Confession Series: My Inner Brat

One of my most difficult things to confess is how broken I really am.   I am very perceptive which often causes me to be very sensitive and feel insecure about things.  In my mind, I manage to twist things around to appear  negative in my eyes.  It's very difficult to face and confess these emotions.  It makes me feel very evil and mean.

You see, it's not so much about having my way as it is about proving myself to be so wise.  Now I am finally facing the music so to speak.  I throw in the towel, wave the white flag.  I surrender.  I am confessing to the world that I am such a brat sometimes.  So it's only fitting that I clean up my act and get some sense before I destroy my valuable relationships.  My husband, children, family and friends are so very dear to me.

Do we all have demons to face?  Sure we do.  And I'm finally ready to tackle my giants head on.  I am running toward this giant hill of lies from the enemy with my sword, the word of God.  I will focus on what God says about me.  I will no longer allow the enemy to ruin my mind.  The cure to this ailment is prayer (lots of it) and spending more time in the word instead of the world.  I will no longer allow myself to be so distracted by TV, blogging, money, etc......  Not that TV and blogging is wrong, but it is when I'm so wrapped up in catching the latest episode of "whatever" or making sure that people are reading my blogs in place of my alone time with God.  It doesn't even have to be a long time and I know this.

Not only that but it's always very comforting.  I love to pray, praise, worship and fellowship all in the name of Jesus.  It cleanses my soul which should be done daily.

Sooo, with all that being said, I am asking my readers to please send up sincere prayers for me to do what I know I should to protect my mind from evil thoughts and false accusations.  I also apologize to those that I have hurt with my words in the past.  And to those that I have complained about for hurting me in the past.  Today is a new day and "We're all in this together."

From my soul to yours,

Starla Danielle Espinoza

Proverbs for the People--"Wisdom"

While studying the book of proverbs, I noticed that the word "wisdom" is mentioned quite a bit. It looks like God values "wisdom"  so much, that in Proverbs 8:19 wisdom says, "My fruit is better than gold, even pure gold, and my yield than choicest silver." Recently the price of gold was over $1000 per ounce. I know because I recently sold some of my gold.  And the price is still going up right along with the price of gas.

I think if we realized the value of "wisdom"  we would work harder to obtain it.

Proverbs 8:35 says, "For whoever finds me "wisdom" finds life and wins approval from the Lord."

So basically, in the same way that the world finds such high value in silver and gold, God holds an even higher value to "wisdom".  I would say that for a person like me, seeking and finding "wisdom" is a lot easier than obtaining valuable materials like silver and gold. This is very comforting to know, especially since nothing we desire, can be compared with wisdom in God's eyes.

According to the bible, words of "wisdom"  bring healing, good advice, success, insight and strength. (Proverbs 14, 18) As valuable as silver and gold are to this world, I know they don't come with good advice or healing.

"Wisdom"  means knowledge of what is true, or right coupled with good judgement as to action. It requires control of your emotional reactions so that your principles, reason and knowledge help you to determine your actions. A good example for me would be when I am angry about something. Anger is an emotion that can have a decent outcome if I react with "wisdom" for a favorable outcome. Now the question is, how often do I exercise "wisdom" when I am emotional?  Not nearly as often as I should but I'm learning something new every day so pray for me.

I don't believe that "wisdom" is inherited but I do believe that it can be obtained through experience (age) or directly from God. The first step in acquiring "wisdom" is to make up your mind that you want it and will strive to obtain it. All you have to do is seek and you will find, ask and you shall receive. You see, God gives knowledge and "wisdom" freely to those who ask.  How encouraging is it to know that the things God requires us to know or have are not difficult to obtain?  Just remember that to whom much is given, much is required.  So the more you know, the more that God expects you to act like you know and act like you have some sense.

The last point that I would like to make about "wisdom", is the comparison in contrast to foolishness.
 "A fool is quick tempered, but a "wise"  person stays calm when insulted," Proverbs 12:16
If you are able to just ignore an insult, that says a lot about your character.  It really takes a "wise"  person to be able to do that and not react in the same way that a fool does.
"Whoever walks with the "wise"  will become "wise" ; whoever walks with fools will suffer harm," Proverbs 13:20
You see, we do need to be careful about the company that we keep. Ya know, the people that we surround ourselves with. Basically, if you wanna hang with fools, just remember, birds of the same feathers flock together. Don't get caught up in no mess with fools, ya dig?

Peace out until next time.