DAY 151 Read Proverbs 27 through 30.
Today's reading: Notice again that the good life pays. These chapters have a lot to say about moral values.
Memory gem: "Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he" (Proverbs 29:18).
Thought for today:
The other day I was reading of a church member who worked for an infidel, building boats that required nonrusting copper rivets. These copper rivets were quite expensive, and every day this supposed-to-be Christian would take a few home with him. In time he had a good many. He would say to himself: "My boss has thousands of these rivets--he will never miss the few I take, and anyway, he doesn't pay me enough for my work."
Then he began hearing a certain minister preach. After a few nights he said to him: "Pastor, I am in trouble. I have heard you preach about how we ought to be honest. I want to serve the Lord Jesus. I am a Christian, a church member, and I love the Lord but, you know, I have been taking copper rivets from my employer, and now I want to put them back. But if I do, and that infidel finds out that I have been stealing, he won't come to your meetings. It will ruin my influence with him if he hears that I have been stealing copper rivets from him. If he finds out that I'm just a common thief, he'll lose all faith in Christianity. You see, I've been trying to get him to come to these meetings. I want to be a Christian, but I don't know what to do."
The preacher said, "You had better do right."
A few nights later, this man came to the minister with a glow of happiness on his face, and said, "Well, I went and told my employer what I had been doing, and handed him the money for those rivets. He said, 'Well, Jones, there must be something to this religion after all. I knew all the time that you were taking those copper rivets--that is one reason why I had no use for you Christians. I said to myself, "They are all a bunch of hypocrites." But if it is going to make you an honest man, I think I will go and hear that man preach. There must be something to it.' "
I just wonder if any of us have a few copper rivets to take back or to pay for. Oh, we would have a greater revival than we have had yet if all the copper rivets were taken back to their owners. And don't you think we would be happier?
Today's reading: Notice again that the good life pays. These chapters have a lot to say about moral values.
Memory gem: "Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he" (Proverbs 29:18).
Thought for today:
The other day I was reading of a church member who worked for an infidel, building boats that required nonrusting copper rivets. These copper rivets were quite expensive, and every day this supposed-to-be Christian would take a few home with him. In time he had a good many. He would say to himself: "My boss has thousands of these rivets--he will never miss the few I take, and anyway, he doesn't pay me enough for my work."
Then he began hearing a certain minister preach. After a few nights he said to him: "Pastor, I am in trouble. I have heard you preach about how we ought to be honest. I want to serve the Lord Jesus. I am a Christian, a church member, and I love the Lord but, you know, I have been taking copper rivets from my employer, and now I want to put them back. But if I do, and that infidel finds out that I have been stealing, he won't come to your meetings. It will ruin my influence with him if he hears that I have been stealing copper rivets from him. If he finds out that I'm just a common thief, he'll lose all faith in Christianity. You see, I've been trying to get him to come to these meetings. I want to be a Christian, but I don't know what to do."
The preacher said, "You had better do right."
A few nights later, this man came to the minister with a glow of happiness on his face, and said, "Well, I went and told my employer what I had been doing, and handed him the money for those rivets. He said, 'Well, Jones, there must be something to this religion after all. I knew all the time that you were taking those copper rivets--that is one reason why I had no use for you Christians. I said to myself, "They are all a bunch of hypocrites." But if it is going to make you an honest man, I think I will go and hear that man preach. There must be something to it.' "
I just wonder if any of us have a few copper rivets to take back or to pay for. Oh, we would have a greater revival than we have had yet if all the copper rivets were taken back to their owners. And don't you think we would be happier?
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