The sermon by Peter Allison, titled 'The Necessity of Accepting Discipline,' delves into Proverbs 19, emphasizing the critical role of discipline, instruction, and diligence in both spiritual and physical life. The speaker explains the literary device of chiasms found in the scripture, highlighting how they center around the main point of gaining wisdom through accepting discipline. He discusses the adverse effects of laziness, equating it to spiritual and physical hunger and eventual death, both literal and spiritual. The sermon also underscores the importance of generosity, noting that disciplined charity brings God's blessings. It connects the necessity of parental discipline with self-control and warns against spiritual laziness leading to apostasy. Diligence is portrayed as essential to Christian life, as it prevents spiritual famine and enriches one's relationship with God. The sermon concludes by encouraging a life of faith, obedience, and generosity, trusting in God's promises.

Our scripture reading is Proverbs 19. I'd like to read beginning at verse 15. Laziness casts one into a deep sleep, and an idle person will suffer hunger. He who keeps the commandment keeps his soul, but he who is careless of his ways will die. He who has pity on the poor lends to the Lord and he will pay back what he has given.

Chasing your son while there is hope and do not set your heart on his destruction. A man of great wrath will suffer punishment, for if you rescue him you will have to do it again. Listen to counsel and receive instruction that you may be wise in your latter days. There are many plans in a man's heart, nevertheless the Lord's counsel that will stand. What is desired in a man is kindness, and a poor man is better than a liar.

The fear of the Lord leads to life and he who has it will abide in satisfaction. He will not be visited with evil. A lazy man buries his hand in the bowl and will not so much as bring it to his mouth again. Strike a scoffer and the simple will become wary. Rebuke one who has understanding and he will discern knowledge.

He who mistreats his father and chases away his mother is a son who causes shame and brings reproach. Cease listening to instruction, my son, and you will stray from the words of knowledge. A disreputable witness scorns justice in the mouth of the wicked devourer's iniquity. Judgments are prepared for scoffers and beatings for the backs of fools. The grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of our God endures forever.

Almighty Heavenly Father, thank you for your Holy Spirit. Thank you for your Word. Thank you for bringing us here today to hear your Word. May it be your Word that is proclaimed. May it be truth that is taught and may all the chaff that comes from these lips be blown away.

Lord sanctify this vessel of clay to proclaim what is true and holy. In Jesus' name, Amen. There is a handout for us today. So if you don't have a handout, there should be one in the back somewhere. Maybe somebody can help you out if you raise your hand.

If you don't have a handout. Everybody good? That's good. There are two chiasms in this text. Chiasms are a very common literary device used throughout the Bible, but they are especially used in Proverbs.

And they have been throughout the book of Proverbs. I have mentioned them from time to time. But this week I actually put it on paper, the two chiasms, because they are very clear this week. In this text I believe there's a very strong and obvious chiasm, two of them, in the text that we read. And so this literary device is a matched set of verses.

You have the opening verse and the ending verse of the chiasm are teaching or bringing out a similar point. And then you go to the second point and the second to the last point, and the third point, and the third to the last point. And these points are all the same. Now, there's a progression now, if you notice. There's the outside, the first and the last are saying the same.

The second and the second to the last, the third and the third to the last, the fourth and the fourth to the last, and so on, until you get into the middle. And that is the main point. That's the point that is being emphasized. That's what this chiasm is. You can think of it as being centered around.

And so you often see chiasms printed out as they are on your page, where the center is sticking way out, different from all, and all the other verses are leading up to it. Sometimes you might see it the other way where they lead in. But they make like an arrow. The verses make like an arrowhead. And so the main point, What is being emphasized in a chiasm is what is in the center.

And so we see this literary device. We're not going to have a chance this morning to look at the second one. We will limit ourselves to this first one. But the point of both of these archaisms is actually the same. If you look at verse 20 and verse 27 on your handout, two verses that stick way out to the left, you see that they are very similar.

Listen to advice and accept instruction that you may gain wisdom in the future. This is the first one, verse 20. Verse 27, cease to hear my instruction, my son, and you will stray from the words of knowledge. That's saying the same thing, just saying it in the negative. Listen to advice and accept instruction that you may gain wisdom.

