Proverbs 3:21-23 

²¹My son, do not let wisdom and understanding out of your sight, preserve sound judgment and discretion; ²²they will be life for you, an ornament to grace your neck. ²³Then you will go on your way in safety, and your foot will not stumble.

Summer activities

What is your favorite summer activity? Playing your favorite sport, traveling to exotic places around the world, lingering with friends and relatives, having picnic in the park or in your backyard, gardening, fishing, renovating your home, bird watching, taking pictures of sceneries and nature or picking summer fruits, perhaps!

Summer time opens numerous outdoor activities that may excite enthusiastic individuals; but, when the weather is so hot, that spoils desire to stay outside. Extended summer heat may cause death to plants and other living things, or even wildfire.

Have you been watching the weather forecast lately? Did you expect rainfalls?

When weather forecast says, “There’s 40% chances of rain,” we just hope that rain may fall where we wish it falls. Rainfall reminds of many hopes that will favor us so that we would pray sincerely. Don’t you feel more optimistic when your prayers are answered favorably? Sometimes, if not oftentimes, answers to prayers are unexpected.

Sharing your favorably answered prayers with other Christians and members of our church might encourage them to join us during prayer meeting here at our church building. Has the Lord favorably answered your prayer yet? What have you been specifically praying for yourselves lately? Have you been praying for godly wisdom?

It says in Psalm 111:10, ¹⁰The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his precepts have good understanding. To him belongs eternal praise.

Listen: If you were praying for godly wisdom, God may have favorably given you. Really? How can you know that the Lord has granted you godly wisdom already?

If you sense holy respect and reverent fear of the Lord, godly wisdom has started transforming you actively. How is that? You desire to behave in godly righteousness. In such case, you’ve got good understanding of right path that God has designed for you.

Can you believe that? The plan of God for each of us is the most wonderful life we can ever have now in this present world that may translate also even into eternity!

Of course, we need godly wisdom to chase or pursue that wonderful plan of God for us. With expectation that everything we do will translate into eternal praise, we have to reverently fear and respect God. When our lifestyle and behaviors are pleasant to God, they serve also as ornamental charms that would beautify our Christian lifestyle.

1. Charm

²¹My son, do not let wisdom and understanding out of your sight, preserve sound judgment and discretion; ²²they will be life for you, an ornament to grace your neck.

We agree that it was King Solomon who wrote this proverb; he had many wives. It is very conceivable that King Solomon had numerous children. Yet, it seems like he was giving his advice to one particular son only. The term “son” is in singular form.

Did King Solomon teach each of his sons individually, and not as a group? Did he teach one child at a time to preserve sound judgment and discretion?

It is very possible, but the name of individual child was not mentioned. He may have repeated the same advice to each of his children. After King Solomon died, his son Rehoboam succeeded him as king of Israel. Unfortunately at the very first decision that he made as king of Israel, Rehoboam did not make sound judgment and discretion.

Rehoboam

After Rehoboam was installed as king of Israel, the people complained of their difficult situation. The response of King Rehoboam practically shows that he may not be very attentive when his father advised him to preserve sound judgment and discretion.

It narrated in 1 Kings 12:13-15, ¹³King Rehoboam answered the people harshly. Rejecting the advice given him by the elders, ¹⁴he followed the advice of the young men and said, “My father made your yoke heavy; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.” ¹⁵So the king did not listen to the people, for this turn of events was from the Lord, to fulfill the word the Lord had spoken to Jeroboam son of Nebat through Ahijah the Shilonite.

As result, the kingdom of Israel was divided into northern and southern kingdom because of indiscreet, careless, imprudent and tactless words of King Rehoboam.

In comparison, his father King Solomon prayed for wisdom; the result is written in 1 Kings 4:21, 24, ²¹Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the Euphrates River to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt. These countries brought tribute and were Solomon’s subjects all his life… ²⁴ For he ruled over all the kingdoms west of the Euphrates River, from Tiphsah to Gaza, and had peace on all sides.

One may still argue, “Since the Lord decided it, it surely happens. Now, could Israel’s division be prevented if King Rehoboam asked God for wisdom, like his father?”

God may have allowed King Rehoboam to decide carelessly as practical comparison to favorable decisions that King Solomon had made with wisdom that the Lord gave him.

God wants all of us to have wisdom. Can you accept that the Lord talks to each of us individually as his child through the proverbs of King Solomon? When God speaks, even with similar statement, he has specific instruction that can be practically applied personally and individually. God wants us to have sound judgment and discretion.

Sound judgment and discretion dress up like ornamental charm exclusively adorn by anyone with godly wisdom. Of course, we do not ignore criminal activities around us, but we just cannot rely upon law enforcers all the time. Sound judgment and discretion are godly charms that propagate confidence of our safety in this chaotic world.

2.  Confidence

²³Then you will go on your way in safety, and your foot will not stumble.

You heard the saying, “Safety first before pleasure!” Safety is most cherished wherever we are situated – safety for motorists and pedestrians, and safety while working online. Truly, online or internet crimes are unpredictable; they may cause naïve people to stumble and fail in their decision. Pretenders, spammers and fraudsters have many deceptive means to swindle anyone, especially, those uneducated and careless people.

Email

Someone emailed me using the name of a friend. Curiously, I read the email. It has instruction: “Click to open the attached document.” Before downloading attached documents as precaution, I usually preview them. When I slide the mouse pointer to the attachment, it cannot be previewed. I notified my friend using another medium and told him that I received an email with his name on it; I copy-pasted and gave him the email address. My friend said that he did not send me email; he advised that it could be spam.

Immediately, I mark the suspicious email as spam to block them from sending emails.

Criminal activities around us may cause confusion and undesirable situation. No exemption, but sound judgment and discretion save us from possible tragic events.

King David

King David had faced many dangers. At a very young age, he killed wild beast. He defeated the giant Goliath. He evaded death threats. It narrated in 1 Samuel 19:9-10, ⁹An evil spirit from the Lord came on Saul as he was sitting in his house with his spear in his hand. While David was playing the lyre, ¹⁰Saul tried to pin him to the wall with his spear, but David eluded him as Saul drove the spear into the wall.

The Lord may have allowed the evil spirit to cause hatred so that King Saul tried to eliminate David. David may have sensed that King Saul was acting strangely so that he was very alert and evaded his possible death from the spear of King Saul. David was biblically described as man after God’s own heart; he did his best to live righteously.

David’s life as king of Israel was briefly summarized in 1 Chronicles 29:26-28: ²⁶David son of Jesse was king over all Israel. ²⁷He ruled over Israel forty years—seven in Hebron and thirty-three in Jerusalem. ²⁸He died at a good old age, having enjoyed long life, wealth and honor. His son Solomon succeeded him as king.

Long life, wealth and honor are added ornamental charms in the life of believers who preserves sound judgment and discretion. King David had personally proven it.

Wisdom is exhibited in sound judgment and discretion. Pray for godly wisdom.

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