By the fruit of his mouth a man will be satisfied with good. The work of a man’s hands will reward him. Proverbs 12:14, TLV
Student to Practitioner to Teacher. If one can have a favorite chapter in Proverbs, this is mine. It is meaty with lessons and guidance, yes, but what I love about it is how these verses give practical ways to walk those lessons out.
In other words, it pushes me from student to practitioner — at least, that’s my goal.
You see, I can choose to be more knowledgeable by studying, but to truly pursue knowledge, I must be able to accept correction. “Whoever loves knowledge loves correction, but whoever hates reproof is stupid.” (12:1)
I can choose righteousness in the obvious venues — home and congregation — but what about at work or in the community? What about the way we treat pets or livestock? “A righteous person cares for the life of his animal, yet even the compassion of the wicked is cruel.” (12:10)
The Pursuit of Discipline
Today’s verse jumped out at me with the pursuit of discipline. Once I
chose Wisdom’s Journey, I learned discipline included my mind. As an author of fiction, I have a very active imagination. That’s a requirement. However, it’s easy to stay too long in that world with nothing to show for it. It can be a thief of precious time. Once a dream crystallizes, then the work should begin.
Those of us who spend a lot of time in our mind must be especially careful of what we allow into our thoughts. Unwholesome and sinful thinking pollutes the purity of divine imaginations and creativity. Likewise, those ruminations will eventually spill out of our lips in hurtful, confusing, and sinful words.
The Mind
Disciplining our mind is to capture those vain imaginations and thoughts, then submit them to Jesus (2 Corinthians 10:5). Once they’re gone, we need to replace those thoughts with “whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable—if there is any virtue and if there is anything worthy of praise—dwell on these things.” (Philippians 4:8)
What Happens When We Make Mistakes?
When our minds and bodies pursue wisdom, we walk out healthy and Godly choices. Will we make mistakes? Oh my, yes!
The other day I heard someone say that pain is the quickest way to learn a complicated and worthy lesson. I had never looked at it that way. One of my biggest fears is failure — failing others and failing GOD. And fear of failure’s pain.
Rooted in that fear is a lack of trust in the One who loves me, knows me, forgives me. By pursuing wisdom, we will be reminded of the truth. That, “there is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and the one who fears has not been made perfect in love.” (1 John 4:18, TLV)
That’s good news! Good news we want to share
with others—to teach others—who have been bound by fear or shame. And it’s why I write these blogs—for both of us.
Think More About It
What do you long to share with others? What are the words of wisdom you have lived that could change another’s life?
Thanks for reading today’s proverbs’ blog. I love reading your comments and insights. If this missive has been a blessing, please share — it really helps. God bless you!
