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The leech has two suckers that cry out, “More, more!” There are three others things—no, four!—that are never satisfied: the grave, the barren womb, the thirsty desert, the blazing fire. – Proverbs 30:15

 

Some people are perpetual takers and not givers. Their attitude is that anyone and everyone owe them something, and their sour, stingy snarls are flashed at those who don’t oblige them.

Often the selfishness of such people leads to God’s rebuke. The prophet Haggai addressed those who pursued only the building of their own houses and not God’s house. He said, “This is what the Lord Almighty says: Consider how things are going for you! You have planted much but harvested little. You have food to eat, but not enough to fill you up. You have wine to drink, but not enough to satisfy your thirst. You have clothing to wear, but not enough to keep you warm. Your wages disappear as though you were putting them in pockets filled with holes!” (Haggai 1:5-6). God had to withhold His blessing from His people in order to teach them that His kingdom came first.

Giving to a “leech” who is opposed to God’s kingdom and who is only a “taker” is a hopeless cause. Such a person will never prosper. Someone once said, “If it rubs you the wrong way, turn the cat around!” Become a giver and watch God seal up the holes in your pockets.

2020-12-31T10:53:34-07:00

Keep me out of the traps they have set for me, out of the snares of those who do evil. – Psalm 141:9

Many of David’s prayers were encompassed in two words: Keep me!

The role of Protector is one of God’s most glorious attributes. He promised Zechariah two forms of protection. First, He promised to be “a wall of fire around Jerusalem” (Zechariah 2:5). Even wild animals fear fire, and God said that He would erect around us a wall of flaming fire that no enemy could penetrate.

God also promised Zechariah that “he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of [my] eye” (v. 8 KJV). The apple may be interpreted as the “pupil” of the eye. It is the gate, the very center of the eyeball, through which all light must pass. The eyeball is fiercely protected by the eyelid, which instinctively closes the moment anything threatening comes near the eye. In effect, the Lord is saying, “I am not only watching over you, but you are in my eye!”

If you walk closely to the Lord, you will never stray outside His “wall of fire,” and you will always be protected as the “pupil of His eye.” Fear not, citizen of Zion. Your God has awesome keeping power!

2020-12-22T00:00:00-07:00
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