Suffix of the Psalm (Proverbs 24:19-20)

David, in the Psalms, often wrote of the prosperity of the wicked but he always suffixed his thoughts with the goodness of the Lord. Solomon does the same thing here.

"Fret not yourself because of evil doers, neither be envious of the wicked; for there shall be no reward to the evil man; the lamp of the wicked shall be put out." Proverbs 24:19-20, Amplified

The "Suffix of the Psalm" is always focused on the goodness of the Lord. David would always write about how the wicked prospered and how great their lives seemed to be. He would speak of the frustration with living a life devoted to God and how it seemed to go nowhere. But in the "Suffix" David turned his gaze upon his God and remembered His goodness and His mercy. Our lives are no different. My house is currently in foreclosure and I have the opportunity to blame and complain about how those not living godly have huge houses. But in the "Suffix", I know that the Lord has the best for me.

Yes there are those out there whose lives are not lived accordingly to the Word, but I know that the Lord knows. He sees. He rewards.

What You Seek (Proverbs 22:4)

True riches are found in humility.

"The reward of humility and the reverent and worshipful fear of the Lord is riches and honor and life." Proverbs 22:4, Amplified

The three things that I feel are most prevalent in the minds of human beings is to find riches, to find honor and to find life. Within these three things, the person finds what he or she has been searching for.

However, if we wish to receive riches and honor and life we must first have that reverent and worshipful fear of the Lord. True riches are found in the Lord because He owns "the cattle on a thousand hills." (Psalm 50:10b, NKJV) Honor goes to those who first honor the Lord. "Honor the Lord with your possessions..." (Proverbs 3:9a, NKJV) And life to those who seek the Lord first. "Who 'will render to each one according to his deeds'; eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor and immortality..." (Romans 2:6-7, NKJV)

Everything that we need for this life is all tied up with the Lord.

Choice (Proverbs 19:16)

It is important for us all to follow what the Lord has told us to do. Not only personally, but also corporately within the realm of Scripture.

"He who keeps the commandment [of the Lord] keeps his own life, but he who despises His ways shall die." Proverbs 19:16, Amplified

There is nothing in the Bible that is going to be detrimental to ourselves, whether in body, spirit or soul. Nothing bad comes out of the commandments that the Lord gives us. In fact Jesus Himself responded to a comment made from the crowd, "And it happened, as He spoke these things, that a certain woman from the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, 'Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts which nursed You!' But He said 'More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!'" (Luke 11:28, NKJV) We are blessed more than Mary herself when we hear the word of God and keep that commandments that we hear. Even testing the Scribes and Pharisees, Jesus turned right back to the word of God. "And behold a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, 'Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?' He said the them, 'What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?' So he answered and said, '"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind," and "your neighbor as yourself."' And He said to him, 'You have answered rightly; do this and you will live.'" (Luke 10:28, NKJV) The lawyer had the answer if front of him the whole time. He was quoting Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18. What he chose to do was ignore it.

You see we have the choice to hear and obey, but we also have the choice to hear and ignore. What the Bible says is that if we ignore what it says, we shall die. Inevitably, if we follow the commandments set up by the Lord (that are not detrimental to ourselves) we live good lives and better eternal lives. However, if we choose to not follow those commandments we follow our sin nature we will inevitably die.

Life or Death Situation (Proverbs 14:30)

It is important for the mind to be at ease in our Christian walks. Anything else could mean that we are either afraid, angry, anxious, jealous or even another number of things that are not from the Lord.

"A calm and undisturbed mind and heart are the life and health of the body, but envy, jealousy and wrath are as rottenness of the bones." Proverbs 14:30, Amplified

Do not be confused, the Lord does not wish for us to sit calm and undisturbed. The Christian life is most times anything but. This calm and undisturbed mind is not allowing any other outside life to become disruptive. Our Christian walk consists of ourselves and Jesus, no one belongs.

Envy and jealousy are the tiniest of seeds, but when cultivated, have the ability to destroy a firm foundation with wrath. The man withering away from envy, jealousy and wrath is the saddest of sights, for he never has anything to call his own. My walk is my walk; however the Lord chooses to bless me in my walk is my blessing. As long as I am focusing on my walk, then I cannot be consumed with the life of another.

The Bible (Proverbs 13:13-14)

Listen to the words of warning that surround you on a daily basis. They were placed there by the Lord to protect us. The Bible is not a tool to keep us from something, rather it is a tool to bring us to eternal life.

"Whoever despises the Word [of God] brings destruction upon himself, but he who (reverently) fears and respects the commandment [of God] shall be rewarded." Proverbs 13:13, Amplified

To not heed the Word is to invite destruction upon yourself. It is full of the words of life that we need to survive and enter eternal life. But to despise it and reject it is to fall into the hands of death. I mean this verse pretty much speaks for itself with no help of interpretation.

"The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life, that one may avoid the snares of death." Proverbs 13:14, Amplified

Remember that wisdom is knowledge applied. It is possible that the wise have been where you are at this moment in time. When you are taught by them, they are coming from a place of experience. The snares of death being spoken of here may not just be the sudden stop at the end of life, but also the second death, Hell. The Lord places people around us to place us on the path to heaven. There are no guard rails and we are welcome to leave the path whenever we want. But leaving the path means that we just might be inviting destruction upon ourselves.