| Proverbs 4:12, 18, 25 – 27a
When you walk, your steps will not be hampered; when you run, you will not stumble. The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, shining ever brighter till the full light of day. Let your eyes look straight ahead, fix your gaze directly before you. Make level [ a] paths for your feet
and take only ways that are firm. Do not swerve to the right or the left;
This . . . is my black book and it is precious to me – it is my journal and when I learn something – this is where I put it – or I should say when I’m learning things – this is where I work through them.
- It’s sort of an autobiography of the ups and owns of my life . . . And this black book has ideas and principles and wisdom and truth in it that I am trying to aspire to . . . And I want to read a couple of things to you in a minute that I’m learning . . .
But first . . . let me read you a short poem kinda thing . . .
Mud puddles (on screen)
Autobiography in Five Short Chapters
Chapter 1: I walk down the street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I fall I . . .
It takes forever to find a way out.
Chapter 2: I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I pretend I don’t see it.
I fall in again . . .
It . . . takes a long time to get out.
Chapter 3: I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I see it is there.
I still fall in; it’s a habit . . .
I get out . . .
Chapter 4: I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I walk around it.
Chapter 5: I walk down another street.
Folks, here’s one of my weaknesses . . . I have some patterns in my life that aren’t all positive . . . and what I’ve noticed is that I sometimes step in the same mud puddle over and over and over in my life. I repeat errors . . . I have some negative cycles in my life or cycles that can be negative and damaging if they get out of control . . .
Here’s a few of the patterns I’ve notices in my life . . .
And here’s how those sometimes play out to be negative
Now, here’s what my little black book says . . . .
Those words are full of insight . . . folks today my goal is simple I want to remind you of something you already y know . . . to be true . . . and its what I believe to be a formula for success in the game of life . . . and I think it’s the answer to getting out of the mud and walking on completely a different street . . .
INSIGHT
- the ability to see and understand life clearly
- the ability to see and understand the inner nature of things
Insight is that thing in life that allows us to read other people, . . . . .
and situations . . . and dealings with wisdom. Insight is what makes our intuition and truth line-up on the same plane. And it’s what allows us to make right decisions and right choices with our lives and with our families . . . People we don’t want to live without insight because that is where great regret lives . . . regret dwells where insight doesn’t . . . . . . insight is a rare gift from God . . . and a blessing. It’s rare because it takes a lifetime to develop and few of us find it . . . and it’s a blessing because I believe God alone has the ability to multiply it in our lives . . . Insight isn’t just a human skill that we can simply one . . . insight has the supernatural attached to it . . .
So hear this – what I’m about to say is not a “how to” seminar . . . for you to somehow on your own make your life better . . . The things I want to point out today are deep truths that God uses to change us . . .for the better and when we line our lives up with these truths . . . we are allowing God’s spirit greater access to our lives . . .
So . . . here goes. This is my best shot at what I believe is a formula for allowing God to develop insight within our lives . . . (cards)
When I look at what the bible says about insight or when I watch other people who can see and understand life clearly – (people who have insight – tuned in their lives. . . ) What I notice first is that insight doesn’t just happen – it’s not a genetic thing or a birth right . . . and it’s not a chance thing either – (you know . . . some people get it and some people don’t) – it’s not like that. Insight is also not a sudden thing – like you wake up one morning and all of a sudden you have great insight . . . no . . . from all that I can see in people . . . and all I’ve read about it . . . the only way insight gets developed in our lives is by choosing it –
Insight grows within us by a series of choices we make that when stacked on top of each other over time . . . those choices create this amazing thing that shines a light on the path ahead of us and that stops all the negative cycles – from over taking our lives . . .
Insight is choice
And that choice allows us to walk on an enlightened path . . . or we can choose to walk on another path . . . that leads to regret
Listen to some of these verses . . .
Proverbs 2:2-5,9-11
“ turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding, and if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God. Then you will understand what is right and just and fair—every good path. For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul. Discretion will protect you, and understanding will guard you.”
To choose insight in our lives we’ve got to be able to choose these 3 things – on a regular basis in our everyday lives . . . in all kinds of different situations . . .
Discipline – Discernment – Discretion --- These must become our guideposts in life . . .
Discipline – training that produces self control
Discernment – the ability to see a mud puddle before it comes . . .
Discretion – the ability to act cautiously when approaching a mud puddle
You know folks, the older I get the more surprised I am that the secrets to life are not very complicated . . .
It’s amazing to me how the things we desire in life are really so very basic . . . I bet if I asked everyone of you . . . this question . . . – Wouldn’t you love to stop the negative cycles in your life that hurt you and those around you? – Wouldn’t you love to see ahead of time the right path to follow in life and then be armed with the courage you need to follow that right path? “Well if I asked you that my bet is that all of you would say the same
thing . . . “Of course we want that in our lives Dean – of course we want insight.” (I do too . . . )
Well the way you get insight is pretty simple . . . you create it every day by the choices you make . . . Choices that include the words discipline – discretion.
