Look behind you

Proverbs 29:4 A leader of good judgment gives stability;
an exploiting leader leaves a trail of waste. (The Message)

Proverbs 29:4 By justice a king gives a country stability, bot one who is greedy for bribes tears it down.NIV

Will you be able to say that those who came behind you benefited from you? As a parent will your children have stability or a "trail of waste"?

If you want to know the true character of someone then you only have to see the "trail" they have left behind them. Solomon is telling us about Kings who exploit people for their gain or even take bribes. As we know in America, a President is usually shown for what he has done after he has left the White House. It is only after their decisions have been implemented that we suffer or benefit from their leadership. The same is true with our children. What trail will we leave for them to follow? Will they have a trail that forwent good judgement in order to make another dollar? Will they have a trail that determines right or wrong on opinion of the moment? Will they see a trail that tried to take shortcuts that only made the trail longer?

How do we keep from having a trail of waste?

Proverbs 29:5 A flattering neighbor is up to no good;
he's probably planning to take advantage of you. (The Message)

In order for you to have good judgement you have to be careful of those who use persuasive words and flattering speech. Everyone likes to be praised but if you are receiving praise to be influenced in a direction then it is not praise at all. When someone praises you it should be because of what you have done or who you are. If it is any more than that than it is not praise at all.

Proverbs 7:21 With persuasive words she led him astray;
she seduced him with her smooth talk.


People will praise you to get you to do what they want. In order for us to not leave a path of destruction behind us we have to be careful that we do not throw away judgement for a manipulative compliment. We can not allow the compliments that come our way to keep us from making wise decisions and causing us to leave a trail of waste. (Read all of Proverbs 7 to see a young man who gave into manipulative praise)

Remember that good judgement will always be seen down the road. The truth will always come out, even though it may take time. If the trail behind you is littered with waste choose today to change and make a difference tomorrow. You can not go back but if you do not change your behavior, then you will continue to leave a "Trail of waste" . Don't make excuses for your past but accept it for what it is, change, and move on.

Signs, signs, everywhere are signs

Danger, Caution, yield, stop, dead end and do not enter, are all signs that we see along the road as we drive. It help us to navigate where we are going and what issues might be ahead. We read those signs and if we ignore them then it could lead us to problems, but if we heed their direction for us then we stay out of trouble. In his book the "Principle of the Path" Andy Stanley talks about how we ignore the signs that God has placed in our lives to keep us out of trouble and danger.

What decisions in your life have you regretted? Where there any signs warning you of the danger? In the moment sometimes we allow ourselves to ignore the signs because we believe we will be the exception to the rule, that somehow those signs do not apply to us.

Every decision we make leads us down a path toward somewhere. Every habit that is formed and where you wind up in life are all because of daily decisions that you make.

Proverbs 27:12 The prudent see danger and take refuge,
but the simple keep going and suffer for it.

The prudent are the wise, the ones who know that all of life is connected. They realize that every decision they make leads them somewhere and that to head down the wrong path could lead to a dead end or worse, it could be fatal.

The simple are the ones who do not see that every decision they made has placed them where they are in life. They see the same issues as the wise but they ignore the warning signs and keep going. These are the people that wonder how they are where they are and blame everyone else for their circumstances.

What warning signs has God placed in your life? What habits are you forming on a daily basis that will effect your future? What warning signs is God giving you about relationships, or business partnerships or what house to buy, etc? If you are honest, you will see the signs, the warnings from people that really love you,or the prompting of the Holy Spirit telling you to stop.

John 16:13 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.

In every area of your life ask the Holy Spirit to guide you. Be prepared to walk away from relationships, business partnerships and habits when the Holy Spirit prompts you to do so. Do not make up excuses for why you are doing what you are doing as if you are the exception, but follow the leading of the Spirit. Others may not understand, they may even criticize you for your decision, but over time the truth will come out, and when it does you will thank God that He guided you down a path away from danger.