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369 | Conversations - Proverbs 16: Walking with Wisdom · The Woman at the Well Ministries Podcast

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Music.
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Hello, friends, and welcome back to another podcast of Woman at the Well Ministries,
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where we believe that all of us have to come to Jesus like the woman at the well in John chapter 4.
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Our highest priority is making God real in your life.
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Whether you are listening in our app, in your favorite podcasting app,
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or on our website at watwm.org,
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we invite you to sit down with us as we look to the scriptures to learn more
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about God and to strengthen your daily walk with Jesus Christ.
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Living a life for Christ. She's a happy girl.
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Music.
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She's a happy girl.
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In this episode of the Woman at the Well Ministries podcast,
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join Kim Miller and Erica Close in a conversation as we walk with Jesus.
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In today's conversation, we continue a series on the book of Proverbs.
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And in today's podcast, we're discussing the lessons learned in Proverbs chapter 16.
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Well, hello, everyone, and thank you for joining us. I am Erica Close,
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and I am here with Kim Miller.
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Hello, and thank you for joining us in this podcast of Woman at the Well Ministries
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as we take a close look at Proverbs 16.
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We're excited to look at Proverbs 16. There's a number of different topics that
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are brought up in Proverbs 16, things like the ways of men, how humanity Lives,
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a whole passage on happiness, some really important verses on pride.
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There's a section in there on sort of civic responsibility. What are our responsibilities
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as citizens of a country?
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And then there's one really special verse about the crown of age,
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and we'll talk about that.
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But why don't we go ahead and read through the passage first through Proverbs
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chapter 16. The preparations of the heart in man and the answer of the tongue is from the Lord.
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All the ways of a man are clean in his own eyes, but the Lord weigheth the spirits.
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Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established.
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The Lord hath made all things for himself, yea, even the wicked for the day of evil.
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Everyone that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord.
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Though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished.
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By mercy and truth, iniquity is purged, and by the fear of the Lord, men depart from evil.
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When a man's ways please the Lord, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.
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Better is a little with righteousness than great revenues without right.
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A man's heart diviseth his way, but the Lord directeth his steps.
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A divine sentence is in the lips of the king his mouth transgresseth not in
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judgment a just weight and balance are the lord's all the weights of the bag are his work.
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It is an abomination to kings to commit wickedness, for the throne is established by righteousness.
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Righteous slips are the delight of kings, and they love him that speaketh right.
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The wrath of a king is as messengers of death, but a wise man will pacify it.
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In the light of the king's countenance is life, and his favor is as a cloud of the latter rain.
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How much better is it to get wisdom than gold, and to get understanding rather than to be chosen?
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Than silver. The highway of the upright is to depart from evil.
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He that keepeth his way preserveth his soul.
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Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.
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Better it is to be of an humble spirit with the lowly than to divide the spoil with the proud.
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He that handleth a matter wisely shall find good, and whoso trusteth in the Lord, happy is he.
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The wise in heart shall be called prudent, and the sweetness of the lips increaseth learning.
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Understanding is a wellspring of life unto him that hath it,
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but the instruction of fools is folly.
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The heart of the wise teacheth his mouth, and addeth learning to his lips.
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Pleasant words are as in honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones.
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There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
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He that laboreth, laboreth for himself, for his mouth craveth it of him.
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An ungodly man diggeth up evil, and in his lips there is as a burning fire.
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A froward man soweth strife, and a whisperer separateth chief friends.
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A violent man enticeth his neighbor, and leadeth him into the way that is not good.
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He shutteth his eyes to devise forward things.
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Moving his lips, he bringeth evil to pass. The hoary head is a crown of life,
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if it be found in the way of righteousness.
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He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he that ruleth his spirit
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than he that taketh a city.
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The lot is cast into the lap, but the whole disposing thereof is of the Lord.
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There's a lot of things in Proverbs chapter 16, but let's start looking at all
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of these verses that talk about the ways of man.
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A lot of these verses talk about the ways of man and how the man takes steps,
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like that very first verse.
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The preparations of the hardened man and the answer of the tongue is from the Lord.
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The ultimate answer to all things that should be how we as humans devise our
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way should be coming from the Lord.
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But it doesn't always happen. That's where we get our wisdom.
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So the wise man speaks from what the Lord tells him.
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And I believe the second verse is probably the downfall of man.
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Yes. Because we all think we're right.
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And sometimes we can't even pick why we think we're right. We just assume we
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think it, so it must be right.
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I like that that verse also says, The Lord weighteth the spirits, right? The Lord judges.
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We think we're right, but it's the Lord that judges.
