More Valuable Than Rubies

 

A wife of noble character … she is worth far more than rubies.

—from Proverbs 31:10

Almost every person has something that he or she values in this life. For some, the value comes from a large sum of money, or from other possessions, or from the warmth of a close family, or from the challenge and success of a good job, or from many other tangible items. But for a married man, God has given such a man a most valued gift. What has value beyond all other things? King Solomon offers this suggestion from Proverbs 31:10:

A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies.

You may remember that, in his sin, Solomon had many wives and many concubines. You would think that he would regale the value of multiple wives and lovers. Yet, the construction of the Hebrew makes it clear that he is writing here about a singular woman—just one wife.

A woman of noble character is truly a gift from God to a married man. He should cherish her in the same way he might cherish the finest rubies, the best job, the greatest amount of money, or even the warmth of a large family. As a helpmeet and partner in life, such a woman has value beyond description to her husband.

As married men, let’s remember, at the beginning of this new day, the value that God gives us in the relationships with have with others, particularly those yoked with us in marriage. Our service to our Great King is heightened when we recognize the enormous value to us of the partner He has given us for the sake of His Kingdom.

 

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Confess and Pray

 

Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other …

—from James 5:16

As followers of the Great King Jesus, we Christians have a significant responsibility to show our love and concern for our fellow believers. God has called us to Himself and made us brothers and sisters. There are many concerns we share with each other. Among them is the concern that the Apostle James offers in this advice for believers, as recorded in part from James 5:16:

Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.

That seems like very good advice to me. Of course, the person to whom we choose to confess must be someone trustworthy, who will keep our confession in confidence.

Even so, as we begin this new day, let’s decide to follow this advice and do what the Apostle suggests. If we do, we will gain a significant benefit. Okay?

 

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

We Will Know His Greatness

 

“And so I will show my greatness and my holiness …”

—Ezekiel 38:23a

God has a way of making Himself known at the most appropriate times. In fact, it’s a really good idea for those of us who follow His Son, Jesus, to keep our eyes peeled for those times when God reveals Himself in our daily lives. Jeremiah 29:13 declares:

You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

I’ve written many times before about a little exercise first brought to my attention by my long-time spiritual mentor, Rev. Dr. David R. Mains, more than 47 years ago. That exercise is called the “God Hunt.” In fact, David and his wife, Karen, have written at least two books on this subject—one for adults and one for children. The key elements of this daily conscious-awareness of God at work in our lives includes looking for and taking note of the following:

• Any obvious answer to prayer, or …
  
  
• Any special evidence of God’s care, or …
  
  
• Any help to do God’s work in the world, or …
  
  
• Any unusual linkage or timing.
  
  

If we keep our eyes, ears, minds, and hearts on alert, we will see God’s hand at work in our lives every day. After all, God has promised He will make Himself known. Notice what God said through the Prophet Ezekiel, as recorded in Ezekiel 38:23:

“And so I will show my greatness and my holiness, and I will make myself known in the sight of many nations. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”

As we start another new day, let’s be aware that God is always at work in our lives. It’s high time we acknowledged His presence by keeping ourselves looking for the way He interacts to bless us all through each day.

 

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Resist! Resist! Resist!

 

“Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”

—James 4:7

The term “Resist!” has currently inflamed our culture. One political ideology in our nation has decided that it’s better to resist than to find common ground. This stance frankly disappoints me greatly. A hallmark of our form of government has routinely been built on wise individuals, who have vastly different political philosophies and intentions, and yet work together to find points where they can agree. When one side determines that they will resist without any hope of compromise, we all suffer in the end.

But, resistance is not always a bad thing. Take note of what the Apostle James wrote, as recorded in James 4:7

Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Now, here’s a time when resistance pays great benefit. Resisting the enemy of our soul, Satan, and fleeing from his devious and destructive ways is a very good thing. Submission to God is also an excellent choice to make.