Cease to hear instruction and you'll stray from the words of knowledge. This is the basic definition of a fool, somebody who rejects instruction. Now that word instruction is the Hebrew word, musar, which is the word for discipline, chastening. Those two go together. You see, it's not punishment in the sense of vengeance and retribution for evil, chastening is different.

Chastening is what the Lord does to those He loves. He chastens. He instructs. So the word discipline, the word instruction, the word chastening are all saying the same thing. So when you see this word instruction, think discipline, think chastening, think instruction, think wisdom.

Those all go together. And so our lesson this morning is on the importance and the necessity of accepting discipline, of accepting instruction, of accepting the chasing of the Lord. These two verses, verses 20 and 27, are the only two verses in this chapter of Proverbs that use this word, Musar. It's the two verses that are highlighted or emphasized in this chiastic structure. Let's just look here at the overview of this chiasm, and then we'll look a little more at each point.

So the first, the outer, the first and the last point has to do with laziness. Laziness casts one into a deep sleep and an idle person will suffer hunger. This phrase sounds very similar to the lazy man buries his hand in the dish and will not even bring it back to his mouth. Both speaking of laziness, both speaking of the consequence of laziness which is you go hungry. In other words there are adverse consequences to laziness, hunger.

See that both of those verses are teaching that. What's the point of this chiasm though is that discipline is needed. Discipline is needed to correct laziness. Then we go into the second level of the chiasm. Whoever keeps the commandments keeps his life and he who is careless of his ways will die.

Verse 16, verse 23, the fear of the Lord leads to life and whoever has it rests satisfied. He will not be visited by harm. So we see that discipline is life giving. Discipline is is life-giving because it produces obedience. Discipline or self-discipline, the fear of Jehovah is a carefulness, Proverbs defines it, Proverbs 8.13, It's a carefulness not to do unrighteousness.

That is the fruit of Discipline is a carefulness not to do unrighteousness. And so that protects one from harm. So discipline instruction chastening is life-giving because it produces obedience whoever keeps the commandment keeps his life but if those who are careless those who lack this discipline Those who lack chastening in their life, those who reject chastening, they are careless. They don't have the fear of the Lord, which is a carefulness, not to do unrighteousness. They have the opposite, a carelessness, they die.

The fear of the Lord in verse 23 leads to life. Okay, so discipline is life giving. Chastening is life giving. The third set then, Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord and he will repay him What is desired verse 22 to go down to the same level on the bottom What is desired in a man is kindness, steadfast love, one translation has it. And a poor man is better than a liar.

So disciplined charity, disciplined charities, brings God's blessing. It's a desirable fruit. Then the next level is verses 18 and 19, chasten or discipline. Now it's a different word than what's used in verse 20 and 27, but it's a word that Means to discipline your son to chase in him while there is hope Do not set your heart on putting him to death a man of great wrath will suffer punishment If you rescue him you only have to do it again That's bringing in a little bit of an element there of facing consequences but also the word punishment is used. Many are the plans in the mind of a man but it is the purpose of the Lord will stand so this is this is the level that's right next to the center this is speaking of first children need a parent's discipline to keep them from self-destruction so that if we love our children then we will discipline them Painful consequences are necessary to learn self-control of our passions.

Painful consequences are necessary to learn self-control of our passions. If we try to short circuit that, the Bible says that it won't work. Many are the plans in the minds of man, but the purpose of the Lord will stand. When our plans are prevented, when it doesn't come to pass the way we had hoped or imagined or intended, we need to accept that as the providence of God that He may be sending some chastening to us. Which as the Bible says, it's never nice when it happens, but it's the chasing of a sovereign Jehovah who loves us.

He chastens those whom he loves. And so then we get to the center and we see where all of these verses have been pointing both forward pointing to and pointing forward to and pointing back to the verse. Listen to advice and accept instruction that you may gain wisdom in the future. Listen to advice and accept or receive chastening as from the Lord that you may gain wisdom in the future. Listen to advice and accept or receive chastening as from the Lord that you may gain wisdom in the future.

