Poverty of Heart

"I went by the field of the lazy... and there it was all overgrown with thorns... A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest - and poverty will come on you like a bandit..." Prov. 24:30-34

As I read this Proverb I am reminded of Jesus parable of the seeds (or soils). "Some seed," Jesus said, "fell among the thorns." Jesus later said that the thorns which choked the life out of the plant represented the "cares, riches, pleasures of life..."

No one wants to live in poverty. No one desires to be in want. How easy it is to fall into the open mouth of poverty.

I don't think this proverb is referring only to monetary poverty. How easy it is for me to find myself in mental poverty, aesthetic poverty, spiritual poverty, poverty of truth. Poverty is a place of want in my heart. Striving after the cares, riches and pleasures of life can actually lead to poverty of heart -- a poverty of the Kingdom of God in my life. The fruit that could be produced in my life is choked out by the thorns.

Put another way: "A little work; a little thoughtfulness; a little prayer, and you will find yourself in wealth of resources - mental, physical, spiritual."

Lord, the temptation is so great to fold my hands; to slumber. Deliver me from temptation. Help me to focus on you and your Kingdom.

Beauty and love are close relatives to one another

It is a sin to look on the gift of God with disdain. I recently heard myself making the following statement: no one really cares about art – why should I make it? Why should I teach it? The Lord has convicted me for this statement. I had to repent for this. Looking on the gift of God with this kind of negative attitude is sin. Art, creativity, beauty are all gifts of grace from the Father. I must internalize this into my heart. Often my motivation to do something comes from the practical application of that thing. We search in vain to find practical application for beauty. It is its own reason for being. The purpose of beauty is beauty. Period. God gave beauty as a gift to us; a gift of grace to an otherwise ugly world.