Therefore, at the start of this new day we can take these two marching orders to heart. As we begin to walk into our world this day, we can determine to resist Satan and all his clever wiles. And, we can determine to submit our faulty and selfish human wills to God’s perfect and divine will. What better ways can we possibly choose to act as children of the Great King Jesus?

 

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

That We May Know Him

 

“Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.”

—John 17:3

God’s desire is that we will know Him. That’s why He has revealed Himself to us in His written Word: the Bible, and through His Living Word: His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. That’s why He sent His one and only Son, Jesus, to become a human and die on a cruel Roman cross of torture, bearing our sins, and fulfilling God’s justice that was destined for us. That’s why God has sent His Holy Spirit to dwell within the hearts of all those who believe in Jesus.

Even in His moments of great agony, as the terror of the cross loomed large before Him, Jesus prayed these words, as recorded in John 17:3:

“Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.”

God wants us to know Him. That’s a thought that should give us courage to face another new day. To be known by God, to be loved by Him, and to know Him in return is the greatest, most wonderful gift God could have given to us. Let’s go forth into this new day with strength and with great joy because we belong to the One who both knows us the best and loves us the most.

 

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

True Freedom

 

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.

—Galatians 5:1a

Here in the United States, freedom is something we take for granted. Most of us have been born into a freedom that people in other parts of the world can only dream about. And yet, instead of truly appreciating all the benefits that accrue to us because of our freedom, we take advantage of it and, in some cases, we misuse it.

The same is true in our spiritual lives. Christ has paid the price for our freedom from sin. Yet, we so often act as if we are still in bondage to that evil power. We need to take note of these words from the Apostle Paul, found in Galatians 5:1:

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.

Not only has the death and resurrection of Jesus freed us from the penalty for our sins, Christ has freed us from the power that sin has over us. We need to start living in a way that reflects the freedom we have in Christ: true freedom. Therefore, as we begin another new day, let’s determine to live as people free from the bondage of sin and alive to the victory that we have through Jesus Christ, our Savior, Lord, and King.

 

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

A Stern, But Gracious, Warning

 

“…if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”

—2 Chronicles 7:14

The context of the Scripture verse at the beginning of this blog post is so important that it sheds an even more serious light on this verse than its normal use would imply. The occasion is the dedication of the new temple that King Solomon has built, finishing the work that his father, King David, had hoped to bring about. But, because of David’s sin, David was prohibited by God from actually completing the new temple. Here’s the context, taken from 2 Chronicles 7:13-22. God is speaking to King Solomon:

“When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people, if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land. Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place. I have chosen and consecrated this temple so that my Name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.

“As for you [Solomon], if you walk before me faithfully as David your father did, and do all I command, and observe my decrees and laws, I will establish your royal throne, as I covenanted with David your father when I said, ‘You shall never fail to have a successor to rule over Israel.’

“But if you turn away and forsake the decrees and commands I have given you and go off to serve other gods and worship them, then I will uproot Israel from my land, which I have given them, and will reject this temple I have consecrated for my Name. I will make it a byword and an object of ridicule among all peoples. This temple will become a heap of rubble. All who pass by will be appalled and say, ‘Why has the Lord done such a thing to this land and to this temple?’ People will answer, ‘Because they have forsaken the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who brought them out of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshiping and serving them—that is why he brought all this disaster on them.’”

As you can see, the marvel and wonder of this oft-quoted verse lies within its context. Will God answer the fervent and earnest prayers of His people? Of course He will. Should we pray for our nation, the United States of America? Yes! Definitely! Will God hear from heaven and heal our land? Yes, I believe He will—most likely by sending a great, sweeping revival across the land from the east to the west and from the north to the south.

As we begin this new day, let’s begin by praying such a prayer:

“O God, heal our land. Let Your righteousness flow down and over and through our land like a mighty river. Send Your showers of blessing. Like spring rains, let revival cover every inch of our nation—to the glory of Your mighty name. We pray in the strong name of Jesus. Amen.”

