Activations #s 1-3

To save everyone the trouble of parcing through the Compass page, I wanted to just load up all the old Activations here.   #4 has already been posted.  Hope you enjoy them and share these with your friends if you do.

Activation #1: Fear=Devotion

Proverbs 1:7 tells us "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge".

Did you know that the term fear here means devotion? It's respecting and revering God so much so that you become completely devoted to him. Therefore, the beginning of knowledge and wisdom is being completely devoted to God. We want to help you become more devoted to God. Try out this week's activation and see how it helps you:

Add one minute of prayer and Bible reading to your daily schedule each week this year.If you don't have a regular prayer and Bible reading schedule, start with one minute of each this week. Add another minute the second week to get to 2 minutes a day for prayer and reading the Bible. By the end of the year you will have added 52 minutes of prayer and Bible reading to your daily schedule

That's pretty Awesome.

Activation #2: Wisdom Wants to Celebrate!

Proverbs 1:20 1:1tells us "Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets."

Most people have looked at this scripture as the beginning of a warning. There's some pretty strong language in the rest of the chapter to back up that idea. However, did you know that the term crieth here means a joyful utterance? In fact, if we look at verses 21-24, we see that wisdom is looking for someone to join with her. She wants to pour out her spirit (her depth) and make known her words to those who will listen. That sounds like someone looking to connect. Wisdom-or the word of God and His form of reason-isn't angry but exasperated because nobody wants to celebrate and receive it. If we are to receive wisdom, we can't be holed up in our ignorance and worldliness. We have to be open and excited to receive what God has to say to us through His Word and through relationship with Him. Here's how we can do that:

Get excited about prayer and Bible reading time
Do this by looking for an uplifting scripture each day and praying it into your life
Pray for God to put excitement and joy into your life in general
Bring some joy and excitement to others with a smile and friendliness.

Activation #3: Wisdom is Precious

Proverbs 2:4-5
If thou seekest [wisdom] as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God.

We’ve examined the fear of the Lord as the beginning of knowledge and how it is devotion to God that leads us to wisdom. Here, we see that growing deeper in devotion and knowledge of God is tied to how we value wisdom. Here’s a challenge for this week to up the value of wisdom in your life:

Pick a time of day (10 minutes minimum)
Regardless of what else is going on, devote time during that time to God’s Word
Even if something comes up, don’t postpone God’s Word
See how setting a value on your time with God changes the world around you.