Strength for Today – Page 20 – Old Paths Journal

Money Mindsets

by: Dr. Allen Domelle

Psalm 62:10
“Trust not in oppression, and become not vain in robbery: if riches increase, set not your heart upon them.”

Whether or not we like it, money is a part of life. You cannot pay your bills without money. You can’t enjoy your time away with the family without money. Money is necessary to function in life. Your mindset concerning money will affect your Christianity. There are many mindsets that you should have concerning money, but I find four important mindsets that influence every part of your life. Let me show you these four mindsets.

First, don’t live for money. If you live for money, it will influence how you treat people. 1 Timothy 6:10 says, “For the love of money is the root of all evil…” Money in and of itself is not evil, but when you live for money because you love it, it will cause you to hurt others just to get it. Many good people have been ruined because they loved money. It is interesting that this verse didn’t say that the rich were evil. There are rich people who don’t love money; therefore, they don’t hurt people to get it. You can be poor and love money, and that will cause you to do what it takes to get it, even if it means you have to hurt someone. Be very careful about having a mindset that lives for money. That mindset will lead you to become an evil person.

Second, don’t be willing to do anything for money. Proverbs 16:8 says, “Better is a little with righteousness than great revenues without right.” You must put boundaries as to what you will and will not do to earn money. Many people have allowed money to change their purpose of life only to backslide on God. It is always better to have a little money and be able to live righteously than to earn much money and stray from God. If you have to miss church to earn money, stay in church and trust God to supply your finances. If you have to withhold a part of your tithe to invest in something to make more money, miss out on the investment opportunity and tithe. Go ahead and earn money, but don’t earn it at the cost of your Christianity.

Third, don’t let money determine your joy. The verse above says, “…if riches increase, set not your heart upon them.” If money doesn’t determine your joy, you will be joyful no matter the status of your income. It is sad when you hear about people committing suicide when the stock market crashes. The only reason they would do this is because their joy comes from money. Don’t let money determine your joy, let your joy come from serving the LORD and you will find that you can be content with whatever He gives you.

Fourth, make God your treasure and He will take care of your treasure. Matthew 6:21 says, “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” If serving the LORD is your true treasure, you will find yourself investing in God. Moreover, when God is your treasure, He will take care of it. Verse 33 says, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” God is the securest bank in which you can put your treasures. His interest rate is excellent. Luke 6:38 says, “Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom…” Nobody can give you a return on your investment like God. Friend, God will bless you if you make this your mindset.

Five Steps to Spiritual Decay

Jeremiah 7:28
“But thou shalt say unto them, This is a nation that obeyeth not the voice of the LORD their God, nor receiveth correction: truth is perished, and is cut off from their mouth.”

What a powerful statement, “truth is perished.” The word “perished” means: to wither or decay; to waste away; to come to nothing; to be rendered useless. In other words, God was saying that Israel didn’t suddenly die, but they died a gradual death. Israel didn’t go from being the most powerful nation in the world to a nation that perished overnight; no, it was a gradual death. For God to say that truth perished, He is saying that there was no more hope for Israel. Hope is gone when “truth is perished.”

A Christian never suddenly dies spiritually. Every Christian who has died spiritually has died a slow death. They died slowly by allowing truth to perish. The Christian died a slow death when truth wasted away in their lives and became nothing to them. There are five steps Christians, churches and nations take that lead to the spiritual decay.

First, no conscience leads to spiritual decay. Verse 10 shows Israel’s lack of conscience. They stole, murdered and committed adultery, and the next day went to church and declared that God wanted them to do these things. When a Christian comes to the point where sin doesn’t bother them, they are beginning to walk down the road to destruction. You must ask yourself, does your sin bother you? You are on dangerous ground when you can sin and it doesn’t bother you.

Second, no conviction leads to spiritual decay. Israel wasn’t convicted of their sin. A lack of conscience always leads to no conviction. If you can sit through preaching or read the Scriptures and are never convicted of sin, you have started the journey of spiritual decay, which will lead to spiritual death.

Third, no response leads to spiritual decay. It is sad that God sent preachers to Israel, “But they hearkened not…” Someone has to be able to tell you what to do. There has to be someone who can look at you like Nathan looked at David and say, “Thou art the man.” To say that nobody is going to tell you what to do is to reveal the spiritual decay that has set into your life. Friend, don’t harden your neck to truth but respond to it.

