Watch Your Step!: Barefoot in a Broken-Glass World

By John A. Keller

Easy read daily devotional for living life wisely.

Watch Your Step! Barefoot in a Broken-Glass World was written from the perspective of a father warning his children about the dangers of living in a fallen world.

The greatest fear of the Christian parent is that his or her children are not walking in the truth and subsequently, will unwittingly inject pain and suffering into their lives.

This book reveals the insights behind Solomon's instructions in the Proverbs to walk wisely in the truth.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Oct 16, 2014
• ISBN: 9781490853727

John A. Keller

John A. Keller is a graduate of Liberty University with a Master's degree in Theology, also received his BS in counseling from Trinity College of Florida. John is a Bible teacher, emphasizing how the Bible applies to the daily lives of Christians. Visit his blog www.lostcoincafe.com

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Copyright © 2014 John A. Keller.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations designated (ESV) are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. Copyright © 2000, 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture verses marked KJV are from the King James Version of the Bible.

Scripture verses marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, IL 60189 USA. All rights reserved.

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ISBN: 978-1-4908-5373-4 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4908-5405-2 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4908-5372-7 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2014917335

WestBow Press rev. date: 10/09/2014

Contents

Dedication

Preface

Introduction

Chapter 1 Running with the Wrong Crowd

Chapter 2 Walking With God

Chapter 3 Sexual Immorality

Chapter 4 Hurting Others

Chapter 5 Value Forgiveness

Chapter 6 Laziness and Wasting Your Life

Chapter 7 Wrong Use of the Tongue

Chapter 8 Pridefulness

Chapter 9 Failing to Give and Accept Discipline

Chapter 10 Rejecting Criticism

Chapter 11 Directionlessness

Chapter 12 Rebellion

Chapter 13 Pleasure Seeking

Chapter 14 A Lying Tongue

Chapter 15 Jealousy

Chapter 16 Offending a Brother or Sister

Chapter 17 Alcohol Abuse

Chapter 18 Cheating

Chapter 19 Born On Death Row

Final Word

Sources

DEDICATION

I dedicate this book to my children, Johnny, Joshua, and Jenna. My hope in writing this book is that you gain from it the protection of learning to identify, and not become victims of, the pitfalls of life.

Please, my dear children, heed the warnings in this book so you will avoid some serious pain in your life and, even better, have great success in all you do. Be assured when I tell you that trying to break free once you fall into a pit can give rise to the most helpless, hopeless, and terrifying feeling. Regret is a cruel taskmaster; knowing that you could have avoided a pitfall but did not is one of the more frustrating experiences of life.

I thank God for the freedom that comes from having gained wisdom in the trials I have experienced, even though the scars of some of those experiences are forever present as reminders. I am acutely aware that you, my children, share some of those scars, as well.

The grace and love you give me are the greatest treasures of my life. The love and acceptance you show me is the light that God gave me to carry on in some of my darkest moments.

Always remember, I love each of you with all my heart and want you to make the best of the life God has given you. I pray for you often. Being your dad truly has been, and always will be, the greatest privilege of my life.

PREFACE

The biggest fear of the Christian parent is that his or her children are not walking in the truth and, consequently, will unwittingly self-inflict much pain and sorrow in the future.

The greatest regret of my life is my failure to avoid the pitfalls I describe in this book, which may have negatively influenced my children and those around me to reject the truth about God and His Bible.

Some might argue that truth is subjective, yet others argue that there is no truth to be known. I have discovered that there is truth and that no matter how sincere, open-minded, or wise we claim to be, truth trumps all human reason and knowledge. The hardest reality to accept is that truth exists, regardless of our willingness to recognize it.

Consider the gravity of what I am about to tell you: Your personal rejection or acceptance of truth will determine where your journey through life will take you and will also determine your eternal destination in the next life.

My son, do not forget my law, but let your heart keep my commands; for length of days and long life and peace they will add to you (Proverbs 3:1–2).

INTRODUCTION

The first reality I want you to come to grips with is that you and I were born with two enemies: our own sinful nature and Satan, the ruler of the domain of all that is evil. These two work against us, doing everything they can to trip us up. Satan would like nothing better than to ruin your life by trapping you in some impossible situation caused by your failure to believe, learn, and obey biblical truth. You and I are truly in a fight that goes way beyond what we can see with our eyes. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places (Ephesians 6:12).

Satan has his own followers among us, too, who act like they are with us and for us. You must always diligently guard yourself against such people. They are very difficult to identify. Gaining the skill to recognize these adversaries is one of the main things I am trying to teach you with this book. Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves (Matthew 7:15).

The key to avoiding and, worse yet, causing a disaster in your life is to develop a keen eye for every possible pitfall. I wrote this book as a warning to teach you combat tactics when dealing with our two wickedly unmerciful enemies: the sinful nature and Satan. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour (1 Peter 5:8).

I believe that teaching the tactical skill of acquiring biblical wisdom was the original intention of the writer of the book of Proverbs. The purpose of the proverbs is to equip us with divine wisdom. Possessing this wisdom will bring the most success in this life and will minimize the negative effects of living in a fallen world.

In the opening chapter of Proverbs, there are several Hebrew words that either define wisdom or are synonymous with the word wisdom. These words are used throughout the entire book of Proverbs. For any reader of Proverbs who wishes to understand the original intent of the writings, it would be very beneficial to grasp the meaning of a few words from the original Hebrew language. Learning these few Hebrew words is important in that it helps you to understand the depth of the passages. Implementing the wisdom in the book of Proverbs is necessary for building a successful life. Without developing the skill to use these tools, it is impossible to truly succeed in life.

I have italicized the words I want you to become familiar with, not in our current modern way of thinking, but as they were originally intended in the beginning of the first chapter of the book of Proverbs.

The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel; to know wisdom and instruction; to perceive the words of understanding; to receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and equity; to give subtilty to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion. (Proverbs 1:1–4 KJV, emphases added)

Wisdom: The first italicized word is wisdom in verses 2 and 3. It is the Hebrew word hakmah, and the normal use in Hebrew is skill of technical work, craftsmanship, execution of battle tactics.¹

Instruction: The next italicized word in verse 2 is instruction. This is equivalent to the Hebrew word muscar, which is often translated as discipline.² The idea is to teach by discipline. The New Testament idea of self-control comes from this word. The skill that we develop is self-discipline, which leads to success. Here is the fact about this: Knowledge without self-discipline is useless.

Understanding: The third word italicized in verse 2 is understanding. This is yet another Hebrew word synonymous with wisdom. The Hebrew word for understanding is the word binah.³ Other Bible versions use the word discernment. The person who has binah has developed the