WEBVTT - Trusting God When I Don’t Know What’s Next (Proverbs 16)

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<v Speaker 1>Life Audio Thank you for listening to your nightly scripture.

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<v Speaker 1>A calming scripture-centered devotional podcast designed to help you end

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<v Speaker 1>each day with God's word in your mind and on

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<v Speaker 1>your heart. Right after the short word from our sponsors,

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<v Speaker 1>we will reflect on tonight's scripture, Proverbs chapter 16. Our

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<v Speaker 1>evening reflection is written by Amanda Adleman and read.

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<v Speaker 2>By Kyle Norman. Proverbs 16 To humans belong the plans

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<v Speaker 2>of the heart, but from the Lord comes the proper

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<v Speaker 2>answer of the tongue.

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<v Speaker 1>All a person's ways seems pure to them, but motives

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<v Speaker 1>are weighed by the Lord. Commit to the Lord whatever

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<v Speaker 1>you do, and He will establish your plans. The Lord

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<v Speaker 1>works out everything to its proper end, even the wicked

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<v Speaker 1>for a day of disaster. The Lord detests all the

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<v Speaker 1>proud of heart. Be sure of this, they will not

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<v Speaker 1>go unpunished. Through love and faithfulness, sin is atoned for.

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<v Speaker 1>Through the fear of the Lord, evil is avoided. When

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<v Speaker 1>the Lord takes pleasure in anyone's way, he causes their

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<v Speaker 1>enemies to make peace with them. Better a little with

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<v Speaker 1>righteousness than much gain with injustice. In their hearts, humans

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<v Speaker 1>plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps. The

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<v Speaker 1>lips of a king speaks as an oracle, and his

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<v Speaker 1>mouth does not betray justice. Honest scales and balances belong

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<v Speaker 1>to the Lord. All the weights in the bag are

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<v Speaker 1>of his making. Kings detest wrongdoing. for a throne is

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<v Speaker 1>established through righteousness. Kings take pleasure in honest lips. They

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<v Speaker 1>value the one who speaks what is right. King's wrath

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<v Speaker 1>is a measure of death, but the wise will appease it.

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<v Speaker 1>When a king's face brightens, it means life. His favor

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<v Speaker 1>is like a rain cloud in spring. How much better

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<v Speaker 1>to get wisdom than gold, to get insight rather than silver.

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<v Speaker 1>The highway of the upright avoids evil. Those who guard

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<v Speaker 1>their way preserve their lives. Pride goes before destruction, a

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<v Speaker 1>haughty spirit before a fall. Better to be lowly in

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<v Speaker 1>spirit along with the oppressed than to share plunder with

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<v Speaker 1>the proud. Whoever gives heed to instruction prospers, and blessed

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<v Speaker 1>is the one who trusts in the Lord. The wise

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<v Speaker 1>and heart are called discerning, and gracious words promote instruction.

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<v Speaker 1>Prudent is a fountain of life to the prudent, but

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<v Speaker 1>folly brings punishment to fools. The hearts of the wise

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<v Speaker 1>make their mouths prudent, and their lips promote instruction. Gracious

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<v Speaker 1>words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing

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<v Speaker 1>to the bones. There is a way that appears to

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<v Speaker 1>be right but in the end it leads to death.

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<v Speaker 1>The appetite of laborers works for them. Their hunger drives

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<v Speaker 1>them on. A scoundrel plots evil, and on their lips

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<v Speaker 1>is like a scorching fire. A perverse person stirs up conflict,

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<v Speaker 1>and a gossip separates close friends. A violent person entices

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<v Speaker 1>their neighbor and leads them down a path that is

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<v Speaker 1>not good. Whoever winks with their eye is plotting perversity.

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<v Speaker 1>Whoever purses their lips is bent on evil. Gray hair

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<v Speaker 1>is a crown of splendor. It is attained in the

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<v Speaker 1>way of righteousness. Better a patient person than a warrior,

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<v Speaker 1>one with self-control than one who takes a city. The

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<v Speaker 1>lot is cast into the lap, but it is every

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<v Speaker 1>decision is from the Lord. Life often throws us curveballs.

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<v Speaker 1>Just when we think we've gotten something figured out, inevitably

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<v Speaker 1>things change. Our kids grow up, jobs change, our bodies shift,

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<v Speaker 1>our community evolves, or a need arises. These are the

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<v Speaker 1>exact moments that we are called to trust in the

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<v Speaker 1>Lord with all our hearts and lean not on our

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<v Speaker 1>own understanding, because we know that He will make our

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<v Speaker 1>paths straight. That's Proverbs 3, chapter 5 and 6. One

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<v Speaker 1>notable moment in which we all had to collectively cling

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<v Speaker 1>to God was in 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic turned

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<v Speaker 1>our lives upside down and swept across the globe. I

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<v Speaker 1>remember walking miles around my neighborhood, praying and reciting verses

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<v Speaker 1>to myself as a way of reminding myself that God

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<v Speaker 1>would not leave us, even as the whole world began

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<v Speaker 1>to panic. I had to practice Proverbs 16.3 and commit

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<v Speaker 1>everything to the Lord, trusting Him to establish my plans.

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<v Speaker 1>Since that season, life has provided many more opportunities to

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<v Speaker 1>cling to the Lord when the future felt hazy and scary.

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<v Speaker 1>We have added three kids to our family through foster

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<v Speaker 1>care and adoption. As we walked through uncertainty and the

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<v Speaker 1>roller coaster that is foster care, I often had to

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<v Speaker 1>remind my soul to lean on the Lord when I

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<v Speaker 1>wanted to freak out. When my body was struggling with illness,

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<v Speaker 1>I had to rely on God's Spirit for peace. Even

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<v Speaker 1>when pain was my constant companion. In the seasons of

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<v Speaker 1>conflict and strife with my husband, I had to ask

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<v Speaker 1>God to show me how to change, how to forgive,

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<v Speaker 1>and how to love him with God's love again. The

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<v Speaker 1>future often feels scary. But when we practice trusting God,

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<v Speaker 1>we know that we will be okay. It is our

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<v Speaker 1>reliance on Jesus that carries us from one season to

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<v Speaker 1>the next. Without Him, the future is bleak. But as believers,

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<v Speaker 1>we have access to eternal hope that changes everything. Remember

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<v Speaker 1>Proverbs 16.9 In their hearts, humans plan their course, but

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<v Speaker 1>the Lord establishes their steps. Our future is the Lord's.

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<v Speaker 1>He is the one establishing our steps, and we can

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<v Speaker 1>trust him. Father, I thank you that you are trustworthy.

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<v Speaker 1>I can rely on your word and promises when I

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<v Speaker 1>can't see the way forward. I can lean on the

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<v Speaker 1>power of your Holy Spirit when I am unsure how

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<v Speaker 1>to move ahead. I commit my ways to you. knowing

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<v Speaker 1>that you alone establish my steps. Go before me and

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<v Speaker 1>make a way. I need you, Jesus. You are my

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<v Speaker 1>firm foundation in a chaotic world.

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<v Speaker 2>Amen.

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<v Speaker 2>Centered on the Word of God.