Fourth, no boundaries leads to spiritual decay. Israel walked “in the counsels and in the imagination of their evil heart.” You can use Scripture to justify your wicked actions, but that doesn’t change the truth of Scripture. Stop justifying sin and start repenting of it. Without the boundaries of God’s Word, you will walk down the road to spiritual decay and eventual death.

Fifth, no direction leads to spiritual decay. Israel “went backward, and not forward.” When your direction is worldly instead of godly, you are headed down a road to death. When you look to the world for your direction of holiness instead of the Scriptures, you are spiritually withering away.

Is truth perishing in your life? Friend, you never suddenly die spiritually. It will always be a slow death through decay. Don’t let truth perish in your life. Keep God as your focus, and respond and repent when He reveals your sin through the Scriptures or preaching.

Attitude of Transgressors

Isaiah 59:12
“For our transgressions are multiplied before thee, and our sins testify against us: for our transgressions are with us; and as for our iniquities, we know them;”

Your attitude is a direct result of an action performed. You often know that someone is changing for good or bad because of their attitude. Your attitude dictates what is happening on the inside. This is why a preacher will often ask someone, “Is everything okay?” The reason he asks is because he sees their attitude change.

Sin is an attitude killer. It is amazing that when a person with a good attitude falls into sin, their attitude falls with them. You cannot have a Christlike attitude and live in sin. The verse above says, “For our transgressions are multiplied before thee…” As their transgressions multiplied, their attitude spiraled downward. Isaiah 59 reveals five attitudes of the transgressor. Let me show you these five attitudes.

The first attitude of the transgressor will say, “It’s not my fault.” Verse 4 says, “None calleth for justice…” The transgressor blames their sin on others not stopping them. It is amazing how the transgressor never takes the blame for what they have done; they always want to blame the actions of others. You will never change your transgressing ways until you start taking the blame for your own actions.

The second attitude of the transgressor will say, “I didn’t know that it was wrong.” The transgressor says in verse 10, “…we grope as if we had no eyes…” Burying your head to truth doesn’t change the responsibility for your sin. Ignorance is not a license to sin. It is your responsibility to learn what is right and wrong. Don’t blame your sin on ignorance.

The third attitude of the transgressor complains, “Why is everyone against me?” Verse 11 says the transgressor will “…mourn sore like doves…” Always remember that your sin is the only one against you. It is amazing how the transgressor thinks those who are trying to help them are trying to hurt them. Sin blinds your ability to see the helping hand. When you start thinking that everyone is against you, start examining your heart to see what sin is causing that attitude.

The fourth attitude of the transgressor will say, “It’s your fault.” The transgressor complains that they looked for judgment, but you wouldn’t judge. It is always amazing how the transgressors attitude always blame the other person for their wrong. A tender heart will cause a person to apologize for what they did even if their wrong was minimal. When people start blaming others instead of taking responsibility, you can be assured that sin is in their heart.

The fifth attitude of the transgressor makes everything about themselves. It is sad that salvation was far from the transgressor in verse 11. The reason is because they made life about themselves. When all you can see is your greatness and others inability to see it, you are signaling that there is sin in your heart.

The reason transgression multiplied in the verse above is because of these five attitudes. Examine your attitude and see if these attitudes are present with you. You will find these attitudes will flee when sin is removed from your life.

The Christian Heritage

Isaiah 54:17
“No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD.”

The psalmist was not exaggerating a bit when he said in Psalm 16:6, “…I have a goodly heritage.” When looking at the verse above, the Christian should realize that their heritage has nothing to do with them, but everything to do with Christ. Everything we have and everything we are is all because of Christ.

When God uses the word “heritage” to describe what He gives the Christian, He is using a word that is more powerful than just receiving an inheritance. In law, a “heritage” is an immovable estate. In other words, there is nothing that can change what God has done and will do for the Christian. There are three things you will discover about the Christian heritage from Isaiah 54.

