MEMORISE: Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay. – Ecclesiastes 5:5
BIBLE READING: Ecclesiastes 5:1-5
1 Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil.
2 Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few.
3 For a dream cometh through the multitude of business; and a fool’s voice is known by multitude of words.
4 When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed.
5 Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay.
MESSAGE:
Making a vow and not fulfilling it is a deadly habit. Today’s memory verse says that it is better not to vow than to vow and not fulfil it. Some people make vows out of emotions without having the means to fulfil them. For instance, if you make a vow at a church programme that you will give God half of your school fees, that intention might just have been initiated by your emotions and not by God. This is because your school fees are a constant that should not be tampered with. However, you can make vows and give tithes and offerings of your allowances or cash gifts.
I have heard of teenagers who gave part of their school fees to some prophets and eventually got sent out of school because they couldn’t pay their fees. They also put their parents through financial and emotional stress. I pray that you will not make the wrong decisions in life, in Jesus’ name.
My dear child, do not be in a hurry to make vows or pledges to God, and do not let anyone coerce you into doing so.
KEY POINT:
It is better not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfil it.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Job 23:1-27:23 2 Corinthians 1:12-2:11