 

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Learning from Jesus

 

“Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you.”

—from John 7:1

A wise person once opined:

“Life is one long learning experience.”

I’ve certainly found that statement accurately describes my life. I suspect it describes your life, as well. So, every single day, you and I are engaged in learning how to live our lives in a way that will be more effective, more productive, and more worthy of the life to which God has called us.

Fortunately, we have a major teacher in the person of God’s own Son, Jesus. Not only is He our Savior, Lord, and King, He is the best possible teacher because “He put on our flesh and walked in our bones.” ¹ For example, please note these words of Jesus to His disciples, as recorded in John 6:32-33, 7:1:

“A time is coming and in fact has come when you will be scattered, each to your own home. You will leave me all alone. Yet I am not alone, for my Father is with me.

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you.”

Here Jesus states that His principal purpose is to glorify His Father. Without meaning to propose something in a trite way, I might state:

“Good enough for Jesus—good enough for us.”

If Jesus intended to do everything in His life to glorify God, then that would be exactly the way we should live our lives, as well. Thus, as we begin another day, let’s examine our actions to make certain that everything we do is done in such a way that it brings glory to God.

Do we want to achieve our personal and work goals in life? Do those goals bring glory to God? Then, let’s move forward, making certain that every step we take to achieve our goals is done in a way that glorifies God—no shortcuts, no deceit, no treachery, just diligent hard work.

Do we want our marriage to be a happy, soul-enriching experience for our spouses and for ourselves? The, let’s pursue that goal in a way that honors God and brings glory to Him.

If God has called us to a life of singleness, do we want to live such a life in a way that displays enthusiastic acceptance of this calling, and thus brings glory to God as we follow every direction that He provides for us? Then, we should walk the pathway of our lives in such a way that we constantly examine each opportunity and choose those that will distinctly and purposefully bring honor to the God who loves us.

In fact, in every area of our lives, this day and every day, let’s live in a way that will glorify the God who loves us with His everlasting, unfailing, and undying love.

 

______________________

1 Kromer, Helen and Silver, Frederick. “I’m Nothing, Nobody, No One” from the musical For Heaven’s Sake. Boston, MA: Baker Publishing Company and New York: Williamson Music Company, 1961. Please note that whenever a citation of Copyrighted material is made on this blog post, such a citation is given strictly for Educational Fair Use illustration purposes only. All Rights Reserved by the original Copyright Holder.

 

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

What Do We Seek?

 

But seek first his kingdom …

—from Matthew 6:33

Many years ago when I was a teenager, I was making quite a racket in the upstairs room I called my “studio.” It was actually a small bedroom where I had set up my “radio station.” In the room’s closet I had stored all manner of equipment and other odds and ends that I had collected over the years.

My dad came upstairs to see what all the racket was about. “What are you doing?” he asked in a puzzled voice.

“I’m just looking,” I replied, perhaps a bit too sharply out of frustration that I couldn’t find what I needed.

“What are you seeking?” my dad asked, and then added, “I hope it’s worth all the trouble you’re going through in order to find whatever you’re seeking.”

His statement stopped me cold. I had become so engrossed in trying to find something I felt I needed that I wasn’t considering whether or not all the effort was really worth it. Even as Christians—“Christ’s-ones”—we need to stop and evaluate, from time to time, whether what we are seeking in life is worth the effort. Please let me share this illustration:

Having worked very hard for many years in my business career, and having achieved a certain level of success, I became ever more frustrated with people around me who seemed to be lazily going about their lives without the same level of dedication that I felt I had. A wise friend, whose opinion I respect and highly value, once pointed out to me that in our careers we go from “Who’s he?” to Who’s who!” to “Who cares?” Hearing his words, I had to stop and ask myself whether all the extreme effort I was making each day was really worth the hours and hours I had spent, in order to achieve success in my business endeavors.