First, the Christian heritage is founded in Christ. Verse 11 says, “O thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will lay thy stones with fair colours, and lay thy foundations with sapphires.” Notice that this verse says, “I will lay thy stones…” Everything that you are is because of Christ. You are a unique individual who is divinely created by God Himself. What a wonderful thought to know that everything we are is because God saw fit to make us this way. Friend, you must not run from the fact that everything in your life is divinely placed there by God. God laid the stones of your life. God takes every event in your life to give you a foundation to stand upon so that you can be a great witness for Him.

Second, the Christian heritage is invulnerability in Christ. Two powerful words in the verse above are, “No weapon…” Christian, it doesn’t matter what others say about you, “No weapon…shall prosper…” It doesn’t matter who stands against, “No weapon…shall prosper…” It doesn’t matter how many stand against you, “No weapon…shall prosper…” When you choose to live within the confines of God’s Word, you can rest in the invulnerability you have in Christ that “No weapon…shall prosper…” There may be times when you think you are going to be destroyed, and there may be times your destruction may seem imminent because of what or who you are standing against, but you can always be at peace that “No weapon…shall prosper…”

Third, the Christian heritage is success in Christ. It says about the righteousness of the Christian in the verse above, “…their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD.” You must be very careful that you don’t make your success about you. Anything the Christian has ever accomplished that stands the test of time will have been accomplished because of the LORD. The word “righteousness” is talking about righteous acts. In other words, any good thing performed can only be done through Christ. Yes, a person may be able to do right things in their own power, but what they do will crumble. It is only through the power of Christ that you will find success as a Christian.

Friend, the Christian heritage can only be found by losing yourself in Christ. You will experience the benefits of the Christian heritage when you die to self and let Christ be magnified through you.

Don’t Waste Your Time

Proverbs 9:6
“Forsake the foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding.”

In the early years of my ministry, most of my meetings were youth meetings. I recall how oftentimes while I was preaching there would be one youth who seemed to sit and almost dare me to change them. Sadly, I found myself focusing my time and efforts trying to change that one youth.

One day the Holy Spirit convicted me about wasting my time on someone who really didn’t want my help. The Holy Spirit reminded me that most of the youth wanted to get something from my preaching. I found the impact of my sermons greatly increase when I realized that I could do more by focusing my time and energy on those who wanted my help.

In Proverbs 9, God reminds us that there are three types of people we need to stop wasting our time upon. God says in the verse above, “Forsake the foolish…” In verses 7-8, God shows us that we waste our time when we try to change the scorner and the wicked. Friend, the fool, scorner and wicked will only be changed by God. To think that you can change their heart will only cause you to waste your time. You can try to change the scorner, but he will only continue his mocking and ridiculing ways. You are not going to change him. You will only hurt your testimony by continually spending time with the wicked in an attempt to change them. Don’t waste time on those who don’t want your help.

The wise person is the one whom you should invest your time. Verse 9 says, “Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man, and he will increase in learning.” The greatest investment of time is made by investing in the wise person who desires your help. It is a great investment because they want your help, and they will change the areas that keep them from becoming what God wants them to be.

Ministry leader, be careful about wasting time on those who don’t want your help. When you focus your attention on those who don’t want your help, you are telling those whom you can help that the only way to get your attention is to act like a fool or scorner. Don’t let the fool and scorner succeed by focusing your attention on them. One of the reasons they act the way they do is because they want all focus on them. Don’t feed their need for attention by continually focusing on them.

If you want to make the most of your time, you would be wise to find the one who follows everything you teach them to do. You will often find that the one whom you should help will commonly sit in the background and observe, but they are always doing what you ask them to do. You will find there are scores of future preachers, missionaries, evangelists, Christian school teachers and ministry leader’s wives who want your help, but they will never become these if you don’t invest your time in them. Don’t allow the time wasters to take your attention from the ones whom you can truly influence.

Someone needing your Christian influence today can be helped if you will stop focusing on the time wasters. Let God deal with the scorners, for He knows best how to get them to change. Spend your time investing in those who want your influence and help. You will find that by investing in these people, your time will be well spent.

I’ll Take the Broken Reed

by: Dr. Allen Domelle

Isaiah 36:6
“Lo, thou trustest in the staff of this broken reed, on Egypt; whereon if a man lean, it will go into his hand, and pierce it: so is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all that trust in him.”

