Proverbs_15

Scripture  Proverbs 15:16-18 

16 Better is a little with the fear of the Lord, Than great treasure and turmoil with it.  Better is a dish of vegetables where love is, Than a fattened ox served with hatred.  A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, But the slow to anger calms a dispute. Observation-What does it say?  Solomon’s proverbs use sayings that show their point with deep contrasts, the second half of the saying being the antithesis of the first half.  The proverbs “reveal sound psychology and accurate observation of life” (Butterworth).  Furthermore, they demonstrate what life looks like when guided by wisdom instead of folly.  In these verses, Solomon expresses how having a little in peace is better than living in luxury that is coupled with strife.  Or, to quote a notoriously big rapper (pun intended), “It's like the more money we come across,The more problems we see.” Understanding-What does it mean?  For a long time, the holiday season brought me a great deal of anxiety.  Early in high school, my family split and my brother and I soon had to deal with going to multiple different locations and eating multiple meals for the holiday, whether it was Thanksgiving or Christmas, etc..  The magic of the holidays, and their ability to bring people together to celebrate was lost.  It actually got worse when I got married.  Two people, who come from divorced households, equals a lot of in-laws.  Oddly enough, the movie “Four Christmases” came out the same year we got married and I could totally relate.      The holidays often bring anxiety to people, so much so that hospitals experience a higher number of cardiac emergencies during the holiday times.  We are now deep into that season and we are traditionally gathering with relatives and avoid talking about two things, religion and politics.  But, this year we seem to not be gathering enough, talking about politics too much and could use a little more religion.  For a lot of people, we are in a season of having a little less than in years past.  It took me several years to look past the disappointment of my family and look to the real reason we celebrate, which is God’s faithfulness.  God was faithful to send His son and he continues to be faithful.  We may be in a season where we are weeping while we sow, but God will be faithful and we will reap in joy (Psalm 126).  When we seek the lord, He is faithful to meet us and renew our strength (Isaiah 40:27-31).  So even though we seem to be in a time with little, we have much when our peace is found in the Lord. Life Application  Jesus, help me to spread your joy to those around me in this season.  Help me to be a light on a hill for all to see.  Help me to rejoice in your faithfulness, despite being surrounded by what seems like a world of strife.  Thank you for your love and faithfulness in a world that is not faithful.      -Tyler Galloway

Acts__9

Scripture - What stood out?ACTS 9 

...Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus. 20 At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God.Observation - What does it say?Acts 9 recounts Saul’s conversion and immediate thrust into ministry preaching Jesus as the Messiah. Saul who had mercilessly persecuted Jesus and his followers, is miraculously converted by Jesus with the help of the Holy Spirit.Understanding - What does it mean?I could probably write about the story of Saul of Tarsus who later became known as the apostle Paul for a very very long time. But what stood out to me about this chapter in Acts was how quickly Saul began to preach about Jesus. Not just anywhere either but in the synagogues where the same Jewish leaders, (where Saul himself!) were trying to root out and persecute and destroy Jesus followers!Saul began preaching after several days. This is what stood out to me in Amos 6:1 Woe to you who are complacent in Zion…Saul began proving to the Jewish leaders pretty much immediately after his conversion that Jesus was in fact the anointed one, the son of David, the son of God Himself.Life Application - How can I apply this to my life today?Lord it has been heavy on my heart lately, that I am not moving with enough urgency in all that you have asked me to do. I don’t know what to do differently because I get so caught up with the world. I know that my place in Your story is different from the apostle Paul’s but I also know I have grown complacent. Help me to hear the Holy Spirit speaking to me. Where do I need to improve? Where do I need to grow? Show me Lord the areas of my complacency, where I may be blind, and peel away the scales from my eyes. In the name of Jesus do I pray, amen.-kenneth lee 

Proverbs___13

Scripture

Proverbs 13:20 NLT

“Walk with the wise and become wise; associate with fools and get in trouble.”

Observation-What does it say?

King Solomon is considered to be one of the wisest people in the Bible. He was said to be the wisest of all the kings. His wisdom was given to him by God. He uses the book of Proverbs to pass along this wisdom he was blessed with to future generations and to anyone who is willing to listen and take heed to it. Here is another one of Solomon’s wise truths.

Understanding-What does it mean?

Show me your friends and I’ll tell you who you are.

It’s a saying we have all heard before. I think it derived from this verse too. King Solomon knew the troubles that would arise if you hung out with the wrong people. He also knew the benefits that associating with the right people can bring.

I can tell you from experience that this saying holds true. When I was younger, I hung out with knuckleheads. Needless to say, I was a knucklehead. I found myself doing things that I really shouldn’t have been doing. I was pretty much a sheep, following the lead of even dumber sheep. It was a life that probably would have had me ending up in trouble with the law, working dead-end jobs barely making ends meet, or even dead! I am glad that God got a hold of me before it was too late! It’s because of God, I was able to get my life together. He surrounded me with the right people, wise people; people in my life who would stick with me no matter what. He put people in my life who would challenge me to be a better person, a better Christ Follower. And let me tell you, because of these people God surrounded me with, (people I hang out with and call my friends), I am who I am today.

In order to be that person God wants you to be, you gotta have that great supporting cast around you. What kind of people are you choosing to surround yourself with?

Life Application

Be part of God’s family. Plug into all that DSC has to offer to connect, even during this Covid season.

At DSC, we still have creative avenues to stay connected to the Body even through quarantine. Here are some of the ways: Sunday Livestream/Chat, Wednesday Worship/Chat, Sermons/Worship/Youth/Kids stuff on our DSC YouTube channel, Pastor Gary’s Christmas devotional (available on Amazon), Monday Zoom Bible studies, Daily Bible readings and Soul Journals, Justin’s Prophetic Zooms, Personal Phone Calls/Texts/Emails/Social Media, FaceTime/Zoom, Special Drop offs (food/gifts), Mail, Sunday Surge (Youth) on Instagram Live, Surge Hangouts on Zoom, Kids Church Zooms, Sunday Zoom Prayer Team, Kids Church teaching, Video/multimedia ministry, DSC Parking Lot stuff (worship, donations, and upcoming Christmas service), etc. 

We must continue to surround ourselves with people who want the same thing as us...to become better disciples of Jesus Christ.

“As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend.”-Proverbs 27:17

-Moses Gaddi