Yet, some things are definitely worth the effort. Notice Jesus’ own words found in Matthew 6:33:

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

The Kingdom of God and His righteousness are definitely things for which we should work intently, with zeal and determination. As we begin another day, perhaps we need to evaluate where we are spending our greatest effort. And perhaps, as we make such an evaluation, we will discover that we have misplaced some of our efforts. At least it’s worth considering.

 

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

A Study in Contrasts

 

For the Lord loves the just …

—from Psalm 37:28

Sometimes we come to understand a truth by looking at that truth’s opposite effect. That’s what the Psalmist, King David, had in mind when he wrote these words found in Psalm 37:28:

For the Lord loves the just and will not forsake his faithful ones. Wrongdoers will be completely destroyed; the offspring of the wicked will perish.

Here we see two sides of the balancing scales of God’s righteous justice. On the one hand, we find the faithful follower of God receiving God’s just and loving protection. On the other hand, we find those who despise and reject God receiving the just penalty for their disobedience.

As we begin a new day, we need to look around us and see the people, who have not yet bowed their knees in fealty to the Great King Jesus, as lost and needy. No matter how they may appear to others, we need to see them as those to whom we can offer an introduction to God’s mercy, grace, and unfailing love. Working in concert with the Holy Spirit, and bathing our efforts in much prayer, we can gently and tenderly speak words of God’s loving salvation into their lives.

Oh how wonderful it would be if some of these needy ones around us would find rest by turning their lives over to the God who loves them with His everlasting love. How pleased God would be that we have faithfully fulfilled our role as His ambassadors.

 

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Blessings Crown Our Heads

 

“Blessings crown the head of the righteous, but violence overwhelms the mouth of the wicked.”

—Proverbs 10:6

In an episode of the television program The Big Bang Theory, entitled “The Shiny Trinket Maneuver,” Amy gets a tiara. ¹ And, she goes crazy. A tiara is something she has longed for all her life. It makes her feel like a princess. So quite naturally, she begins to act just like a princess might act.

In Scripture, ² we who follow the pathway God has laid out before us, through His precious Son, Jesus, learn that in eternity we will be given a crown. We also learn that receiving this crown will so overwhelm us with our unworthiness, that we will take our crowns and lay them at the feet of Jesus. We do this because we know that He alone is worthy of wearing the crown that denotes what we have done for Him over the course of our lives. Indeed, all we may have accomplished in this life we have done so because of His mercy, grace, and enduring love.

King Solomon makes a specific contrast in Proverbs 10:6 when he writes these words:

Blessings crown the head of the righteous, but violence overwhelms the mouth of the wicked.

God already crowns the heads of His children with righteousness. What more of a crown could we ever hope for or need? Let’s remember that fact as we begin another new day. Then, let’s faithfully follow the pathway God lays out before us, knowing that it leads to His righteousness and to the crown He will give us on that Great Day.

 

______________________

1 Lorre, Chuck and Brady, Bill. The Big Bang Theory: “The Shiny Trinket Maneuver” (Season 5, Episode 12). New York: Columbia Broadcasting System, 2012. Please note that whenever a citation of Copyrighted material is made on this blog post, such a citation is made strictly for Educational Fair Use illustration purposes only. All Rights Reserved by the original Copyright Holder.

2 James 1:12 and Revelation 4:9-11

 

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Separated By Love

 

“Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”

—Matthew 25:40

Did you ever think about the fact that the way we express our love will ultimately separate us from other people? I know that may seem like a bit of a strange assertion. But, that is exactly what Jesus taught His disciples, as recorded in Matthew 25:31-46:

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

“He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

“Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

When God sent His one and only Son, Jesus, to earth in order to inhabit a human body and, ultimately, to die in our place on Calvary’s cruel cross of torture, God did so because of His great love for us. A natural outgrowth of God’s love imbued into us by the indwelling Holy Spirit is for us to show God’s love in the way we treat others.