So, what laziness? The first level in our chiasm, To be lazy is to be disinclined to action, disinclined to exertion, to physical or mental exertion. It can be physically lazy. It means that you're sitting in your chair and you just don't want to get up and do something that needs to be done. Physically lazy.

Sluggish. Constitutional or habitual love of ease and aversion to labor. Some synonyms would be sloth or indolence. There's an animal called a sloth, because it's not observed to move very much. A lazy animal, at least it seemed to be the people that gave it this name.

We can be lazy mentally. And there are things that take discipline, that take effort to think. In fact, your brain is probably one of the biggest consumers of calories. If you do a lot of hard mental exertion, you can get very hungry. And so you can be mentally lazy and just unwilling to do rigorous thinking when it's needed.

Some things like math, when you have to do math, that takes a level of mental rigor, mental discipline to do. See, and What Solomon is saying is that laziness is like Novocaine. You go to the dentist and they put a shot in your gum so you don't feel what they're going to do to your tooth. It deadens the pain, It deadens the nerves. Laziness is like that.

It deadens a person to their situation. Makes them dull and senseless. So they don't realize that they're in a pot of boiling water. They're in a pickle. Laziness brings on sleep.

That's probably one of the most frequent Metaphors or frequent characteristics of the lazy person in Proverbs is this connection with sleep It's very easy to be lazy in our sleep patterns You know it talks about lazy person is like a door You know swinging on hinges right you turning over in your bed this way that way this way that way because you don't want to get up. That's the essence of laziness. Laziness leads to sleep, and then sleep leads to hunger. There are Many times that Proverbs repeats Proverbs exactly, but in this case Proverbs repeats two verses exactly. In Proverbs 6, 10, and 11, and Proverbs 24, Verse 33 and 34 are two identical verses.

A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, and poverty will come upon you like a robber and want or need, deprivation, not having something, like an armed man. It means when it comes, it's too late. You can't resist it It's there It has to be prevented it's prevented by diligence early on Laziness leads to sleep and sleep leads to hunger Laziness casts into a deep sleep in an idle person Somebody who is has an aversion to labor somebody who has a constitutional habitual aversion to to working and to exertion Will come to need and want It's one of the it's one of the causes of poverty It's certainly not the only cause But it is one of the possible causes of poverty. There's nothing wrong with poverty in and of itself. Jesus was poor as the riches of this earth go.

There's nothing wrong with poverty. But it might be. It might be. In some cases, certainly not in every case, but it might be because of an aversion to exertion, whether it's mental exertion or physical exertion, a lack of diligence. See a lazy person is someone who lacks Self-discipline They're not able to govern their body or govern their mind to tell it.

This is what you need to do body this is what you need to do body, this is what you need to think mind and to do it. They lack that self-discipline. The lazy person needs discipline, needs chastening, needs this Musar to learn to be diligent Notice that humor Here is used to shame the lazy person into changing look at this Look at this image that the Bible gives. It's a lazy man buries his hand in the dish. He reaches out to take some cookies off the plate, to take some cashews out of the nut bowl and he's too lazy to even bring his hand back to his mouth.

I mean think about that, you think of somebody just saying they're so lethargic, they're so lazy They put their hand out and they just can't have the effort to bring it back It's mocking that lazy person. That's a mocking image here. It's making fun of such a person It's an absurd picture can't bring your hand back to your mouth. But that's what the Bible is saying a lazy person is like. When we're lazy, that's the way we are.

How do you get a lazy person to change? They need discipline and maybe they need shamed a little bit. Maybe they need mocked just a little, at least according to our text. Spiritual laziness leads to apostasy, spiritual death. See, apostasy doesn't just happen overnight.

Charles Templeton didn't just go from being the greatest evangelist that Billy Graham wanted to become to being an atheist overnight. It took years. That process took years. Apostasy comes from laziness in the Christian life. It comes not from a sudden lightning bolt strike, but rather gradually, slowly, imperceptibly from a neglect of the Christian disciplines, from a laziness with respect to the Christian disciplines.

A gradual decline doesn't start out as this bold, there is no God rebellion, it starts out as a continual wasting of opportunities of living for Christ. Laziness says, soul, take your ease. You can pray later. You can show hospitality later. Eat, drink, have a glass of wine.