When Sennacherib, King of Assyria, came up against Judah, he made great threats which he could not back up. His threats seemed very believable to those who heard them because he could show what he had done to other nations. Every other nation crumbled when they faced Sennacherib.

When he threatened Judah, he went to the core of what and Who they believed. He warned them not to trust in the “staff of this broken reed, on Egypt; whereon if a man lean, it will go into his hand, and pierce it.” The reed is a long piece of bamboo that someone leaned on to keep from falling. It wasn’t uncommon for the reed to break and pierce the hand of the one who was leaning on it. Sennacherib was saying that it would hurt them if they continued to trust in what the LORD had done for them in Egypt.

My answer to the modern day Sennacherib’s who criticize those who walk the old paths is that I will choose to trust the “broken reed.” There are many modern day Sennacherib’s who criticize the old paths and those who trust in them by saying that they are only hurting themselves. They say that we will never be able to build a great work. To every modern day Sennacherib, I will continue to trust in my “broken reed.”

Go ahead and criticize, you modern day Sennacherib’s, I choose to trust the “broken reed” of our past. You can criticize the past of those who walked the old paths, but God blessed our past to make us who we are today. I’m not going to run from who I am because our past will successfully lead us into a blessed future. I’m not going to change who I am because of these empty threats.

Moreover, I choose the “broken reed” of our methods. The modern day Sennacherib’s have said that the methods of soul winning, separation, passionate preaching and running busses won’t work today, but it is amazing how they are still working. Friend, we don’t need to run to liberals to have our cocktail filled dramas to validate that we are relevant in today’s society, our methods that we have copied throughout the years will still work today.

Furthermore, I choose the “broken reed” of God’s power. The modern day Sennacherib’s can say that our reed is broken, but what they forget is that God is still alive. The same God, Who empowered the saints in the Book of Acts, is still very capable of empowering the Christian today. The same God who said to “come out from among them, and be ye separate” is very capable to empower and powerfully use those who practice separation from the world. God’s power is as powerful today as it was when He created the world.

Friend, there are many modern day Sennacherib’s who say that we trust in a “broken reed.” Let them criticize, but don’t change who you are. Let them condemn, but keep doing what the Scriptures teach to do. If what they have is so great, they wouldn’t need to threaten because their works would prove them right by their fruit. Always remember that the only reason they threaten is because threats are their only weapon to stop you. You have the Almighty, powerful God on your side. Let the modern day Sennacherib’s threaten, but you just need to keep trusting God and doing what His Word commands to do because He will prove them wrong.

Turned Upside Down

by: Dr. Allen Domelle

Isaiah 24:1
“Behold, the LORD maketh the earth empty, and maketh it waste, and turneth it upside down, and scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof.”

There is coming a day when the LORD will turn the Earth upside down. The inhabitants had their opportunity to do right. They heard the prophets and preachers whom God sent their way. They were given a space of grace to repent of their wickedness. Yet, they refused, even with all the opportunities the LORD gave them to turn from their wickedness. The result: “…the LORD maketh the earth empty, and maketh it waste, and turneth it upside down…”

There is another time in the Scriptures when the world is turned upside down. This time is found after the church of Jerusalem was scattered because of persecution. The Christians in Jerusalem, under the power of God, saw the LORD’s hand work through souls being saved, lives miraculously changed, and an enormous growth of the church. The religious leaders tried to stop what the LORD was doing through His people through persecution, but that resulted in Christians being scattered everywhere and starting churches. The rulers of the city said when they came to Thessalonica, “…These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also;” The LORD used these people to turn their world upside down for righteousness.

Twice, we see that the world was turned upside down. The first time sin turned the world upside down. The sins of mankind forced God’s hand to turn the Earth upside down. The second time, righteousness turned the world upside down. Yes, both times the world was influenced for good and bad, and both times it resulted in the world being turned upside down: one time for good and the other time for bad.

Christian, sin will always turn your world upside down. Many families have seen their world turned upside down because one person chose to live a life of sin. Many people have seen their life turned upside down because the payment of sin finally came due. You can’t live a life of sin and not expect your world to stay the same. Sin always turns a world upside down. Sin always takes a peaceful world and turns it upside down into a world of conflict. Many people who lived a blessed life saw their world turned upside down into heartache and sorrow because of sin.