Let me give you some examples . . . most of us know that choosing to make a habit of eating well (a balanced diet) and not consistently indulging in whatever food pleasure might come our way – will make a huge difference in our health path and a positive difference in the aging process of our lives. We all know that. We know that good daily choices with food – can dramatically change our quality of life later on when we’re 40 or 50 or 60 or 70 years old. We know it . . . but so many of us are caught up in a negative cycle with food. We eat because we think food will make as happy or we eat because we don’t have anything better to do or we eat because there’s lots of food around in Canada . . . but how often do we eat thinking about our
bodies . . . and the future of our bodies. And what we often forget is that it’s the choice of discipline – and discretion and discernment with food everyday that will get us out of some pretty negative health cycles later on in life (or sooner) for some of us. And that folks is called insight.
When you look down the road and see that the choices you make today about food will give you a much greater chance of having a longer and better quality of life . . . and then if you actually choose whole wheat bread instead of white or in you choose fruit instead of chips today . . . that’s called insight . . . (more on that in a couple weeks with Don Pogoda and John Luross).
Or how about physical fitness . . . A decision to make a regular daily habit of intentionally choosing to walk or run or work out at a gym . . . will dramatically change your life . . . and again most of us know it – we know that exercising gives us more energy and has huge long term health benefits and will extend the years of our lives and will even help the way we feel about ourselves . . . But it’s in the discipline and it’s when we actually choose today to get up off the couch and go for a walk or when we choose this week to reset our schedules for the fall to ensure that we get to the gym . . . or when we choose to set some physical goals for our lives . . . It’s in that discerning disciplined choice today . . . where insight has clicked in . . . and the negative cycle is broken and the path just got clearer and brighter ahead of us . . .
You know – we always hear so much negative talk in the press about our health care system and how much trouble it’s in and how disorganized and ineffective and in efficient it is . . . etc . . . I actually think the challenge of health care has very little to do with medical procedures and bureaucracy - it has to do with insight. Out health system is built around the diagnosis of a problem after it exists . . . It’s all about post illness treatment after the disease has taken root. My sense is that if people in society (all of us) had greater insight . . . so we would choose a little better – with discipline and discernment and discretion with food and exercise . . . wouldn’t we be preventing disease and extending years of health ourselves? (Instead of relying on a diagnosis based health system . . . I might be way off but I think insight training might be the answer). Insight is all about prevention . . . in all kinds of areas – It’s about being able to see the right path ahead . . . clearly . . . and then making right choices to stay on that path . . . And when you do that all kinds of – negative cycles get broken . . . because you’ve made a choice to walk on a new path . . .
Lets apply this formula to a couple more cycles that may need to be looked at in our lives . . .
How about $ Our culture is built on a see what you like . . . buy it right now . . . and pay for it later mentality . . .
Whether it’s a magazine or a pack of gum placed right by the check out isle at Superstore . . . to make it seem like they were actually on your shopping list . . . or the rows of flat screen T.V.’s that are placed so we see them first as we walk into Costco . . . . . . The pressure from retailers and advertisers is to push our immediate gratification to get stuff . . . button . . . right now . . . . . . and paying for it can come later. And so at our first glance we have instant financing and lay away plans and bank representatives every where we turn . . . very little of it based on any kind of insight . . . To talk about discretion and discernment and discipline in a consumer based society is really swimming up stream . . . but I’m here to tell you from far to many negative cycles of this in my own life . . . that there is great regret in not choosing well with $ . . . That new SUV or bigger T.V. or grander home or great business deal just really looses it’s shine when the payments are strapped to your back and you become a slave to them . . . You know the bible makes some great statements about $ . . . in fact it talks more about money and how it affects us . . .than it does about almost anything else . . .
The bible says that $ and stuff and things actually belong to God . . . That He is the owner and giver of life and everything in life (including our pay cheques) . . . Think about that – the creator is also the owner . . . it makes sense . . . and then it goes on to say that our role is to manage or be stewards of God’s resources . . . . . We have the responsibility of managing God’s
stuff . . . And to make a difference for good with what we’ve been blessed with . . . Catch this . . . the bible also says that giving money away should be the #1 priority of our management . . . the very 1 st thing we do as good managers of God’s money . . . is to make sure we’re generous . . . and that as we give . . . God uses our resources to bless others . . .that’s how its supposed to work . . . Great system when you think about it . . . but what happens is this (and it’s a really big mud puddle . . . ). What happens is that we forget discipline and we forget discretion and we forget discernment . . . and instead we become good consumers and we’re great at buying on instant credit to satisfy our desires first so much so . . . that because of that we end up with this huge load of debt that requires so much of our cash flow that we can’t give . . . and the truth of the matter is . . . That’s not good – its not wisdom and its not what God desires for our lives because He knows the regret that comes with a lifetime of heavy payments . . . and He knows how much our heart shrivels when were not practicing generosity . . . . . . and He knows how pointless it is to pursue $ for selfish gain.
