Proverbs 19

You can always tell someone is a fool when they are blaming God for things that have happened in their lives due to poor choices. Some people (fools apparently) do not accept responsibility for their actions or the consequences of them. I confess I have little patience for these people.
V8…loving your own soul…I got caught up in this for a minute. For those of you who don’t know I am very “anti” psychology and don’t get me started on “Christian psychology” which I think is one of the biggest oxy morons I’ve ever heard. But I digress. So I was thinking about how people encourage young girls not to be insecure, the idea of encouraging confidence and self worth. Anyway the conclusion I came to regarding this verse, in cohesiveness with the rest of scriptures, is that when you are wise you are comfortable in your own skin. You can be pleased with what God is doing in your life and be grateful you are making wise choices. When we encourage people to take their eyes of themselves and focus on the Lord and his infinite wisdom, there is a confidence and love that comes that we benefit from in a very mighty way.
V11…Not only is it important to be slow to anger, which is a theme we have seen time and time again this month, but it is also important to overlook transgressions. This is something I have tried to incorporate into my marriage. If I am upset about something I try not to bring it up right away. I take it to the Lord first and many times He remedies my problem, or shows me that it isn’t worth bringing up. Overlooking other people’s mistakes is a good thing.
A contentious wife is basically like Chinese water torture. I don’t want to be quarrelsome. I don’t want to always be looking for an argument. That is like torture to my husband and family.
Giving to others is always looked upon as a personal choice. I don’t know that biblically it is a choice. I believe we are called to give. It seems to me if someone asks for something we can give we should. What they do with what they give them is between them and the Lord.
Kindness, honesty and integrity are themes throughout this chapter. They are not the most desired traits in our society today. I find it interesting that honesty and kindness tend to be thrown together. We are living in a world where people justify their ugly words under the guise of honesty. That really bugs me, probably because I used to do it myself. Being honest isn’t a free card to be rude, or ugly to people. We need to maintain integrity and kindness while still being honest. This can be tricky sometimes, but that is why we are encouraged to be “slow to speak”.
“A lazy man buries his hand in the bowl, and will not so much as bring it to his mouth again.” That verse has always just cracked me up. I have felt that lazy before. If someone would just feed me! But it is a serious warning against laziness.