Days of Wisdom, Day 20 Know yourself. Read Proverbs 20. How well do you really know yourself? Can you articulate what you like and what you don’t like? Many of us know what we like when we experience it. We recognize “Oh, this is great!” or “Oh, I really don’t like that.” However, the insight needed to be able to identify and then accurately explain what we like and don’t like to others is something that many of us struggle with. Solomon recognized that and explained the desires of the heart are like deep waters. When we think about the importance of explaining ourselves in our desires, do we recognize…

Days of Wisdom, Day 19 Do you have rest in your life? Read Proverbs 19. If your life is anything like mine, there is no such thing as rest. I run from one event and obligation to the next. I am constantly trying to figure out the best way to get from one spot to the next. Every hour of every day is filled with something. Yet, in this verse, it discusses how the fear of the Lord is life and leads to rest. Have I really placed all my activities before the Lord? Do I follow through to ensure that I am keeping my focus on Him and not…

Days of Wisdom, Day 18 Our safety and security comes from the Lord. Read Proverbs 18. Where do we go for our security? Are we following up on all that Christ has for us? Our safety and security only comes from God. He is the one that keeps us. Are we running to him in the midst of all that we have going on every day?

Days of Wisdom, Day 17 Testing and accountability. Read Proverbs 17. As we continue to read through Proverbs, this verse stands out to me today. Verse 3 is really all about testing and accountability. When we take a look at our lives and the different things that we are doing, do we recognize that those actions and activities are going to ultimately be tested to see whether they stand up under God’s standard? God has a standard that we are to maintain. God’s standard is perfection. Are our activities falling in line with all that God has for us to do? Will they stand if they go through the furnace…

Days of Wisdom, Day 16 Integrity and ethics. Read Proverbs 16. So many great verses to choose from as we read through this passage, but the one that caught my eye today was verse 8. When we think about what it means to have integrity, we realize that we may not always have all of the same possessions or material wealth that others have. However, if we maintain our integrity, that means that we can live with ourselves, no matter what possessions we have or don’t have. Being ethical in the way in which we live our life and make decisions is an example of using God’s wisdom every day.…

Days of Wisdom, Day 15 Do we follow wisdom’s instruction? Read Proverbs 15. As Solomon continues to speak here, we see so many pieces of advice that if we would only follow them, we would find our lives much much simpler. The chapter ends with this verse. Wisdom’s instruction is to fear the Lord. Are we following His wisdom today? Do we recognize how God gives us wisdom in the moment to do the things that he would have for us to do? We must seek the Lord in every area of our life. We must seek the Lord at every moment of our life. Plus, if we truly desire…

Days of Wisdom, Day 14 What are you building for your children? Read Proverbs 14. As we continue to read through all the phenomenal pieces of advice, we see so many amazing pieces of wisdom listed here. In verse 26, we are challenged to ask ourselves the question, what are we building for our children? Will they see the refuge in the Lord that we have built for them and will they run in to it? Or have we fallen away from him and allowed our children to fall away? Christ is our refuge and as we trust in Him, we build something that people can see and feel safe…

Days of Wisdom, Day 13 Waiting stinks. Read through Proverbs 13 and notice verse 12. We all spend a lot of our life waiting. We wait for food to be ready to eat. We wait to grow up. We wait for many things. There is a time to wait. However, that doesn’t make the waiting any easier. Solomon knew that as he wrote this. When you wait for something that you’ve had your heart set on, that can make you heartsick. I’ve been through many situations in my life where I had to wait before I finally achieved something. It never got easier. I’m still waiting for many things, and…

Days of Wisdom, Day 12 How do we feel? Read Proverbs 12. We continue to see pieces of advice that Solomon is sharing. Most of these verses are individual, almost one liner, type of advice. And many of these verses are taken and quoted other places to help with a variety of issues or concerns. The verse that stuck out to me today was verse 25. There have been a lot of things going on in my life lately that have caused me to be more nervous or anxious then I typically am. But, God is the one who overcomes that. Plus, encouragement and recognition goes such a long way…

Days of Wisdom, Day 11 Placing hope and trust in people above God ends in failure. Read Proverbs 11. With all the amazing wisdom in this chapter today, this verse struck out to me. I work in the corporate world and I have been lucky enough to be with the same company for many years. However, in the past i have fallen into the trap off believing everything that leaders told me. I have since learned that God is the one in charge of things like promotions and recognition. God is the one I trust in to keep me and take care of me, not people. A lot of well-meaning…