January 17: Proverbs 6 1-3

Key Verse: Proverbs 6 3
So do this, my son, to free yourself, since you have fallen into your neighbour’s hands: Go - to the point of exhaustion - and give your neighbour no rest!

Devotion:
How many times have you let a friend down by going off and doing something with someone you have just met, or a complete stranger! I wonder if you have done that to your family members; maybe gone off with a so called friend and done something against your family just to please your “friend”.

I know I have done that before, made up some sort of excuse about what I was going to do so I could go off and have fun with a friend – a friend who was leading me away from my family! It's only when you look at it from the outside you can recognise what you have done & then you know it is time to go back to your family and make things right... starting with an apology!

Maybe you have done something you should not have... Or maybe your friend has, and you were with them... Then along comes someone to blame your friend for doing whatever it was, and they turn around and lie blatantly saying it was not them. Then they turn around to you and ask you to lie for them too to get them out of trouble... Worse still, your mother comes around the corner and gets involved. Now you have to continue with the lie because of what you have started, always digging a deeper and deeper hole!

Then when you get home your dad turns round and says “now don't lie to me, or you're going to be grounded for a year!” Ok, so do you lie and get grounded, or tell the truth and still get grounded! God wants us to tell the truth from the beginning, to live in the truth, not in a pit of lies. God wants us to make a covenant with Him, just as He has made a covenant with us.

Points to Ponder:
How many times do you lie a day... even to yourself?

God sees us from the inside and knows our thoughts, you can't lie to Him!