Before we can pray for God's blessing, we should ask ourselves if our disobedience could hinder his blessing.

God wanted Israel, as He wants Christians, to learn to utterly abhor and detest anything that had the potential of coming between them and their God. The believer's enemies are typically internal rather than external, and they pose a powerful threat to spiritual health and progress.

Religious truth is not false for being narrow any more than mathematical or scientific truth is false for the same reason.

Chastening is a mark of affection, not a sign of rejection.

Rejoicing is the essence of genuine worship. A sad face (apart from remorse for sin or regret concerning the pain of others) is an affront to a gracious and generous God.

The worship of false gods is always an outgrowth of spiritual deception.

The wise Christian will learn from the spiritual blunders of others.