🪰🪰🪰In our anchor Scripture, a man who is in a place of reputation is likened to a perfumer, aroma artisan, or fragrance alchemist.
🌹The perfumer or fragrance alchemist makes perfumes, products that are cherished globally. However, during the production process, he must exercise the utmost care to ensure that flies never get anywhere near his work premises. Why? Because just two or three of them falling into his product can turn its cherished fragrance into an absurd and stinking foulness that no one ever wants anything to do with.
🍄The lesson of our anchor Scripture is that a little act of folly by a respected man or woman can ruin the reputation they have taken years to build.
🪰🪰🪰A PLACE OF HONOUR MANY DON’T ACKNOWLEDGE
Perhaps, as you’re reading, you’re thinking that those in places of honour are the political bigwigs, business moguls, captains of industry, bishops and prelates, billionaires, and such like. Well, I’m here to tell you that, important as those people are, they’re not the only people in places of honour and reputation.
🍉Every person who is married is in a great place of honour because God’s Word says, “Marriage is honourable” (Hebrews 13:4a).
🌾As a married man or woman, you are a leader in one of God’s first institutions on earth: marriage.
🪹By virtue of your status as a married person, you are a ruler, a patriarch, or a matriarch. Indeed, you’re by no means a mean person. It therefore behoves you, or becomes necessary for you, to keep your life completely closed to “flies” at all times.
🪰🪰🪰WATCH AGAINST FLIES LIKE THE PERFUMER!
The perfumer must watch against natural and physical flies. But as a married man or woman, natural or physical flies are not the ones you need to beware of. The flies you must watch against are little acts of folly that bring men and women in lofty places of honour to ruin, public odium, or disgrace.
🪰🪰🪰EXAMPLES OF LITTLE FOLLIES
🌹(1) TRICKERY
On June 17, 1972, when I was still in Form One at Our Lady of Schools College, an American president committed an act of folly that would eventually cost him his hard-earned reputation and lofty office. He engaged in criminal trickery. He sent five burglars to plant wiretapping devices in the office of his political opponents and to steal campaign documents to sabotage the possibility of their winning the election. That’s what became known as the Watergate Scandal.
🦋That president eventually had to resign in humiliation. A little political folly undid him forever.
🧱As a husband or wife, don’t use tricks on your spouse. It may succeed for some time, but one day, it will surely backfire.
🪰(2) INTEMPERANCE
Esau came home very hungry at the time Jacob was done cooking a tasty porridge. He asked Jacob for a plate of the aromatic porridge, and, to his surprise, Jacob told him the price tag: “Give me your birthright.”
🤎Instead of turning away in disgust, he said, “What is the birthright to me when I am hungry?” and so gave it to Jacob with an oath. Till this day, that act of folly is tagged to his name.
🪰🪰🪰(3) LUST OF THE FLESH
This is the area where many have shown how stupid, empty-headed, and barren of wisdom they are.
🎪If it’s not foolishness to go after another woman for sex when you have a woman in your life, right under your roof, who bears your name, tell me what foolishness is!
🎉Alas, men of honour, most especially preachers, have come to utter ruin and have been stripped and paraded naked in broad daylight because they wanted to sleep with another woman. An example will do for today:
🥕A preacher went out on evangelism and, in the course thereof, preached to a lady who gave attention to the Word. Seeing that she was the kind of woman he liked, he began seeking to sleep with her, and the “convert” agreed. Can you imagine the unfaithfulness? He had evangelised her, and now he wanted to defile her.
🍂On the appointed day, he came to her house. The lady received him gladly, and he proceeded to undress. The lady slowly pretended to do likewise. By the time he finished undressing, the lady pulled out the bucket of water she had hidden under the bed and swiftly soaked all the preacher’s clothes in the water. She then screamed for help, and a crowd gathered.
🪵The preacher was marched naked from her house to the police station. A little folly brought him to great ruin.
🪰🪰🪰CONCLUSION
The “flies” of foolish acts may be small, but they can destroy the fragrance of your life and leave you a stinking man or woman whom other men and women prefer to avoid.
🌳Therefore, beware of the flies called Little Follies.🪰🌹
💕♥️🩷Tonight’s Bedroom Assignment:
Re-read this devotional together just before bedtime and discuss it with open and sincere hearts.
✝️Altar Call: Jesus Christ is calling you! Come to Him today in genuine repentance. Believe in Him and be saved!
🌡️🧪⚗️Scientific Info To Boost Your Marriage:
🔬”Testosterone and estrogen levels in both men and women are naturally highest in the morning after a full night of rest. These elevated hormones help prime the body for higher libido and better sexual response.”🔬
🎷🪘🎙️🪗 HALLELUJAH!
📢PRAISE THE LORD!