For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

Proverbs 14:17-19

    If you allow your temper to control you easily (that is, if you are short-tempered) you will do foolish things. You will get angry and lash out at people who have done nothing wrong because you reacted in anger before you thought things through. There is a reason the proverb writer lumps schemers in here. Schemers will manipulate those who are short-tempered to get their way, but when tempers cool everyone, both the short-tempered and those unjustly lashed out at, will hate the schemer who brought it about.

Psalm 103:1-22

    I love this psalm. It starts out with a great statement we should all take to heart.

Let all that I am praise the Lord;
with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name.
I desire to make this my focus today. I will strive to focus on praising the Lord with all that I am. This psalm reminds me how good God has been to me. Not only has He not punishedme as harshly for my sins as I deserve, He has forgiven my sins. I do not deserve God’s love, yet He loves me beyond my ability to imagine. I will praise the Lord.

John 2:1-25

    I get a kick out of the story about the Wedding at Cana. I grew up in a Church which taught complete abstinence from alcohol. The typical explanation for this passage was that the wine at the time was little more than grape juice. However, as I have gotten older I learned that the wine of the New Testament was indeed significantly alcoholic. This is clear from the statement by the master of ceremonies(MC) about how people usually serve the best wine first, bringing out the cheaper stuff once people’s taste buds are deadened. The other part is that part of what the MC meant is that the “best” wine would have higher alcohol content.
was a drunkard, but He enjoyed drinking alcohol. He spent time with those who ate and drank to excess. I believe that by doing so He gave them an example to follow which they might actually consider following. Jesus had fun and was fun to be around. Are we fun to be around?

Judges 15-16:31

    Samson was a powerful warrior who served as a check on the Philistines’ power over the Israelites. However, he repeatedly exhibited poor judgment. In this passage he once again he showed how he was attracted to the wrong kind of woman. He became involved with Delilah, even though she was a Philistine. He continued to see her, even after she demonstrated that she would use what he told her against him. Every time he gave her a different answer to her question about where his strength came from, she used what he told her and set a trap for him. Despite this, he continued to spend time with her and eventually told her the truth. This is a warning to all men that getting involved with the wrong woman will lead to trouble. I will add that while this story does not point this out, getting involved with the right woman can lead to great heights.

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

Proverbs 14:17-19

    If you are easily angered, you will do foolish things. If you spend your time scheming, people will hate you. If you insist on taking a simplistic view of the world, your opinion on everything will be foolish. If you want to make prudent decisions you will take the time to gather knowledge before you form an opinion.
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Psalm 103:1-22

    This psalm fills me with joy and challenges me to put more focus on praising the Lord. Let all that I am praise the Lord! The Lord is compassionate and merciful. I cannot improve on the words of the psalmist. The love of the Lord remains forever. Let all that I am praise the Lord.

John 2:1-25

    I love the story of Jesus turning water into wine for the wedding in Cana. It completely subverts the idea that Christians are all supposed to be teetotalers. Another interesting thing about the first miracle which Jesus performed is that only the servants, his disciples, and his mother knew what He had done. None of the “important” people at the wedding were aware of what Jesus did. Something else that I wonder about is, how did Mary know that Jesus could do something about the wine running our?
    Unlike the other Gospels, John tells the story about clearing the Temple at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry (the others tell such a story in the week before His crucifixion). Some have suggested that Jesus performed this act twice. That is certainly possible, but I do not hold an opinion one way or the other. The element of this passage which sticks with me today is Jesus’ emphatic statement that we should not turn our places of worship into marketplaces. When we come together for worship we should focus on worship. We need to be very careful about any economic exchanges we conduct there.

Judges 15-16:31

    Samson continued to show poor judgement in the women he chose to associate with. He continued to spend time with Delilah, even after she had twice attempted to take advantage of what he told her was the secret of his strength. However, the story of Samson’s death is a reminder of what happens to those who believe that they have achieved success through a god other than the true God. The Philistines brought Samson out as part of their celebration of the greatness of their god Dagon. They praised Dagon for giving them victory over Samson. So, when Samson called on God, God answered. God demonstrated that He has the final say.