Sing to the Lord, and praise him! Proclaim every day the good news that he has saved us (Psalm 96.2, GNB).
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Opening
Speak these words out loud:
Let us not become weary in doing good,
for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
Galatians 6.9 (NIV)
Today’s Proverb
Read the proverb through three or four times, slowly. Pause in-between, maybe write it out by hand – savour the words, let them speak deeply to you.
What you have seen with your eyes do not bring hastily to court, for what will you do in the end if your neighbour puts you to shame? (NIV)
Don’t be too quick to go to court about something you have seen. If another witness later proves you wrong, what will you do then? (GNB)
Proverbs 25.7-8
Human beings are really good at spotting patterns and taking shortcuts. Most of the time that’s a good thing, because it enables us to process the world around us without going mad! The problem is, we are sometimes wrong.
A famous example of this comes from the TOPGUN flight school in America (it’s not only a movie, it’s real!). Instructors were adamant that praising a trainee’s exceptional performance is bad, and yelling at a trainee after a poor performance is good. Why? Because after the praise the next run was worse, and after the yelling the next run was better. It’s a clear pattern.
Except, it isn’t. If someone does exceptional well in something, the next attempt is almost always going to be worse – whether they are praised or not – and vice versa for a poor performance. People will usually return to their ‘average’ or ‘normal’ performance level after an exceptional one.
The instructors thought they saw a pattern, acted on it, and praised themselves for their excellent skill in instruction.
What’s all this about? Jumping to conclusions. Solomon warns about it here, in the court setting. Do you jump to conclusions much? Can you learn to pause, wait, ask questions to find out more?
Prayers
Pray for Five – pray for your five friends / family from Thy Kingdom Come.
Our daily prayer sheet includes the names of everyone for whom we have a signed church family directory form – and local parishes and senior church leaders. Today we are praying for:
Hazel Lawson, Olive Carter, Julia Pinner
Father, please bless them with your peace, and a deep awareness of your presence with them, every day and in every way.
We also pray for: Overseas Mission Partners
Please pray for our leaders and healthcare workers, and all those working to keep us safe, well, and fed. Please pray that people would unselfishly put others before themselves.
Church Family Prayer
Come Holy Spirit,
and make us one in heart and action,
so that we can serve God faithfully:
abounding in love,
maturing in holiness,
and seeking out the lost.
Help us grow as disciples of Jesus –
in commitment, in depth, and in number –
that we may be a blessing to Amington;
to the glory and praise of God the Father.
Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and for ever.
Amen.
Closing Prayer
Unless the Lord builds the house,
the builders labour in vain.
Let us fix our eyes on Jesus
the only way to the Father.
Psalm 127.1, Hebrews 12.2 & John 14.6
May Christ our Saviour give us peace.
Amen.