It’s not that the love God breathes into us has more importance than God’s holiness or His justice. Rather, it’s that love—God-breathed love—is the natural outgrowth of His holiness and His justice. We can’t ignore those important qualities from which God’s love springs forth. Nor can we place ourselves as representatives of God’s holiness and justice without also striving to allow His love within us to motivate our behavior toward others.

As we begin a new day, let’s look around us at a chaotic world and find ways to reach out to those in genuine need from our hearts filled with God-breathed love. If we do so, we will be acting toward these ones in God’s behalf. And, that, dear ones, is a very, very good thing.

 

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Have No Fear

 

Have no fear of sudden disaster …

—from Proverbs 3:25

Have you ever felt really afraid? I’m talking about feeling terrified. Most of us have had something happen in our lives that has produced within us genuine fear. Please let me illustrate:

During a live fire drill back in the spring of 1968, I was ventilating the roof of a two-and-a-half story single family dwelling, when the roof gave way due to the fire in the structure right below the roof. I fell, albeit rather slowly, through the roof, through the fire-damaged second floor, through the fire-damaged first floor, and into the basement of the building. Fortunately, I was wearing full turnout gear and my helmet and breathing mask stayed in place during the fall. I was not injured at all, just a bit dazed. But, I was frightened out of my wits!

Needless to say, since I’m writing about this more than 57 years later, I made it out of the basement successfully. But, for several moments, I felt that I was facing imminent death, and it truly gave me such a shock of fear that I can still feel the anguish all these years later.

As we followers of Jesus walk the road of life, we can rely on God to care for us in such a marvelous way that we can put all fear aside. King Solomon wrote about this in Proverbs 3:25-26:

Have no fear of sudden disaster or of the ruin that overtakes the wicked, for the Lord will be your confidence and will keep your foot from being snared.

Far more terrifying than falling through several floors of a burning building is the tight grip that sin can have on our lives. Even though our sins were forgiven by Jesus’ birth, life, suffering, death, resurrection, and ascension, we still can fall prey to the entanglements of sin in our daily lives. Nevertheless, God promises to keep our feet from being securely snared by sin.

As we begin another new day, let’s take comfort in the truth of King Solomon’s words. Let’s rejoice that God protects us from becoming tightly snared. And, let’s make certain we follow closely the pathway God has laid out before us, as we strive to represent Him well to those who connect with us along the road of life.

 

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

In His Care

 

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear.

—Matthew 6:25

We Christians—“Christ’s-ones”—live our lives in God’s care. God has promised to care for us in spectacular ways—well beyond our ability to comprehend or imagine.

That is not a promise for an easy life, nor for a life free of problems. We are, after all, still trapped in these sin-stained bodies, and are subject to all manner of disease and difficulty. But, whenever we face trouble in our lives, we do not do so alone. God is with us. God will take what Satan may intend for evil and turn it into something that will bring glory to God’s matchless name. Here are Jesus’ own words on this subject, as recorded in Matthew 6:25-27:

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?”

As we begin this new day, let’s do so with full awareness that God is caring for us every moment of our lives. We are free from having to fend for ourselves. He will give us whatever we need to face the trials of each day.

 

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Our Portion Forever

 

My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

—Psalm 73:26

Have you ever felt that you were in deep trouble and you called out to God for help? Most people find themselves in such a situation from time to time. Maybe it wasn’t even something directly affecting you. Perhaps it was a situation that had overtaken a beloved member of your family. It might even have been a situation you read about, heard about, or saw on television that prompted you to plead with God to intervene.

If you have ever cried out to God for help, then you can understand the situation Asaph found himself in when he wrote these words found in Psalm 73:23-26:

Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory. Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

This pleading prayer is one we should adopt and make a very real part of our lives. God longs for us to call out to Him. He also wants us to realize that, in our time of need, He alone is the only One to whom we can ask for help. We need to come to God unashamed of our requests for His help. He actually delights to help us. Why? Because of God’s enormously great love for us. And that, my dear ones, is something we need to remember all through this new day.

 

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}