2Co 1:9-10 Yes, we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead, who delivered us from so great a death, and does deliver us; in whom we trust that He will still deliver us,
Ah, I love these verses! What is the whole point of trials and afflictions in our lives? "... that we should not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead..."! We often focus so longingly on the deliverance that we fail to trust in God. We worry and wring our hands that things won't turn out the way we think they should. We expect deliverance but we want it our way. God may have other plans. When we fret about our circumstances we are not trusting in God but rather we are trusting in ourselves or in men's worldly wisdom.
2Co 1:12 ¶ For our boasting is this: the testimony of our conscience that we conducted ourselves in the world in simplicity and godly sincerity, not with fleshly wisdom but by the grace of God, and more abundantly toward you.
Simplicity and godly sincerity in contrast to fleshly wisdom stands out to me. Simplicity carries with it the idea of integrity, fair-dealing, straight forward, and frankness in your dealings and conduct. Godly Sincerity has the idea of having one's purposes and aims open and manifest. Not hiding your real purpose or acting in a cunning, crafty way, but being real about what you are trying to do.
These deal with the character of the heart and the goal that all people of God should aim for.
Simplicity is a word that stands out in my mind as I struggle to get the clutter of my home under control. When the house is cluttered by unnecessary stuff, living a stress-free or low stress life is more difficult. So it is when your aims and motives are cluttered by trying to hide your real aims and purposes from people...it makes your life more stressful and you find yourself getting into difficulties more often.
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