I have a tendency to react to things before I think them through. There are times when being able to make quick decisions is a good thing, but I must be careful to make decisions based on prudent knowledge and wisdom. Proverbs 13:16 says, Every prudent man acts out of knowledge, but a fool exposes his folly. When we simply bounce from one decision to another without the necessary information to make wise decisions, it eventually catches up to us.

There is a famous quote by Abraham Lincoln that says, “Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt”. Proverbs 10:14 confirms this thought process, Wise men store up knowledge, but the mouth of a fool invites ruin.

There is nothing more important than allowing God to lead, guide, and instruct us. Proverbs 8:10-11 says, 10 Choose my instruction instead of silver, knowledge rather than choice gold, 11 for wisdom is more precious than rubies, and nothing you desire can compare with her. There is literally nothing we could ever want that is more precious or compares to God.

Today we begin a stretch where we will leave the New Testament for a few weeks and spend some time reading the book of Proverbs and a few select passages in the book Psalm. The book of Proverbs is rich in wisdom and knowledge. I challenge all of us to find passages that challenge and encourage us each day. In today’s reading in Proverbs 1, I wanted to share the Prologue of the book which gives the purpose and theme of Proverbs:

We are to be a reflection of Christ in all we do. 3 John 1:11 says, Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil but what is good. Anyone who does what is good is from God. Anyone who does what is evil has not seen God. There are plenty of examples of evil in this world that we can use as examples. However, we are to be imitators of what is good, which is to be imitators of Christ because He is our perfect example. The sad part is many churches, and therefore the people in churches, are not great examples of Christ. We need to go to the source and follow what is said directly from God’s word. 

The verse that stood out to me in today’s reading is Hebrews 5:14, But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil. In order to have a deeper understanding of God, we must grow spiritually. God’s feast can only be obtained when we are spiritually ready to receive and digest it. As we grow, so does our capacity to accept and understand.