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Verse 3 is a wonderful verse. Commit thy works unto the Lord,
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and thy thoughts shall be established. Hallelujah.
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The Lamb. That's like a commandment, right?
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We just need to commit our works, commit our ways, commit the things that we're
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doing to the Lord and follow after Him.
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Verse 4 says, The Lord hath made all things for Himself, yea,
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even the wicked for the day of evil.
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The Lord's plan is that we would do the things that He calls us to do.
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He made us, He created us unto good works. We read in Ephesians,
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right? We're created unto good works.
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We're created to do the things that he calls us to do, but often our ways are
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not in congruence with what he has called.
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Verse seven says that when a man's ways please the Lord, he maketh even his
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enemies to be at peace with him.
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So there's a blessing when our ways please the Lord.
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And verse nine, A man's heart deviseth his way, but the Lord directeth his steps.
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We may think we have a plan, but it's the Lord who really has the plan.
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And then if we're sticking with the ways of man, we skip over to verse 17.
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And he says, the highway of the upright is to depart from evil.
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He that keepeth his way preserveth his soul. And I think people are not truly
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understanding that your actions have a consequence.
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And when he says he that is upright and departs from evil preserves his soul,
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he's saying those who choose Jesus, choose to follow him,
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choose to call him master and Lord.
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Those are the ones who are going to fare well and win in the end because they're
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the ones who are not going to die in hell, but they are going to have eternal life in heaven.
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And it matters how you live. Amen.
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And how you live is directly correlated to what you believe.
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And what you believe is directed as to whether you believe in Jesus Christ as
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your Savior, or whether you do not.
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And if you do not, you are bound for hell, and your life is going to be,
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filled with all of those kind of consequences, as opposed to if you believe
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in the only begotten Son of Jesus as your Savior, then your life is going to
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be filled and demonstrate the presence of God in it. Amen.
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The last verse that kind of talks about the ways of men is verse 25.
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It says, there is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are
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the ways of death. I think the important word here is seemeth.
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Oftentimes things may seem right or appear right, But so often that is an incredible
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tool of the devil, taking things that seem right, but really aren't.
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And I think that this verse indicates that this is one of the times when we really need to sort of,
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test things out. We need to look that if something is set before us,
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if that action event opportunity that's set before us, if it's in alignment
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with God's Word and in alignment with things that we know to be true about the Lord.
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Then we can know that it's the right thing.
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But if it just seems right, even though it doesn't quite fit,
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we really need to be careful there because it may not be coming from the Lord.
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So often we think that every good, what seems like a good opportunity is coming
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from the Lord, but not every good shiny opportunity comes from him.
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Because it's not solid shiny. It's not solid gold or solid silver.
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It's interesting how the devil gets at us. He usually doesn't get us overtly.
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It's usually a subtle thing. And so he'll take something that is very right
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and he twists it, like the difference between love and lust.
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He'll take something that has some
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merit and then he puts his darkness on
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it and we find that it changes
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it into something that is that is dark and what we see in this is that he takes
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people's talents their skills their intellect things that are gifts and fruits
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that he's given them and they use them for him.
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And then with Tom, he subtly convinces them that apart from God,
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they would still have those things.
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So he takes the pride of life and he literally lassos many,
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many people because they get
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so puffed up in their own right that they neglect to properly attribute.
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Their blessings to the Lord, and they begin to think that they can do it themselves,
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and in their own arrogance, they create their own fall.
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Absolutely. Since you brought up pride, let's talk about pride,
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because there's three verses in this chapter that talk really clearly about
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pride. The first one is verse five.
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Everyone that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord.
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Though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished.
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I think this, one of the things, obviously there's something in here about pride,
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but to me, this also said, even when others agree, something can still be wrong.
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Sometimes we go looking for confirmation about a decision we're going to make
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from all of our friends, right?
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And even if they agree, if we don't have that confirmation from the Lord, then it's not right.
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And the first part of this verse is really clear, that if we're proud in our
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hearts, it's an abomination unto the Lord.
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But then verses 18 and 19 also talk very clearly about pride.
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He pretty clearly says pride is what leads to a fall and destruction absolutely,
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and he says it's better to be in an humble spirit with the lowly.
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Than to divide spoil with pride. It's better to be humble and have humility
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with those who are not considered the social elite than it is to hang with the in crowd.
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Humility is an absolute must for a Christian because you must be humble to submit
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yourself to the authority of God.
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Because so much of how we act, so much of the ways of man, of our ways,
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is truly about who we see that God is.
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And if we really have God on the throne of our lives and not ourselves,
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we're going to be able to live the way he calls us to live.
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Erica, I think this next section that we're going to talk about in Proverbs
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16, which is happiness 20 through
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24, I think is of utmost importance for every Christian to look at.