Be merry. Tomorrow is another day. Tomorrow you can be diligent. Tomorrow you can run out and engage in productive labor. But soul, take your ease for now.

When Jesus told that story He said, you fool. Tonight your soul is being required of you. Apostasy comes from those who know they should be active and laboring at denying themselves, at crucifying the flesh, at coming to Christ, at loving the Lord, at being dedicated in His service, yet they pause. Just one more snooze. One more bite to eat.

One more moment of entertainment, one more drink. This is what we call living the Christian life when you feel like it. You go to church when you feel like it. You pray when you feel like it. You worship when you feel like it.

That's spiritual laziness. Spiritual laziness, brothers and sisters. We as Christians are called to diligence. And just like idle hands, just like our text says, idle hands will suffer hunger, famine. Spiritually idle hands will suffer famine of the Word of God.

A famine of faith that leads to eternal death. Spiritual laziness suffers a famine of the Word of God. Two people can sit in the same service and hear the same singing and the same praying and the same sermon and one goes away untouched. It was boring and another is greatly moved by the exact same message. What was the difference?

Well, one is a person who is being diligent in the Christian discipline, diligent in listening, diligent in coming, diligent in reading. You see, and it's all the things that have been going on in the week leading up to, in the two weeks, in the month leading up to that day in the service that contribute to whether there is spiritual exercise, whether there is feeding, whether there is food, or whether there is famine. You know, in this country there are people who are starving because they won't work, and there are people who are in great wealth, all right in sometimes within blocks of each other, in close proximity. You see, it's not that there is no food, it's laziness. And so when people are spiritually lazy, when there isn't a discipline to come to church because this is the Lord's Day, the sun has arisen, this is the first day of the week, this is the time to worship.

When there isn't diligence about this is the time for prayer, even if I don't feel like doing it, I must. When there is spiritual laziness, then comes spiritual famine, the famine of the Word of God. And just like somebody who says, well, I don't feel like going to work today. You know, and he says that again the next day. Well, he soon won't have work.

He soon won't have anything. When we say that of the spiritual disciplines, then we Lose wisdom. Cease to hear instruction and you will stray from the words of knowledge. See, the Christian life requires diligence. Diligence is the opposite of laziness.

They're just opposite. Diligent and lazy. They're antonyms. The hand of the diligent makes rich, and the hand of the diligent bears rule. Whereas the lazy person becomes poor, and Proverbs 12, 24 says comes under tribute.

The lazy person lacks self-discipline and since he won't govern himself, somebody else has to govern him. He opens himself up to somebody else's governance. Diligence is the steady application in business of any kind. Steady application. It's the constant effort to accomplish what is being undertaken.

Constant effort. That's diligence. It's exertion of the body or mind without unnecessary delay. Diligence. Exertion of the body without unnecessary delay, without waiting for another bite when you don't need it.

The Christian life is a life of diligence. As Christians, we are called the diligence in our walk. Diligence pleases the Lord. Let's look in 2 Peter, if you have your Bibles. Let's turn there to see the place of diligence in the Christian life.

2 Peter chapter 1 verse 3 says, As His divine power has given us all things that pertain to life and godliness through life and godliness through the knowledge of him who called us by glory and virtue by which have been given to us exceeding great and precious promises that Through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. For this very reason, what reason? Because Great, exceedingly precious promises have been given to us that we may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. Because of that reason, what are we to do? Give all diligence.

Give all diligence to add to our faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, to brotherly kindness love. There's a progression of sanctification that begins with faith. This progression is by faith. For if these things, verse 8, are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these things, and then it sounds like somebody who is foolish, is short-sighted, blind and forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.

