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What is it about some people who just can’t help but give you advice, even when you didn’t ask for it? It’s one of my pet peeves. Truthfully, I think we all do it sometimes, it’s a human disorder. I’m going to do it right now. So, if you don’t want to hear my advice, stop reading. When we hear someone share a problem, we often feel it’s an opportunity to dispense our wisdom rather than exercise our listening skills. With limited information about the real situation, we offer advice that can be ill-timed, out of context and usually just wrong. We might be well motivated but that doesn’t mean we have something worth offering. The bigger issue, however, is that we need to listen more than speak. We need to listen to wise counsel. Plenty of proverbs confirm this:Plans are established by seeking advice;    so if you wage war, obtain guidance. Proverbs 20:18Plans fail for lack of counsel,    but with many advisers they succeed. Proverbs 15:22 Everyone loves giving advice but the big question is, who should your advisers be? Who should you be listening to? Proverbs encourages us to find wisdom and reminds us that finding trustworthy people is important. Not every friend is a good counselor, we must choose wisely. We need friends who love us and speak the truth, not just words of flattery. We need counselors who are patient and willing to ask us deep questions. People who have some gifts of discernment. Above all, people who themselves are listening for the guidance of God’s spirit. The book of Proverbs is careful to identify a fool as someone who thinks they don’t need anybody’s counsel, including God’s. The wise person seeks good counsel. Wisdom often lies in the decision about who we can trust to guard our stories and our pain. My advice is this: don’t go through life without those individuals who can speak real wisdom into your life. It may take time to find them, but it is worth it. I hope and pray you have some of those wise counselors and friends around you. If you don’t, then start to pray that they will show up in your life. You are going to need them.

If you have done any hiking in Switzerland, you are probably grateful for those little yellow signs that are ubiquitous. The signs not only point out the direction of the next town or summit but also give you an estimated amount of time it will take to get there. Even when you have done all your planning, it is helpful to have those signs point you the right way. There are times however when we have gotten a little lost. We have been exploring some of the pathways around our new home. It’s not always clear which is the right way even when the labels are there. And more than once we have found ourselves on the wrong path, which usually means everything takes a little longer. Recently, we took a wrong turn and found the path getting steeper and narrower as we went along. It was a tough climb, but we made it to the top. There we discovered a much wider and easier climb would have been possible if we had paid attention to the signs more closely. The Bible uses this imagery of pathways to talk about our choices in life. There’s a path that God has planned for us. And there’s a path that only leads to more difficulty and estrangement from him. Trust in the Lord with all your heart    and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him,    and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6 If you read Proverbs 3, you’ll see there are some things we need to do to stay on this path. It’s not always the easiest way. Humbling ourselves and giving thought to the needs of others may not come naturally. But God does want to see you on the straight path. You can trust his directions.

My cell phone rang a week ago as I walked to the church. Although I didn’t recognize the number, I answered. It was a recording from the Basel Police Department saying there had been suspicious activity connected with my Swiss Identity card. We recently moved apartments and I had been showing my card to different authorities, so my first assumption was that it was related to our move. The recording continued. The voice said that a warrant had been issued for my arrest due to this activity. Then I was instructed to press 1 in order to speak with a police officer immediately or I would be arrested today. I hung up. It took me a few seconds to realize this was the beginning of a scam. For one thing, the call was in English. The police department would be using German. Second, I’ve lived in Switzerland long enough to know this isn’t how the police operate. I’m more likely to get a fine in the mail than be arrested for some infraction over my ID card. The call made me angry because I knew these operators would eventually snag someone and demand money from them before the victim discovered it was all a fraud. This is what they call an ‘Imposter Scam’ and versions of this are now among the most popular fraudulent actions. Estimates vary but between 8.8 and 29 billion dollars were lost to these cons last year in the United States. No one really knows how to calculate the worldwide loss. The most frustrating thing about it all is how difficult it is to do anything about it. Authorities can’t seem to shut this stuff down. There are a lot of unjust things in our world. Many of them are far worse than a phone scam. At times, we can despair about the state of our world, the way people behave and whether anyone can help. God’s word assures us that there is justice, and we can expect a proper accounting of these things. Meanwhile, we are to live by honest and righteous standards and not give in to the corruption around us. Whoever walks in integrity walks securely,    but whoever takes crooked paths will be found out. (Proverbs 10:9) There are some issues that will not be rectified in this lifetime. In the end, God’s justice will prevail. We must let him take care of that.

