choice, … isn’t it?
My Prayer Today: Oh Lord, … prayerfully always I choose You!! Amen
Blogger Note: Everyday during this year, my daily devotional blogs are influenced by the reading and study of the online devotional blog entitled Our Daily Bread, distributed online via email by RBC Ministries. If you GO TO THIS LINK on the date of my blog, you can read/study the ODB blogs; or you can subscribe to the blog via email at that site.
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