If you lack diligence, Peter says, if you lack diligence to add to your faith virtue and so forth, then you are a fool. And you have forgotten that you were cleansed from your old sins. So what is the take away from this? Verse 10, Therefore, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things, you will never stumble. You won't fall back into apostasy, For so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

If you don't do these things, then you will fall away, you will stumble, and an entrance won't be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. And if you remember our Chiasm, you'll remember the next one deals exactly with this keeping the commandments, but before we get there Look at one more place in Hebrews chapter 12 Since we're in that area Chapter 12 Tells us But beginning verse 3 we 3, we have a discussion of chastening, that the Lord chastens those whom He loves, we are not to despise the chastening of the Lord, we are not to be discouraged when we are rebuked by Him. In verse 5, verse 6, for whom the Lord loves, He chastens, He scourges every son whom He receives. If therefore you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons because if he doesn't chasten you that means you're an illegitimate son. Now no chastening in verse 11 seems to be joyful for the present but painful nevertheless afterward It yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness, that's obedience to those who have been trained by it.

Therefore strengthen the hands which hang down and the feeble knees and make straight paths for your feet so that what is lame may not be dislocated, but be healed. Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord. Looking carefully, lest anyone fall short of the grace of God, lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble and by this many be defiled that verse 15 they're looking carefully that is looking diligently looking diligently lest anyone fail the grace of God, lest any root of bitterness spring up. There is a diligence there, and you see that diligence is tied to us living the Christian life with perseverance and persevering to the end and not stumbling. That person that is diligent, as we've seen in Peter, is going back to our text in Proverbs 19.

That person who is diligent, verse 16, whoever keeps the commandments keeps his life, but he who is careless of his ways will die. He is not looking carefully, he doesn't have diligence, that's what that word means. He is not diligent, he will die. See, a repentant person wants to do all that God commands. He loves this law of God.

Not because he's in bondage to it. We've been set free from the curse of the law. We love the law as those who are Christ because the law reflects the smell and the aroma and the character of our Savior Jesus Christ. This law is a transcript of his character, of his nature. It is what he is.

And we love him so that we want to be like him. You ever see a little boy who wants to be like their daddy? They want to be just like daddy. They put on daddy's clothes. They put on daddy's shoes.

They do the work that daddy does. Whatever they see their daddy do. They act like their daddy. Why Because they want to be like their daddy. They love their daddy.

To those who are in Christ, to those who are Christ's sons of Christ and daughters of Christ, we love our Lord and Savior. We want to be like Him. And this law that He has given to us is what He is like. And we want to be like that too. Repentant people are scrupulous keepers of God's law.

We're students of God's law, of His Word. Now, of course, the power To do any of this doesn't come from us, but it comes from Christ working in us, and working through us, and working by us. When we do these things, when we try to do these things, and when we do them, it's not by our power. It's by the power of Christ in us. I have been crucified with Christ and It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me.

And the life that I now live in the flesh, not talking about some spiritual thing, but the life that I now live in the flesh, This obedience that I now render in the flesh with my hands and with my mind. This diligence that I now exercise with my hands and with my mind about these spiritual disciplines, about this obedience to the law of God. This life that I now live in the flesh for those who have been crucified with Christ. I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me." We don't live this life by our own power. We don't do all these things by our own power.

This isn't how we are acceptable with God. But don't ever for a minute believe that those who are in Christ don't do these things or shouldn't do these things or don't have to do these things. This is a law after all. This is what is required of us. We read that without holiness no one will see God.

We just have to remember every step of the way. It's not us who is living this life. But the life that we now live in the flesh we live by faith in the Son of God and is he that lives in us Christ lives in me Christ lives in you it's his Holy Spirit and it's His presence that gives you the power and the ability to be diligent. So you go back to your chiasm. Generosity flows from a disciplined life.

Whoever is generous lends to the poor and he will repay what he has given. And then verse 22, what is desired in a man is kindness, steadfast love, steadfastness. And a poor man is better than a liar. Just think about how many times generosity is connected with obedient living. It's a characteristic of the righteous.

It's a characteristic of those who love the Word of God, who love Christ, and who are giving all diligence to add to their faith virtue and to their virtue knowledge and so forth. Psalm 15 talks about a righteous man. It says he doesn't lend his money at usury, at interest. That money that he's giving to help somebody in a time of need, he doesn't take interest on it. But look in Deuteronomy, it's an even stronger connection.

