18 September 2009 Devotion for Today “Solomon’s Wisdom” Proverbs 1:1-7

18 September 2009 Devotion for Today "Solomon's Wisdom" Proverbs 1:1-7

¹ "The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel:
       ² To know wisdom and instruction,
      To perceive the words of understanding,
       ³ To receive the instruction of wisdom,
      Justice, judgment, and equity;
       ⁴ To give prudence to the simple,
      To the young man knowledge and discretion—
       ⁵ A wise man will hear and increase learning,
      And a man of understanding will attain wise counsel,
       ⁶ To understand a proverb and an enigma,
      The words of the wise and their riddles.
       ⁷ The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge,
      But fools despise wisdom and instruction." (Proverbs 1:1-7)

This week I learned a few helpful hints that really work. We traveled to Englehard, NC to look over a church situation that we were surveying for a possible mission trip. I enjoyed my time of fellowship with three men in our church and learned so much from them on the two-hour trip there. One talked about getting rid of ants by mixing a concoction of borax laundry soap, corn syrup, and some water. Very effective against the ants that invade his grape vineyard. Another spoke of not having any wasp spray when a wasp nest was discovered under the children's swing set before the Vacation Bible School picnic at church. He went to the church kitchen, put about a fourth cup of dishwashing detergent in a Styrofoam cup and filled the rest of it with water. He mixed it and then splashed it on the wasps- they all fell down dead! Another showed us how houseflies could be kept away by filling a gallon sized plastic bag full of water and placing it over a doorway . Some, he said, would place a penny inside. The pastor of the church whom we met that day told us how he made antifoulant paint by mixing a gallon of ordinary enamel paint with ground, dried chili peppers. He painted the bottom of his sailboat with it and hasn't had any moss or barnacles growing on it in several years. There were other helpful hints that we shared along the way. We even got an opportunity to watch a demonstration of the home-made wasp spray when a large wasp nest was discovered over a doorway at the church we visited.

I have gone all week thinking about this wisdom I learned on Tuesday. Man's wisdom is very plentiful and usually very practical- yet Solomon tells us that the wisdom of God is even far superior than anything man can share. Solomon was considered the wisest king of Israel. He was inspired of God to write most of the book of Proverbs and other books of the Bible. But the basis of the wisdom he experienced was the wisdom of God. This, he said, was to be found in "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge" (verse 7). Without a fear of God, even man's best wisdom falls back on itself eventually.

He also says that "A wise man will hear and increase learning, And a man of understanding will attain wise counsel" (verse 5). Those in their youth think they know everything. They know all the answers. Just ask them, they will tell you. And they think the most ignorant people on the planet are their parents. But the older they get, they find that they really do not know the answers they thought they knew. I know that the older I get, the more dependent I am upon the wisdom of others-especially the wisdom of God.

Beginning today, we will embark upon a great adventure- to explore the wisdom of God in the Proverbs. I hope that you will learn as much as you enjoy it.

Prayer: Dear God, help me to apply my heart to Your wisdom, and to apply it to the life You want me to lead. In Jesus Name. Amen

Have a blessed day!