On the other hand, you can turn your world upside down for good if you will yield yourself to the Holy Spirit and allow Him to use you to do the LORD’s work. There are so many testimonies of people who once lived a life of turmoil only to see their world turned upside down for good because they decided to serve the LORD. The individual who chooses to get God’s power on their life can see the LORD turn their world upside down for good. Righteousness always exalts. You will find the world will be turned upside down for good when an individual, family or church chooses to follow the Word of God and continually yield to the Holy Spirit.

Today, you have a choice of which way you want your world to face. You can allow sin to turn your world upside down for worse; or, you can do right and let the LORD use you to turn your world upside down for right. Don’t allow sin to ruin your world and turn it upside down. Do right and yield to the Holy Spirit, and the LORD will use you to turn the world around you upside down for good. It is your choice!

What is Your Problem?

Isaiah 22:1
“The burden of the valley of vision. What aileth thee now, that thou art wholly gone up to the housetops?”

One of the first questions I ask when someone comes for help is, “What is your problem?” You will never find a solution without first discovering the problem. Symptoms and conditions can be discussed, but you will never solve your problem until you identify the source. Certainly, the symptoms can help lead you to the problem, but you have to identify your problem so that you can change what causes it.

The verse above is a dialogue that God had with the city of Jerusalem. He asked, “What aileth they now…?” This was more than a question; it was their answer. God was trying to get them to stop talking about their symptoms so they could get to their problem. God went on to identify their problems, but they could have gotten to the solution earlier had they asked themselves the same question. Four observations can be taken from this question that will help you to change your problems in life.

First, you always answer problems with questions. You will never solve your life’s problems until you honestly answer your questions. You can continue to go down the same road of life and never ask yourself why you are in constant ailment, or you can stop and ask yourself what is causing the problem. For instance, you can struggle financially for the rest of your life, or you can stop and ask yourself what is eating away at your finances. This can be applied to any area of life. It can be applied to your marriage, ministry, family relationships, weight problems, attitude, and even your inability to be promoted on the job. Until you give yourself an honest answer to your problem, you will never be able to get out of your situation.

Second, you will never change your situation until you look at the present and not the past. God asked Jerusalem, “What aileth thee now…?” You can keep on referring to what you used to do or what you want to do, but you will never change your situation in life until you look at what is happening in the present. Refusing to look at your present condition by burying your head in the past only hurts your future potential. If you want to change your present ailments, you must start dealing with the present and stop living in the past.

Third, you must be specific with your inquisitions and answers if you are going to resolve your problems. God wanted specific answers and not general ones. We all know what our specific problems are, but because we don’t want to face the reality of our depravity, we continue to answer life’s questions in generalities. You will never change your problems until you become specific with your answers.

Fourth, you must deal with your issues NOW before the day of trouble. If you think it is bad now, wait until your problems come to fruition. Because the inhabitants of Jerusalem refused to answer their ailments, they had to live in the “day of trouble.” Thinking that you will never have to deal with your issues is like living in a fantasy world. Friend, your issues are leading you to a day of trouble. Either you can answer the difficult questions so you can have the answers about what you need to do, or you can wait until your day of trouble comes. If you think you have problems now, just wait until your problems become reality. If you deal with your issues now, you can avoid the unrepairable heartache that the day of trouble will bring.

The Team of Mercy and Judgment

Isaiah 10:4
“Without me they shall bow down under the prisoners, and they shall fall under the slain. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.”

Five times in the Book of Isaiah, God makes the statement, “…but his hand is stretched out still.” What a powerful statement that God would express mercy in spite of our wickedness and His judgment. It is God’s mercy that keeps us from being destroyed. Lamentations 3:22 remind us, “It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.” Christian, it is because of the LORD’s mercy that “his hand is stretched out still.” God’s expressed mercy should behoove every child of God to take hold of the stretched out hand of God. Five things can be learned from God’s hand of mercy.

First, mercy is not an absence of judgment. You will notice that it was in the midst of judgment that God expressed His mercy. The purpose of mercy is to keep the judgment from destroying the individual. You must not think that you must no longer punish someone because of mercy. The exact opposite is what should be practiced. Judgment for sin committed must be executed, but mercy should follow after the sentence has been declared.

