3. The integrity of the upright guides them,
but the crookedness of the unfaithful destroys them.
4. Wealth does not profit in the day of wrath,
but the righteousness delivers from mortal danger.
5. The righteousness of the blameless will make
straight their way, but the wicked person
will fall by his own wickedness. Proverbs 11:3–6
To dive into this portion of the passage, we weighed the benefits of righteous living verses wicked living. In the discussion, the illustration of the Little Box was introduced.
A “Litter Box” is an invention most associated with cats. One of our guest shared that the litter box she provides for her can serves as a place where waste is made. Then further spoke that the box can get to a point of capacity if not cleaned out. When this occurs, the box can get to a place where the smell of the box makes it unbearable for the cat to perform the duties in which the box was designed to handle.
For discussion, the “Litter Box” was equated to our Living Space or Life Span. Through our existence, we encounter life’s situations and circumstances. They can not be avoided, but must be faced and handled. We must be cognoscente in our encounters that our actions reap a harvest, and leave significant marks on our lives and the lives of those we encounter. And each encounter has the potential to become a mess.
How is your Box?
The scripture reveals to us a truth about the wages of wickedness. He will suffer from his/her own mess. This person will be forced to live in a box filled with the mess that they have created! How is your Box? Is your box once that is so congested that each step is a challenge? Is your life’s challenge to avoid the foolishness of the decisions you have made and the people you have wronged? As spoke, many of us have lives that just stink! We have accumulated such mess from mishandled situations and circumstances, that we have become overpowered by the stench of our own existence.
The cat is blessed in that he can mess up the box, and when the smell becomes overpowering, he can find another place to leave the waste. The shame of this is unlike the cat, we can not avoid our box. We are forced to live in this box called life. We do not have the ability to separate our existence.
I asked myself, “What’s in my Box?” Thus I ask you the same!
“What’s in your Box?”
Are you a desperate cat scratching and clawing to find a place that you have not created a mess in, and now feeling the burden and weight of your actions? Is the stress in your life a result of your wicked living and loose morals? If so’ It’s time to clean up your box! And once clean, we must Keep our Box Clean!
Keeping your box clean means properly managing relationships from the present point on. It also means you might be required to seek out strained relationships and to repair and restore them to something that reflects Christ. This also might require humility and also forgiveness. Humility could be found in accepting acts of kindness, even for those whom you swore you would never take a sip of water from. Forgiveness might be your narrative if approached from one who has wronged you. You might be required to release one from their past actions, and to propel them towards a Clean Box of Freedom.
A Clean Box requires discipline and change. We must allow the Word of God to change us, and the Holy Spirit to direct us. Most of us cant live in peace because we refuse to apply God’s Word to our lives, choosing to memorize it, and or find its value in applying its truths towards other, while living a fictional existence of perfection. The Word takes no root in our lives! Though it is broken down and consumed, it is not digested. In essence, we are bulimic believers! We stuff ourselves with The Word, but do not digest and distribute its nutrients to our body.
Lastly, keeping a Clean Box means being obedient to the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is to be our teacher and our guide, as well as the power we need to control our flesh. Yielding to the Holy Spirit will allow us to keep our boxes clean because its will is to please God in every way. The Holy Spirit gives wisdom on when to walk away and how to respond. It points us towards the mark of Christ, and serves as a counselor while going through, giving you not only God’s perspective, but helping you keep a proper perspective on yourself and other bringing about deeper understanding.
#PastorJDO3