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Because who wants what you have if you walk around looking like you've been
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baptized face forward in pickle juice?
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I mean, who wants that? Who wants to be around you? Oh, it's my birthday.
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Nobody remembers. I mean, who wants to be around this person who is consistently.
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Negative, sad, causing chaos, who is just miserable?
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Where's the joy of the Lord in that? Where's the love of God in that?
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Just knowing that we once were lost, but now we're found, should bring joy to your heart.
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Just knowing that the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords knows you by name,
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calls you by name, created a place for you that you might live with him eternally
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into the heavens where there's no rust, there's no sin, there's no tears,
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there's nothing to corrupt.
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Should be enough to make you wear a smile and to know this world is but a vapor.
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It's a temporary place. We're just pilgrims and strangers in this land looking
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for a city whose builder and maker is God.
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Amen. And so many things in how we act reflect the happiness, right?
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Reflect the joy that we have.
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Verse 20 talks about, he that handleth a matter wisely shall find good.
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When we are wise in how we handle different matters in our lives, we will find good.
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Good will come to us. Because we will be heeding God's word and his counsel.
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And whoso trusteth in the Lord, right?
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When we trust in the Lord, happy is he.
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When we're wise in our hearts, we'll be called prudent, right?
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And then the sweetness of the lips increaseth learning when we're kind in what we say.
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You know, I think there's something to be said about that, to look at that on both sides.
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Communication requires both a speaker and a hearer or a listener.
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And I think when we are speaking wisdom or we're speaking what the Lord gives
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us, sometimes we're learning as we're speaking it.
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And so using wisdom, operating out of wisdom and being wise in every situation,
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calling in the presence of the Lord,
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both of you, the listener and the speaker, has an opportunity to learn.
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It's a win-win when you have Jesus on the scene. Amen. Amen.
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Verse 22 tells us that understanding is a wellspring of life, right? It gives us life.
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Understanding of what's going on, understanding of who God is,
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that leads to us having a happy heart.
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You know, one of the things that always reminds me of as we speak about that verse is that...
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When we speak in verse 22 with wisdom, and we're trying to convince someone who's foolish,
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that in itself is just a futile activity.
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We need to speak what God tells us to speak in love, and we need to give them the word through us.
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But the Bible says not to have idle talk. The Bible says you don't just talk for the sake of talking.
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And the Bible tells you not to argue the scriptures. The scriptures will prove themselves.
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And to try to just have a conversation with an unreasonable person who is not
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wise isn't a wise thing to do because you're basically just fueling a problem, causing chaos.
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Building frustration for yourself, and surely are getting nowhere.
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So we have to be wise in how far we take a conversation.
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If a person isn't able to listen or capable of doing it, say what you need to
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say in the most loving manner.
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Say only what God is asking you to say and then walk away.
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I don't argue scriptures. There isn't anything to argue. It is the truth and
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the truth will set you free.
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And what it says, he means. And what it says is true.
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That's the end of the story. It's not my opinion, not my suggestion,
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not my recommendation. It is the truth.
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Verse 23 speaks to that same thing when it says, the heart of the wise teacheth
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his mouth and addeth learning to his lips.
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Our hearts, which is where we commune with God, teach us what to say and give
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us the learning that we need for the things that we're going to say.
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Which is why David said in Psalms 139, search me, O God, and know my heart today.
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See if there be any wicked way in me. Verse 24, pleasant words are as in honeycomb,
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sweet to the soul and health to the bones.
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It matters what we say. It matters how you live and it matters what you say
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and it matters what you allow into your heart because Because out of the heart,
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man speaks. Absolutely.
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So there's two sections here kind of about civic responsibility.
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Verses 10 through 15 talk a lot about what we're supposed to do and what rulers
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and kings really are supposed to do.
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And then there's another section that we'll look at really fast that are just
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a whole group of verses that have just these big action words in it.
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But if we look at 10 through 15.
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It says that a divine sentence is in the lips of the king. His mouth transgresseth not in judgment.
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You know, I think this speaks to the truth that we know that the Lord determines
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who the rulers are going to be.
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He allows rulers. We can look at the Old Testament, right? There were good kings
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and there were evil kings.
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And the Lord allowed it because he had a greater purpose.
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You know, we just talked about that in the very beginning, how the Lord has
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made everything, even the wicked, to fulfill their purpose. Absolutely.
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There's a purpose to all the things that happen.
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Verse 11, a just weight and a balance with the Lord's, all the weights of the bag are in his work.
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We are called to be justly, right, and to be honest in our dealings.
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It's really clear in verse 12, it says it's an abomination to kings to commit
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wickedness for the throne is established by righteousness.