Deuteronomy 15, if you have your Bibles you can turn there because it will take a minute to look at Deuteronomy 15, this connection with those who are following in God's ways, those who love His commandments, being also those who have an open hand to those who are in need. Verse 1, Deuteronomy 15, at the end of seven years you will grant a release of debts And this is the form of the release. Every creditor who has lent anything to his neighbor shall release it. He shall not require it of his neighbor or his brother because it is called the Lord's release. Of a foreigner you may require it, but you shall give up your claim to what is owed by your brother except when there may be no poor among you.

For the Lord will greatly bless you in the land which the Lord your God is giving you to possess as an inheritance, only if you carefully obey the voice of the Lord your God to observe with care all these commandments which I command you today. I'm going to bless you, but only if you obey my commandments. For the Lord your God will bless you just as he promised you. You will lend to many nations but you shall not borrow. You shall reign over many nations but they shall not reign over you.

You want to know the condition of our land? Just look to see. Are we a debtor nation or are we a creditor nation? Are we the ones who are the tail? Are we the ones who are doing all the borrowing or Are we the ones who are the tail?

Are we the ones who are doing all the borrowing? Or are we the ones who are doing the lending? Well, in my lifetime that has changed. We are no longer the creditor nation, we are the debtor nation. We are the ones who are in debt to everybody else.

Verse 7 though, if there is among you a poor man of your brethren, within any of the gates in your land which the Lord your God has given you, you shall not harden your heart nor shut your hand from your poor brother, but you shall open your hand wide to him and willingly lend him sufficient for his need whatever he needs. Beware, Beware, beware, lest there is an evil thought in your heart saying, the seventh year, That's just around the corner. The year of release. I'm going to have to forego my loan. Beware.

Lest you say in your heart, the seventh year, the year of release is at hand and your eye be evil against your poor brother and You give him nothing and he cry out to the Lord against you and it becomes sin among you You shall surely give to him And your heart shall not be grieved when you give to him because for this thing the Lord your God will bless you in All of your works and in all to which you put your hand for the poor will never cease from the land therefore I command you saying you shall open wide your hand to your brother to your poor and to your needy in the land. You know something? If the Lord gives you a lot of money and you hold it tight, You can't put any more in that hand can you? When you open your hand, like this text says, when you open your hand to the poor and you give, the Lord puts back into that hand. Puts back into that hand.

This gift of giving is something I'm growing in. And it started out very tiny, But what has blown me away, for lack of a better word, every time has been, and every time I totally forget Not even thinking about it But every time I've given and it hasn't been nearly enough The Lord is returned Way more than what I gave You know one of the things that is that has almost always brought brought me to tears is to see that Lord does repay those who lend to the poor. Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord and he will pay back he will pay back what he is given and And to me these are very specific instances where I have given a little bit, just a little bit and the Lord has given back far more than I have given to my shame. Generosity flows from a disciplined life. A life that says I believe God's word and I will live by it.

It doesn't make financial sense that you are going to give to somebody who has a need. It's not a wise financial investment. But that's what the Lord says. I can tell you that's my experience. My experience.

Just look at the prominence that care of the poor is given in the Word of God. Deacons were established. The office of deacon was established to care for widows, for poor widows. God established a whole office in His church Because there were widows that were being overlooked in the distribution of food for them. God says that if We loan to the poor, we are loaning to God.

And God Himself has become a surety for them. God Himself is guaranteeing the loan that we make to the poor. Just like He Himself has become surety for us in taking on Himself our sins the legal responsibility for them. A disciplined life is a life of diligence, it's a life of obedience, and it's a life of generosity, believing God's word that if we loan to the poor, we are loaning to God himself, and He has become their surety and He will repay us. This brothers and sisters is living by faith.

Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for your Word, for we cannot get this wisdom out of the world. And apart from your Word, we would be wandering in darkness, grasping our money, seeking our Grasping our money, seeking our own pleasure, oblivious to the truth, oblivious to the light. Thank you Lord that you have sent your word, that your word has been made flesh and dwelt among us. I thank you that you have preserved your word, that even though everything else perish, your word will endure.

I thank you that your word is true, that even though it contradicts every scientist and man, that your word is true. Grant to us, Lord, even a little faith that we may believe your word and govern our lives according to your commandments and according to your promises. We ask this in Jesus' name, Amen.