Proverbs 21

Difference.

That's the word of the day here at Closing the Gaps. All throughout Proverbs you see differences.
The wise are different than the fool.
The rich are different than the poor.
The wicked are different than the righteous.
The list could go on and on.
Their is even a difference in becoming rich by hard work and saving and those who become rich by lying.
v. 6 vs 20

Too often we attribute the differences between people on luck, blessing, and location of birth. "If only I had been born in that family..." type of thinking. I admit there is a huge amount of validity to the differences in people based on those types of variables. Read Outliers to get a great treatment of the topic. The fact I was born in this country in this time period verses being born in Africa or India at the same time makes for an incredible amount of difference.

What I am learning from Proverbs is, that all others factors being equal, my heart and my actions play the most crucial role in my success or failure as a person. Solomon is constantly showing us that the biggest difference is how you behave and what motivates your heart.

Do you wish for more difference in your life? Do you feel a desire to close the gap between who you are and who God made you to be?

I know I do.

We have to quit looking around at the circumstances we find ourselves in and start putting one foot in front of the other toward the place God would have us be. Feel a financial pinch...v 17 is for you. Your marriage is less than ideal...v 19 may speak to that. Are you greedy...v 13.

Here's the bottom line, we have to be the kind of people who quit saying things like, "if I had only married someone else then I wouldn't be in living with all this pain." "If only I had more money I could help the poor more." "If I had gotten an inheritance from a rich relative I wouldn't be in debt right now." God's Word does not support your thinking. God's Word says something completely different. I love the challenge Proverbs lays  out in each verse!

Let's be the kind of people who love God and pursue a life of difference to his glory and honor!