When my son was young, he was active. It was hard to keep him interested in anything for very long. Never one to watch a video or sit quietly in front of the TV made it challenging to keep him busy. But if road construction was happening, he would sit and watch it all day. He loved the ‘diggers’ and ‘rollers’. He got quite good at digging holes in the backyard. Anytime we were near a construction site, he would tune in. He’d just watch what was happening. Mesmerized by all the machinery he loved to watch people building things. I’ve found that to be unusual behaviour. Most people prefer to watch things fall apart rather than be built up. Cars slow down to stare at an accident. TV shows have higher ratings when people are fighting in relationships. Social media gets more traffic if people are being nasty to one another. Watching people build something or watching beauty doesn’t seem so interesting. Why is that? Our attention gets drawn to conflict and drama, yet we want peace and joy in our own lives. What if we focused more on that? What if we looked for the positive rather than the negative? “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” (Philippians 4:8)  What we pay attention to has an impact on our mindset and our life. Where we put our thoughts or what we think about matters. That’s not pretending as if there are no problems in life, but we don’t have to put all our energy into our difficulties. Taking time each day to consider the praiseworthy things can give us extra strength to overcome the more negative ones.

Are you ready for a crazy story? I have heard of stories like this before, but this one is over the top. A few weeks ago, a man in Belgium faked his own death. The mourners gathered in the cemetery to say their goodbyes and while waiting for things to begin a helicopter appeared and landed nearby. Out stepped the dead man. To say everyone was shocked would be an understatement. He says he pulled the prank to teach everyone about the importance of keeping in touch. He wanted to find out who really cared about him. So, it was a kind of test. By the way, it was all filmed for his TikTok channel. Anything for ratings, I guess. I don’t know how the family is reacting, but if it were me, I wouldn’t talk to him anytime soon. Inflicting that kind of emotional trauma on loved ones isn’t caring or thoughtful behaviour. Even if he has a good point. And there is a good point. Today is the best time to reach out and let someone know that you care for them. I have conducted many funerals over the years. People say wonderful things about the dead. I wonder if the deceased knew what others thought or how valued they were. Better to let people know when they are living than when it’s too late. “Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” (1 Thessalonians 5:11) Is there someone you can reach out to today? Can you let them know how much you care for them? How important they are in your life? Why not today?

Last week, we took our dog to the vet. She needed minor surgery and to be checked over for general health. The anesthetic left her a little dazed and confused but she’s doing fine. I’m always amazed at the level of care that animals receive in Western culture. They really are treated as members of the family. The pet care industry is worth billions of dollars. This is not the case in many parts of the world where pets aren’t as valued. In Jesus’ day, dogs weren’t considered family as much as scavengers. We don’t read much about people keeping pets in scripture. Of course, the possible kinds of pets you can have these days range from cats, hamsters, snakes, fish, and newts. But the Bible does say that God looks after the animals. Psalm 147:9 tells us that God is concerned for all His creation, including the animals He created: “He provides food for the cattle and for the young ravens when they call. In Luke 12:6 Jesus says, “Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God.” At times, I think our obsession with pets is a little over the top. But if we, people with great faults, can care about animals, will not our heavenly Father care even more for us? It’s not uncommon for people to feel that no one cares or sees their situation. It’s encouraging to remember that God does. “If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” (Matthew 7:11) When feeling forgotten or when in need, we can go to our heavenly Father and ask. Don’t believe the voice saying, ‘I have no one to care for me.’ He cares for the birds and the cattle, and he cares even more about you.

