담에 생긴 구멍(A HOLE IN THE WALL)

💙 담에 생긴 구멍

 ✝  잠언 25:16 - 25:28 

"자기의 마음을 제어하지 아니하는 자는 성읍이 무너지고 성벽이 없는 것과 같으니라" [잠언 25:28]

무엇인가가 내 꽃들을 먹고 있었습니다. 어제까지만 해도 자랑스럽게 꽃을 피워 머리를 꼿꼿이 치켜세우고 있었는데 이제 꽃은 없어지고 줄기만 남았습니다. 나는 마당 주변을 살펴보다가 나무 담장에 토끼 한 마리가 드나들 정도의 구멍을 발견했습니다. 토끼들은 귀엽지만 화단의 꽃들을 순식간에 잘라먹어 버릴 수 있는 성가신 동물입니다.

이것을 보면서 내 삶 가운데에도 하나님의 성품으로 피운 꽃들을 베어먹는 “침입자”가 있을지 모른다는 의문이 들었습니다. 잠언 25장 28절은 “자기의 마음을 제어하지 아니하는 자는 성읍이 무너지고 성벽이 없는 것과 같으니라” 고 말합니다. 고대에는 도시의 성벽이 적의 침략으로부터 보호해주는 역할을 했습니다. 성벽에 생긴 아주 작은 구멍일지라도, 이를 통해 도시 전체가 적의 공격에 노출될 수 있었습니다.

잠언의 많은 구절들은 절제에 관한 내용입니다. 현자는 “꿀을 보거든 족하리만큼 먹으라”고 말합니다(25:16). 절제는 우리를 인도하는 성령의 열매이며, 성급함이나 시기, 탐심 그리고 다른 해로운 것들이 침입하여 우리 삶 가운데 맺은 성령의 열매를(갈라디아서 5:22-23 참조) 파괴하지 못하도록 보호해 줍니다. 절제는 건강한 마음가짐으로 우리 삶의 담벼락에 생긴 구멍들을 찾아내고, 또 계속 고치도록 해줍니다.
내 삶의 주위를 둘러보면, 때때로 취약한 구멍을 볼 수 있습니다. 자꾸만 유혹에 넘어가는 곳, 즉 조바심의 영역입니다. 그러한 침입자로부터 자신을 보호하기 위해 나의 삶에서 하나님의 건전한 절제가 얼마나 필요한지요.

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당신의 마음을 에워싼 벽에서 어떤 구멍이 보이나요? 
절제라는 성령의 열매가 침입자로부터 당신의 삶을 보호하는 데 어떻게 도움이 됩니까?

<사랑하는 하나님, 침입자들로부터 보호받을 수 있도록 제 삶에 절제의 열매를 키워 주소서.>

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[잠언 25:16 - 25:28]
16. 너는 꿀을 보거든 족하리만큼 먹으라 과식함으로 토할까 두려우니라
17. 너는 이웃집에 자주 다니지 말라 그가 너를 싫어하며 미워할까 두려우니라
18. 자기의 이웃을 쳐서 거짓 증거하는 사람은 방망이요 칼이요 뾰족한 화살이니라
19. 환난 날에 진실하지 못한 자를 의뢰하는 것은 부러진 이와 위골된 발 같으니라
20. 마음이 상한 자에게 노래하는 것은 추운 날에 옷을 벗음 같고 소다 위에 식초를 부음 같으니라
21. 네 원수가 배고파하거든 음식을 먹이고 목말라하거든 물을 마시게 하라
22. 그리 하는 것은 핀 숯을 그의 머리에 놓는 것과 일반이요 여호와께서 네게 갚아 주시리라
23. 북풍이 비를 일으킴 같이 참소하는 혀는 사람의 얼굴에 분을 일으키느니라
24. 다투는 여인과 함께 큰 집에서 사는 것보다 움막에서 혼자 사는 것이 나으니라
25. 먼 땅에서 오는 좋은 기별은 목마른 사람에게 냉수와 같으니라
26. 의인이 악인 앞에 굴복하는 것은 우물이 흐려짐과 샘이 더러워짐과 같으니라
27. 꿀을 많이 먹는 것이 좋지 못하고 자기의 영예를 구하는 것이 헛되니라
28. 자기의 마음을 제어하지 아니하는 자는 성읍이 무너지고 성벽이 없는 것과 같으니라

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💙 A HOLE IN THE WALL

 ✝  Proverbs 25:16 - 25:28 

"Like a city whose walls are broken through is a person who lacks self-control." [ PROVERBS 25:28 ]

Something was eating my flowers. The day before, blooms proudly lifted their heads. Now they were headless stems. I prowled the perimeter of my yard and discovered a rabbit- sized hole in my wooden fence. Bunnies are cute, but  the pesky animals can mow down a garden of flowers in minutes.

I wonder, might there be “intruders” shearing off the blooms of God’s character in my life? Proverbs 25:28 says, “Like a city whose walls are broken through is a person who lacks self- control.” In ancient days, the wall of the city  protected it against invasion from enemies. Even a small opening in a wall meant that the entire city lay open to attack.

So many of the proverbs are about self-control. “If you find honey, eat just enough,” wrote the wise man (25:16). Self-control is a fruit of the Spirit that guards us, protecting us from losing ground to impatience, bitterness, greed, and other pests that can intrude and destroy God’s harvest in our lives (SEE GALATIANS 5:22–23). Self-control is a healthy-mindedness that watches for the holes in the walls of our lives and keeps them patched.
When I inspect the perimeter of my life, I can at times see vulnerable holes. A spot where I give in to temptation  over and over. An area of impatience. Oh, how I need the healthy-minded self-control of God in my life to guard me from such intruders!
-ELISA MORGA

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What holes do you see in the wall of your heart? How might God’s fruit of self-control help guard your life from such an intruder?

<Dear God, please grow the fruit of self-control in my life that I might be protected from intruders.>

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[Proverbs 25:16 - 25:28]
16. Have you found honey? Eat [only] what you need, Lest you have it in excess and vomit it.
17. Let your foot rarely be in your neighbor's house, Lest he become weary of you and hate you.
18. [Like] a club and a sword and a sharp arrow Is a man who bears false witness against his neighbor.
19. [Like] a bad tooth and an unsteady foot Is confidence in a faithless man in time of trouble.
20. [Like] one who takes off a garment on a cold day, [or like] vinegar on soda, Is he who sings songs to a troubled heart.
21. If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat; And if he is thirsty, give him water to drink;
22. For you will heap burning coals on his head, And the LORD will reward you.
23. The north wind brings forth rain, And a backbiting tongue, an angry countenance.
24. It is better to live in a corner of the roof Than in a house shared with a contentious woman.
25. [Like] cold water to a weary soul, So is good news from a distant land.
26. [Like] a trampled spring and a polluted well Is a righteous man who gives way before the wicked.
27. It is not good to eat much honey, Nor is it glory to search out one's own glory.
28. [Like] a city that is broken into [and] without walls Is a man who has no control over his spirit.