Day at the Races: The First Turn! — Tuesday
Proverbs 15:32-33
If you reject discipline, you only harm yourself; but if you listen to correction, you grow in understanding. Fear of the Lord teaches wisdom; humility precedes honor. (NLT)
Yesterday we learned that we need to flee from the worldly things that will take root in our lives if left unchecked. Today, we have a more positive topic: perseverance. Continuing in 1 Timothy 6:11, Paul encourages Timothy to pursue righteousness and a godly life, along with faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness.
An interesting thing to consider is the subtle tense selection of verse 11—Paul writes in the present tense because both the pursuit of righteousness and fleeing evil are ongoing objectives, and they will likely ebb and flow throughout life.
My dog, Woodrow, is paralyzed in his hind legs. One of his favorite things that has persisted regardless of his mobility is his desire to bring something to anyone who comes into our home. He’s a wild fella, though, so the things he wants to bring are always blankets and pillows that are off limits, and he offers them to guests as if they’re toys to play tug-of-war with. You may think a half-mobile dog would be an easy tug-of-war opponent, but you’d be surprised—I think under all of his fur, he must have abs of steel because he is still formidable.
When I think of the struggle between our pursuit of righteousness and worldly things, I’m reminded of the way tug-of-war matches typically end: There’s a stalemate that eventually is broken and leads to the rope (your life) and the losing opponent (your fleshly desires) tumbling the way of the winner (righteousness).
We see a similar theme in Proverbs 15 as we do in the commands Paul gives Timothy. Both books have a back-and-forth writing style where we observe a “reap what you sow” cause-and-effect result. In this style, it’s clear that when we break the stalemate in our life—that is, when we decide we want to pursue righteousness over our selfish desires—we are promised that the things of the Spirit will fill our life, including faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness.
So, which side of the rope do we want to be on: selfishness that will invite heartbreak, cowardice, harshness, disbelief, and doubt into our life, or righteousness that will propel us toward faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness?
Tuesday’s Reflection
Consider today what you’re pursuing in life. Which side of the stalemate do those pursuits seem to live on? Do you need to change sides and pursue a godly life instead? Pray that the Lord helps you do just that.
