Tuesday, June 4, 2013

Searching for everlasting treasure

Based on the sermon I heard Sunday in church, I've decided to update an entry I originally posted back in 2012. Hope it encourages you to seek for God just like you search for a missing cell phone or car keys.
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The purpose of the book of Proverbs (according to my Life Applications Bible – NRSV) is “to teach people how to be understanding, just , and fair in everything they do, to make the simple-minded wise, to warn young people about some problems they will face, and to help the wise become good leaders. In short, the book of Proverbs teaches people how to apply divine wisdom to daily life and provides moral instruction.”

From the first chapter of Proverbs we read the book's purpose “These are the wise words of Solomon son of David, King of Israel.  They teach wisdom and self-control.”  Wait a minute… wisdom and self control… my eyes went back to those two words.  I knew I had to make some sort of commitment if I wanted to continue reading.  

[side note: I have always heard that if you don’t have a daily Bible reading plan you can always start by reading one Proverb a day.  I challenge anyone who doesn’t have a daily time to read their Bibles to start with Proverbs…  Today is the 4th – so start in Chapter 4 – by the time July 1st rolls around you can go back and pick up the chapters you missed.]

Anyway, as I continued to read into Proverbs Chapter 2, I found that Solomon encourages us to listen carefully to wisdom and set our minds on understanding. We need to search for it (wisdom) like silver and hunt for it like hidden treasure (verse 4) then we will understand respect for the Lord and we will find that we know God.

WOW!  I started to think about how I search for the things I misplace… like my cell phone or my car keys!  I am famous for losing both of these items.  Ask anyone who spends any amount of time with me on a regular basis.  If I don’t put them in the same place every time there is an all out search for them until they’re found – this is typically a daily occurrence (I am not kidding). Thinking about my keys and cell phone triggered another thought about how I searched for answers.  You know, the answers I need to be a good spouse, parent, friend, Christian.  Ugh… conviction set in. 



Too often I run to friends for advice before running to God’s word to see what He has to say about my problems. I’m not saying friends aren’t GREAT to talk to and confide in… they are… and at times they should be consulted.  But this passage reminds me that I need to search for wisdom and understanding in God’s word. Only He can give wisdom and understanding.  I just have to search for it… just as intensely as I search for my keys!

Proverbs 2:1-8 (NLT)
My child, listen to what I say, and treasure my commands. Tune your ears to wisdom, and concentrate on understanding. Cry out for insight,  and ask for understanding.Search for them as you would for silver; seek them like hidden treasures.Then you will understand what it means to fear the Lord,  and you will gain knowledge of God. For the Lord grants wisdom! From his mouth come knowledge and understanding. He grants a treasure of common sense to the honest. He is a shield to those who walk with integrity. He guards the paths of the just and protects those who are faithful to him.

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