A passenger boarded a Los Angeles to New York plane and told the flight attendant to wake him up and make sure he got off in Dallas. The passenger awoke just as the plane was landing in New York. Furious, he called the flight attendant and demanded an explanation. The attendant mumbled an apology and, in a rage, the passenger stomped off the plane. “Boy, was he ever mad!” another crew member observed to her errant colleague. “If you think he was mad,” replied the flight attendant, “you should have seen the guy I put off the plane in Dallas!” Professor David Seamands says that “Anger is a divinely implanted emotion. Closely allied to our instinct for right, it is designed to be used for constructive spiritual purposes. The person who cannot feel anger at evil is a person who lacks enthusiasm for good.” So there are times when we see injustice or cruelty and it is appropriate to get angry. Even Jesus expressed anger when he saw the condition of the temple under the money changers. However, it’s important that we control anger rather than allow anger to control us. There seem to be a lot of people these days who just love to get people angry. It’s not helpful In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said: “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder,and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment.” (Matthew 5:21-22) According to Jesus’ teaching, it is better to live in peace with others than to live with anger in our hearts. Anger is like yeast: only a little is needed and the bread will rise. In the same way, just a small bit of anger can have a huge effect, moving into every part of our lives, changing how we see things and stopping us from knowing true peace. Jesus encourages us to settle any matter quickly with others so that our hearts will be at peace. Don’t let anger rise in your spirit; it always has a deadly effect.

Years ago, I had the opportunity to go spelunking in the Canadian Rocky Mountains. Spelunking is also known as caving, basically crawling and climbing through damp and dark caves. It was a fun experience although at times the space was very small, and you had to remind yourself not to panic. Those with claustrophobia will want to avoid such activity. We were outfitted with equipment to enable us to make our way through the various crevasses and climb over different outcroppings. The most helpful thing was the light on our helmet since the main thing I learned about caves is that they are pitch black. Our group made its way to a large open cave deep under the earth. We turned off all our lights and sat quietly in the all-encompassing darkness. I thought our eyes would adjust after a few minutes, but they didn’t. There was no light at all. You couldn’t even see your hand in front of your face. Then, one by one, we each lit a candle and soon there was a warm glow inside that deep cave. It was a highly memorable experience. Scripture reminds us that we live in a dark world. We only need to watch the evening news to be reminded about how our world has fallen from God’s plan. Some days we might wonder, “How is it possible to make a difference in this world?”Paul writes: “Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world.” (Philippians 2:14-15) We should never forget that our calling is to live simply and honestly before God, so that we might be light to those in the darkness. When we live without grumbling or disputing, it shines out in the darkness. Our presence makes a difference and helps other people see that there is an alternative to the shadows that surround us. So let your light shine. It might be the only bright spot some people see today!

A student in a biology class was given the assignment to learn about birds. He was to learn the classification, the scientific name, the common name and characteristics of all the birds. The professor said, “Learn everything about them.” On the day of the exam, the student was horrified when he looked at the test asking him to identify the birds pictured from their knees down. He knew the birds well, but he couldn’t identify any of them from their knees down. He tossed his paper onto the pile of exams on the instructor’s table and explained his frustration. The unsympathetic professor said, “Well, you’ll just have to take a zero. I told you to learn everything about them. What’s your name?” The boy reached down and pulled up his pants to his knees and said, “You tell me!” There is only one you. And there is only one me. God has made each of us unique. Scientists can tell us apart because we have our own DNA. Mothers can tell us apart because they know their own children. Dogs can tell us apart because we each smell different. Some days, we might not feel all that special or different from the people around us. But Jesus told us that the Father sees each sparrow fall. (Matthew 10:29) If he knows the birds so well, then he knows what is happening in our lives. He made us and he loves us. Some days, we just need to remember that God’s love and care are enough.

Become wise by walking with the wise;    hang out with fools and watch your life fall to pieces. (Proverbs 13:20) As parents, we watch who our children hang out with. We know that peer groups are a significant factor in how our children behave or the activities they participate in. Running with the wrong crowd always leads to trouble. The same truth applies to adults. Who we spend time with matters. Our friend group has a powerful impact on us, so we must choose our friends wisely. Most of us have a desire to serve God and live a life for him. To help us with that goal we need people who share that desire so that we can encourage one another to keep moving in a positive direction. Of course, we shouldn’t cut ourselves off from people who aren’t like us. It’s not a matter of isolation. We can be salt and light to the world around us. It’s really a matter of where we invest that time and who we allow to speak into our lives. Our values and our lifestyle are reinforced when we hang out with like-minded people. As the teacher says, we become wise by walking with the wise. Evaluating our peer group as an adult is challenging. But taking stock of the influences around us is essential. Are they heading to the same destination you are?