Daily Devotionals

Like someone who grabs a dog by the ears is a passer-by who mixes in a fight not his own (Proverbs 26:17).

Zol ich azoi vissen fun tzores is Yiddish for "I should so know from trouble as I know about this." The expression is very much on target.

Often we find ourselves pulled into situations which are not our problem. Wanting to please the Lord, we feel we should help. Yet especially in situations where anger and unforgiveness are involved, we should remember to look before we leap.

Is it wise to jump into rough waters (especially when we are only marginal swimmers) in order to try to save someone from drowning? Could there be another more suited to the job? First tune into God's wisdom before making the situation worse! Occasionally a recipient of our kind intentions may turn on us and pull us down in the midst of the struggle. In jumping in to save the day, we often become distracted from the things God is calling us to do.

I am reminded of the student who was giving his defense for semikhah (ordination) before the board of his yeshivah (rabbinical school). He spent all week delving into the "difficult problems" of the Holy Books without studying the material foundational to his exam. When it came to the test, the first oral question was "recite the ten words of Moses [the Ten Commandments] handed down from Sinai."He could not remember the very foundation of his faith. He had been so busy arguing with the sages of the Holy Writ without attending to the business so important to his future that, of course, he failed.

When we become absorbed in the issues of others we often neglect our own affairs, In addition, we may unwittingly invite an unfriendly bite, or worse! Lack of propriety is not the wisdom of Messiah.

...prayerfully consider what the Lord wishes me to be involved in and I will prioritize my day accordingly.

JR