Read Ecclesiastes 2:1-11 (NIV)
The great King Solomon said this in his pursuit of, “I tried cheering myself with wine, and embracing pleasure— - - - - - - - - - -. I wanted to see what was worthwhile for men to do under heaven during the few days of their lives. I undertook great projects: I built houses for myself and planted vineyards. I made gardens and parks and planted all kinds of fruit trees in them. I made reservoirs to water groves of flourishing trees. I bought male and female slaves and had other slaves who were born in my house. I also owned more herds and flocks than anyone in Jerusalem before me. I amassed silver and gold for myself, and the treasure of kings and provinces. I acquired men and women singers, and a harem as well—the delights of the heart of man. I became greater by far than anyone in Jerusalem before me.
I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor.
Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.
Folks . . . I want to be a voice that simply whispers the truth in your
ear . . . giving is greater than getting and discernment and discipline is what creates enduring happiness . . . not spending on immediate gratification.
Insight is what God wants for us . . . Pursue it with your money . . . So
really . . . that’s it . . . that’s the formula . . . and it works in every area of
life . . . try it with your time schedule – you’ll see a tremendous pay off.
Apply it to your friendships . . . and you’ll see them multiply . . . Put this principle to work in your marriage . . . in fact I was thinking about that this week . . . I was wondering what might happen to the divorce rates in our country if somehow couples could think and dream a little bit longer term about what kind of relationship they would like to have when they’ve been married 15 or 20 or 30 or 40 years . . . What if they could gain insight into their marriage relationship down the road a ways . . . and then what if they just started taking small disciplined steps to walk on that path – like going for coffee and just taking on a regular basis or the choice to go on a date regularly or what if the choice was as small as just shutting the T. V. off and seeing what happens . . . or being diligent with romance . . . Folks my bet is that in not to long a time – you would see a huge pay off in your marriage . . . and my bet is as a culture . . . this negative cycle of divorce could be broken in one generation and so many lives could be spared so much pain and regret that divorce brings . . . How? By applying insight . . . and choosing discipline and choosing discernment and discretion – by making choices everyday to walk on a path that just gets brighter and brighter and brighter.
Can you take one more . . . what if you apply this formula to your soul development and to your spiritual life . . . and what if you took a good long look ahead at what kind of woman or man God wants you to be 10 or 20 or 50 years from now . . . and then what if you made some very small but significant disciplined choices to develop your soul . . . What if you just took 30 minutes every morning (or whenever) to explore and invest and develop your spirit . . .
You could talk to God or better yet – you could let Him talk to you – you could learn to worship and figure that out . . . or you could study Gods word of truth . . . or maybe just simply sit and let God have a bigger piece of your mind and heart and life . . . 30 minutes . . . over a few years with God . . . can make a massive difference in the size of your soul . . . . . .
This is a great story . . . I read this week In a certain part of Malaysia they grow something that isn’t or can’t be grown anywhere else in the world – It’s a specific kind/strain of very valuable bamboo . . . and the farmers who grow it know all about wisdom and patience and discipline and the payoff of that . . . Here’s how they grow this bamboo
- In the first year, your plant the seed, water and fertilize. Nothing visible happens. – the whole 1 st year -
- In the second year, you continue to carefully water and fertilize all year. Nothing visible happens in the second year either.
- In the third year, water and fertilizer are even more necessary, yet nothing happens. There is absolutely no visible indication that your three years of work are even close to being successful.
- The fourth year comes around and water and fertilizer must still be applied, in the right amounts and at the right time. But you guessed it. Nothing happens.
- In the fifth year you again diligently water and fertilize. And the bamboo grows ninety feet in thirty days . . . not 9 inches in 30 days and not 9 feet in 30 days . . . 90 feet in 30 days . . . From zero to the height of a nine story building in 30 days
Folks, hear this . . . there is great regret in life when we stay on the same street trying to get around the same mud puddles - but there is great reward in walking on a completely other street – a pathway called insight. Choose to walk on that path.
Proverbs 4:18, 25 – 27a
The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, shining ever brighter till the full light of day. Let your eyes look straight ahead, fix your gaze directly before you. Make level paths for your feet and take only ways that are firm. Do not swerve to the right or the left; |
