14 day plan

Fullness of Life

Day 10 of 14

NIV

Proverbs 27:17

17As iron sharpens iron,

so one person sharpens another.

Reflection:  No joke! I’m so sharp I want to poke a few eyes out! So, if I’m honest I’d rather have some nice cosy friendships and leave the iron sharpening for now. Nice round bouncy people that don’t rub me up the wrong way, that’s what I’m looking for.

I’d like to dismiss people that have any chance of sharpening me thanks.

I mean, I guess there’s a chance that there might be more wisdom in the whole than in one part, that together we can know more than in isolation, that perhaps we are created to be sharpened not sedated.

But it’s uncomfortable.

It’s not easy to invest in relationships that challenge me. It’s not easy for me to trust that God provides a safe haven for me to be vulnerable. It’s not easy to live in the honest realisation that I need others and that they need me.

But God in his wisdom created me to live in community, warts and all. He created me to love and be loved, to serve and be served. And he has made it abundantly clear…

This is his command: Love each other.

Let’s know each other, let’s live in the fullness of life that God intends.

Prayer:  Teach us to love each other as you have loved us, give us the willingness to invest in challenging relationships and to grow in unity.

Proverbs 27:1-27

1Do not boast about tomorrow,

for you do not know what a day may bring.

2Let someone else praise you, and not your own mouth;

an outsider, and not your own lips.

3Stone is heavy and sand a burden,

but a fool’s provocation is heavier than both.

4Anger is cruel and fury overwhelming,

but who can stand before jealousy?

5Better is open rebuke

than hidden love.

6Wounds from a friend can be trusted,

but an enemy multiplies kisses.

7One who is full loathes honey from the comb,

but to the hungry even what is bitter tastes sweet.

8Like a bird that flees its nest

is anyone who flees from home.

9Perfume and incense bring joy to the heart,

and the pleasantness of a friend

springs from their heartfelt advice.

10Do not forsake your friend or a friend of your family,

and do not go to your relative’s house when disaster strikes you—

better a neighbor nearby than a relative far away.

11Be wise, my son, and bring joy to my heart;

then I can answer anyone who treats me with contempt.

12The prudent see danger and take refuge,

but the simple keep going and pay the penalty.

13Take the garment of one who puts up security for a stranger;

hold it in pledge if it is done for an outsider.

14If anyone loudly blesses their neighbor early in the morning,

it will be taken as a curse.

15A quarrelsome wife is like the dripping

of a leaky roof in a rainstorm;

16restraining her is like restraining the wind

or grasping oil with the hand.

17As iron sharpens iron,

so one person sharpens another.

18The one who guards a fig tree will eat its fruit,

and whoever protects their master will be honored.

19As water reflects the face,

so one’s life reflects the heart.

20Death and Destruction are never satisfied,

and neither are human eyes.

21The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold,

but people are tested by their praise.

22Though you grind a fool in a mortar,

grinding them like grain with a pestle,

you will not remove their folly from them.

23Be sure you know the condition of your flocks,

give careful attention to your herds;

24for riches do not endure forever,

and a crown is not secure for all generations.

25When the hay is removed and new growth appears

and the grass from the hills is gathered in,

26the lambs will provide you with clothing,

and the goats with the price of a field.

27You will have plenty of goats’ milk to feed your family

and to nourish your female servants.