Solomon’s father was David, and although David is known for killing Goliath, he also made decisions later in his life that would cause him and others heartache. Thankfully because of God’s amazing restorative attributes, David was rescued from the guilt of his sin and brought back into a beautiful relationship with God. He grew in wisdom and he passed many lessons on to Solomon.
The 4th chapter of Proverbs meets us where Solomon is sharing these lessons with his own children. Here are 11 of the many lessons he shared:
1. Your heart must hold on to my words- this was different than just saying “listen”. He meant for his words to really make a lasting impression on the heart. (vs 4)
2. Don’t abandon wisdom––in a moment of fear, stupidity, lapse of judgement, anger––don’t forget what I’ve taught you. (vs 6)
3. Get understanding of the wisdom––know how to apply what you know (vs 7)
4. Listen (vs 10)
5. Hold on to wise instruction––Stay connected to wise people in your life. (vs 13) 6. Don’t set your feet on the path of the wicked––don’t even align a pinky toe on the path of the wicked. (vs 14) 7. Guard your heart–– above everything else guard it. It is the source of life. (vs 23) 8. Don’t speak dishonestly––don’t twist, exaggerate, muddle, white lie or leave something out. (vs 24) 9. Look straight ahead––stay focused. Don’t get distracted from where God is leading you. (vs 25) 10. Keep your feet away from evil––he goes further than before and says don’t even get near evil people. (vs 26) 11. Pay attention to where you are headed. Be alert. Don’t get sidetracked. (vs 27)
Whew….that’s a lot of information! But it’s not hard to understand, is it? These are all things we know we need to do, but at crunch time, something goes wrong. What is it? What sidetracks us? I’d love to hear what sidetracks you from choosing wisely. I’ll leave my comment below….join me for some discussion!