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Oftentimes, the Lord allows someone to be in office that may or may not do the right thing.
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It doesn't mean that what they're doing is not wrong just because they're in
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office, but these things happen.
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And it says here that it's an abomination to the Lord. And I think it's important
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to know that just because they're in office in no way means they're in charge.
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He is always in authority.
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God is always in control. And God is always in charge.
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Don't ever forget God.
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He is above all. Amen. And he rules all.
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And you may think you have some power and authority, but it's all in the hands
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of an almighty God who's promised to protect us and to supply our needs. Amen.
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Verse 13 talks about righteous lips are the delight of kings,
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and they love him that speaketh right. Our words matter.
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The words, our words, the words of those in authority, they matter.
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If we skip down to verse 15, in the light of the king's countenance's life,
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his favor is as a cloud of the latter rain.
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The Lord works through those that are in authority, whoever they may be.
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Like you said, the Lord will continue to work.
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I love how he says a cloud of the latter rain. That's like that warm,
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sweet smelling rain on a spring day. I love it. Absolutely.
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Let's quickly take a look at verses 26 through 30, which are these more action
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words that are kind of more about citizens.
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So, he that laboreth, laboreth for himself, for his mouth craveth it of him.
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Right? When we're laboring, we need to make sure who we're laboring for,
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that it's not just for ourselves.
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Verse 27, an ungodly man diggeth up evil, and in his lips there is as a burning fire.
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Right? We know. We can dig up evil. We can dig up junk.
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That doesn't need to be talked about or spread or whatever it might be,
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right? We can dig up the bad stuff, but that's not going to be what the Lord wants us to do.
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We need to be careful what we're digging up.
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Verse 28, a froward man soweth strife. Just like we can dig up wrong things,
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we can sow the wrong things, right?
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We can plant seeds of discontent. We can plant seeds of evil.
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We can plant seeds of unkindness. We need to be careful what we're sowing.
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Because he's talking about a perverse person, someone who has twisted the truth
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and twisted what is right.
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That verse 28 has a phrase, a whisperer separateth chief friends.
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Whispering about others separates friends.
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29 talks about a violent man that enticeth his neighbor and leadeth him into the way that is not good.
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Violence, not the best option, right? It's never the answer.
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And then if we look at 30, he shutteth his eyes to defies forward things.
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We can sometimes just shut our eyes to the things that are going on and not
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look at things that are going on.
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But we need to make sure that we're going in with eyes open,
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looking for what God would have us to do and looking for the marks of the things
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that are not right for us.
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And I love how he says he shuts his eyes to devise like bad,
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evil, wicked, perverse things.
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Because what I think that is saying is, first of all, those actions are darkness.
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And when we close our eyes, we can't see the light. But he's saying,
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you're not looking at the truth around you.
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You've closed your eyes to the truth. and now you're walking in a perverse,
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in an incorrect, in an evil, in a wicked way.
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And at any moment in our life, we can turn our eyes to Jesus and change our
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wicked ways because he says old things are passed away and all things have become new.
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And if we confess our sins, he's faithful and just to forgive us our sins.
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So there's not this gloom and doom that once you get down this road, that's all you've got.
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But you've got to recognize when you're going down this road,
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the further you go down this road, the more trouble you're heaping on your life.
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Because be not deceived, God isn't mocked.
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Let's so every man soweth, that shall he also reap. And we need to start young,
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stay on it, and continue to move forward in the righteousness that he imputes in us.
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And just to close this podcast, you talked about starting young,
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but this proverb also has a really neat verse about getting old. Yep.
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Verse 31, the hoary head, like a hoarfrost, H-O-A-R-Y, right?
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A white frost, right? The hoary head is a crown of glory. Right.
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Crown of glory if it be found in the way of righteousness. It is a blessing
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to live to have gray hair, right?
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It is a blessing to live in Christ's righteousness through a life that is long
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and gets us to the point of being able to have gray hair.
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Because life is a blessing. Amen. And we're told that daily, he loads us.
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He loads us with blessings.
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And if you have lived to have gray hair, you've lived in the blessings of the
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Lord for many a years. Amen.
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Well, thank you so much for joining us on this podcast of Women at the Well Ministries.
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It has been our pleasure to walk through Proverbs chapter 16.
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It is our prayer that you are enjoying our walk through the Proverbs and that
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it's motivating you and inspiring you to spend a little more time in the scriptures
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and really see what God has for you in those scriptures.
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Until we are together again, we pray that you are close to the Lord,
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that you are praying fervently, and that you are blessed abundantly.
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Remember you are loved. Jesus loves you.
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Music.
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Music.