Wisdom for the Day: Proverbs 4:20

Proverbs 4

20 My son, pay attention to what I say;
turn your ear to my words.
21 Do not let them out of your sight,
keep them within your heart;
22 for they are life to those who find them
and health to one’s whole body.
23 Above all else, guard your heart,
for everything you do flows from it.

Luke 6

45 A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.

The word of the Lord instructs us, it is like rain that falls directly from heaven and waters our land. I recall days sitting in class in college, just not interested in what I was being taught. Maybe it was the lecturer, maybe it was the subject matter, maybe I had something else on my mind. I might as well not have been there. But when it came to exam time, and I had to revise, I really wished that I had listened. A little bit of effort in paying attention to the words of the teacher would have saved be a lot of pain in the future—it is a lot harder trying to teach yourself. I should have turned my ear to wisdom’s words.

Verse 21 says don’t let these words out of your sight, keep them close to you. We are being taught these words for a reason, we are being taught because we don’t stay in the classroom for ever. Academically some do: professional students, more degrees than a thermometer but most of us depart the classroom and enter the school of life, the school of life and wisdom urges us not to let wisdom’s words out of our sight. Not only do they help us in life, they are life to those who find them.

So don’t ignore them, apply yourself to understanding. It is not just our minds that benefit, it is our whole body, our whole life. We don’t just keep one part of our body healthy and let the rest rot. We are to guard these words, to preserve and protect them as they reside in our hearts. The seed that is blown away, will not take root and bear fruit. Wisdoms words are like that.

In this hot weather the plants have to get watered every night. Unless you have a huge watering can, it needs to be filled up frequently, otherwise the can is useless. So keep going back to the tap of God’s wisdom, his word and your life and all that it touches will be refreshed.