Insightful Musings on the Scripturesby
Ray Sparre, NU class of '67
Ray has a wealth of experience as a Husband, Father, Pastor, Missionary, and student of the Word. He believes and practices his faith where the rubber meets the road. You'll find his writings to be practical, insightful, and grounded in a truly Christ-centered world view.
Below are links to a printable daily Bible reading guide which Ray has followed, and an archive of all his daily devotional writings for 2010 and 2011.
| Daily Reading Guide | 2011 Devotion Archives | 2010 Devotion Archives |
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20 Feb 11
Good evening, special people.
I actually did most of this composition this morning…but ran out of time to discuss it further with Becki and get it off…before we had to run off to our program at Country Meadows Senior Assisted Living Center in Woodburn. I was kind of bummed that I didn’t fit in a jog too. Max was quite irritated since I had already put on my running shoes and he was all eager to go. Oh well. Now we are back home from our rounds.
You’ll probably hear from me again in the morning. I don’t have a clue yet what I’ll say…but I’ll probably say it anyway. Have a good night.
Love, Dad/Ray
20 February 2011
Proverbs 20
Focus: “The purposes of a man’s heart are deep waters, but a man of understanding draws them out.” Proverbs 20:5.
I believe that we are all a bunch of psychological basket cases—if left to ourselves. We all need some help with careful objective analysis in order to get our own selves figured out. There are those who would glare back at me about now, as if to say, “Not me!” I would need to affirm, “Yes, you too!” To deny this critical need is to perpetuate one’s built-in critical problem—SIN. And SIN renders just that—various forms of psychological impairment and dysfunction.
Listen again to Jeremiah 17:9. “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure (naturally speaking, on its own). Who can understand it?” In other words, the waters of a person’s psyche are so deep that he cannot naturally comprehend all that’s going on there by himself. Now, read on through verse 10: “’I the LORD search the heart and examine the mind (Doesn’t that sound like psycho-analysis?), to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve.’”
I believe it is right and healthy to reason something like the following: Why do I feel this way? Why do I think the way I do about this or that? Why do I behave the way I do in this situation? Am I thinking and behaving right so as to yield right results? And if I keep thinking and behaving in a way that keeps yielding negative results, what changes need to be made? After all, if I just continue to think the way I’ve always thought, isn’t it reasonable to expect that I’ll only get what I’ve always got?! Furthermore, if the LORD is the Designer-Creator of my psyche (heart), doesn’t it make a lot of sense to consult Him in the process? I believe this is the type of honest questioning that best suits one on a course to becoming “a man of understanding.”
Take note also of verse 27 of this chapter (Proverbs 20). “The lamp of the LORD searches the spirit (heart) of a man; it searches out his inmost being.” So, I hope you are making regular use of this incredible psycho-spiritual x-ray scanning service.
(Read again Psalm 119:105; Psalm 139; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; Hebrews 4:12.)
“When a man knows he is to be hanged in a fortnight, it concentrates his mind wonderfully.” - Samuel Johnson