September 2008 Bible lesson

Proverbs 24:13-14 (KJV):
13 My son, eat thou honey, because it is good; and the honeycomb, which is sweet to thy taste:
14 So shall the knowledge of wisdom be unto thy soul: when thou hast found it, then there shall be a reward, and thy expectation shall not be cut off.

Proverbs 24:13-14 (AMP):
13 My son, eat honey, because it is good, and the drippings of the honeycomb are sweet to your taste.
14 So shall you know skillful and godly Wisdom to be thus to your life; if you find it, then shall there be a future and a reward, and your hope and expectation shall not be cut off.

These verses in Proverbs compare the eating of honey to the getting of godly Wisdom, and it is sweet. Since Jesus is Wisdom, Verse 13 is telling us to taste of the life of Jesus and you will find how sweet He is. Jesus is also referred to as “the Word” and when we read and take in the Word of God, we find that it is also pleasant and satisfying to our soul, as noted by the Psalmist David in this scripture:

Psalm 119:101-103:
101 I have refrained my feet from every evil way, that I might keep thy word.
102 I have not departed from thy judgments: for thou hast taught me.
103 How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!

Verse 14 tells us that when we find the godly Wisdom in Jesus, it will also produce a future with fulfillment and a reward, and our expectation will not be cut off. When we obey the commandments of God, it will bring enlightenment that will cause our heart to rejoice according to the verses below. Even God’s judgments toward us are true and righteous and we need not fear them, if we have reverential fear for our Lord. These scriptures tell us that the Word of the Lord is to be desired more than gold and again the Bible mentions that God’s Word and His Wisdom are sweeter than honey.

Groves To Release 1st Christmas album

During the last month of the year, you don’t have to travel far to see what Christmas is for many people, a combination of sacred celebration and family tradition. Sara Groves’ first Christmas album, O Holy Night, which will bow on INO Records this October 14th, sits snugly in that spot where the magnificent story of Bethlehem coalesces with the sounds of yuletide gathering of friends and family, “I’ve always dreamed of doing a Christmas album,” Groves says. “Christmas music was such a part of life growing up. We had a huge stack of records that only get played for one month of the year. Ultimately I wanted to convey this story of Christ that’s been told so many times with as much artistry and creativity as possibly because it bears repeating,” she says.

Produced by Ben Shive, O Holy Night was originally intended to be an advent album for her family that would consist solely of sacred Christmas songs. When she began working on it, though, she decided to include some of her favorite songs about her family’s Christmas traditions. One such song (one of four originals) is “To Be With You,” about Groves’ family Christmas, a sentimental snapshot of their gathering at her grandma’s house. Another is the fun song any parent who’s stayed up late on Christmas eve can relate to, “Toy Packaging,” which mimics how manufacturers twisty-tie and rivet everything to pieces of cardboard, saying,  “my self-esteem is in the can, trying to open the robot man.”

August 2008 Bible lesson

Proverbs 22:5-6 (KJV):
5 Thorns and snares are in the way of the froward: he that doth keep his soul shall be far from them.
6 Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

Proverbs 22:5-6 (AMP):
5 Thorns and snares are in the way of the obstinate and willful; he who guards himself will be far from them.
6 Train up a child in the way he should go (and in keeping with his individual gift or bent), and when he is old he will not depart from it.

These verses in Proverbs speak of the fate of the rebellious, as well as instructing parents to train their children in the right way. Verse 5 clearly tells us that the froward (rebellious) person will end up on a path that is hedged in with thorns and snares. We all probably know people who stay in “hot water.” Many young people, to their own hurt, will not listen to the advice of their parents and elders, and end up going down the wrong road. They just seem to take their lessons in life the hard way — doing their own thing. However, there is a group of Christian youth, who truly love the Lord, and have respect for authority and godly advice, and they are the ones described as “keeping” or “guarding” their souls. Among those are young people who are chaste and have kept their virginity. They will escape the ravages of sexually transmitted diseases and scarred emotions, so that when they meet their mates, they can begin a life together without pain and guilt. This is not true of the rebellious youth who go down the path of sexual experimentation and then are wounded by the thorns and snares that go with that lifestyle.

Verse 6 admonishes us, as parents, to help our children find the right path and stay on it. We are told in this verse to “train” up our children in the Lord. Many parents have grief in their hearts over their grown children who have gone astray from their Christian heritage and teachings. They have wondered why their children did not walk in what they were taught. One reason for this is that many parents did not “train” their children, but only “taught” their children about the things of God. Teaching is sharing information, while training integrates that teaching into a lifestyle. As parents, we should also pray and ask the Lord to help us direct our children in the calling He has for them. We need to recognize the God given gifts they possess and encourage them along those lines.