Second, mercy is an act of love that is held in check by judgment. Love has caused many people to overlook sin, but judgment is what keeps love in its proper place. You must understand that mercy and judgment work together to help the sinner turn their life around. If you allow both to work together, you will find it more profitable in keeping the sinner from continually committing the same sin.

Third, mercy reaches out to a changed heart. It is interesting that God didn’t force Himself on those who were being judged, but He held His hand out for them to take at their choosing. Whenever you are punishing someone for wrong, you will learn if they are truly repentant if they will grab your stretched out, merciful hand and ask for help. It is vitally important not to force yourself on the punished, but make yourself available to them. A changed heart will grab the merciful hand and ask for help.

Fourth, mercy keeps judgment from becoming personal. God’s judgment on these countries was not personal, but He had to judge the sin. Mercy was His proof that it wasn’t a personal attack against them. The only way to keep judgment from becoming personal is to express mercy to those who are being punished. If you love someone, you will find it won’t be hard to exercise mercy. If you judge without expressing mercy, your judgment will become personal and will destroy the individual.

Fifth, mercy is not a license to sin. Just because God or an individual is exercising mercy towards you doesn’t give you a right to continue in sin. Don’t mistake mercy for weakness. Mercy is the expression of love that wants to help the offender through their time of punishment. Mercy will never excuse sin, but it will give you the grace to endure it and come through sin’s punishment as gold.

Judgment is one of the areas that will reveal the depth of your Christianity. It will be revealed by whether or not you use mercy and judgment together. If you want to help people overcome sin, you are going to have to let mercy and judgment work together.

Four Steps to Honor

Proverbs 4:8
“Exalt her, and she shall promote thee: she shall bring thee to honour, when thou dost embrace her.”

In the verse above, God gives a promise that the person who exalts and promotes wisdom and understanding will become a person of honor. When you think of a person with honor, you think of a person who has integrity and morals. A person with honor is a person who has lived in such a manner that people trust them and hold them in high esteem.

One thing every generation lacks are people of honor. It seems as if many are out for themselves and their agenda, and they are willing to sacrifice their honor to achieve it. It really doesn’t matter if you get what you want if you lose your integrity to get there. You have accomplished nothing in life if you had to lose your honor and integrity to attain the promotions and wealth you have accumulated. In Proverbs 4, God shows four steps a person must take to achieve honor.

First, you must have boundaries to guide you. Verse 4 says, “…keep my commandments…” The commandments are the boundaries by which you live. Every person needs commandments to guide them along life’s way. These commandments must be clear and simple. If a parent wants to rear their children to become a person of honor, they better be sure to set rules in the home. You will never obtain honor without boundaries to keep you from doing things you should not do.

Second, you will never get honor without performance. Verse 4 continues to say, “…keep my commandments, and live.” Living is performing. I’m all for people having boundaries by which to live, but boundaries are set to help you while you perform. For instance, there is no purpose of an out-of-bounds line in basketball if you don’t play the game. That line is there to help you perform. God’s commandments are established to help you perform better. Performance creates accomplishments. If you want to become a person of honor, you are going to have to get up and start doing something. Honorable people are people of accomplishment, and people of accomplishment are people of performance. You earn honor by doing something.

Third, awareness is a key to honor. Verse 11 says, “I have taught thee in the way of wisdom…” Awareness is learning how to do things while you perform them. Sadly, I’ve watched many people do something who can’t tell you how they’ve done it because they are not living in awareness. While you are practicing what you are supposed to do, be sure to be aware of what you are doing so you will know how to do it on your own. You will never become a person of honor if someone always has to hold your hand while you perform.

Fourth, direction keeps you honorable. Verse 11 continues by saying, “…I have led thee in right paths.” You better keep your direction right if you want to keep the honor you earned. Many people became a person of honor, but they lost their honor because they didn’t keep their direction right. What is the right direction? The right direction is to continue doing what brought you to honor. Don’t be a person of change or be given to change. Keep walking the old paths, and as the verse above says, “embrace” them. You will find that honor is a result of embracing these four actions.