Day 185

2 Kings 23:31-25:30; Acts 22:17-23:10; Psalm 2:1-12; Proverb 18:13

Wisdom and Understanding

If you are anything like me, then these passages hit home quickly. As I think about how sometimes I don’t truly listen to my wife before I blurt out my thought, I find myself looking like a jerk for not considering her point of view or needs. (A majority of the time, she is right.) I look at the news of today, and I want to quickly respond with my opinion, sometimes even before all the facts are available. Do we find ourselves truly listening to people? Do we find ourselves able to be objective and not subjective? How does our lack of respect and inflated self-worth affect our witness?

Look back to Proverbs 18:2 and the Bible says, “A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion” (ESV). The writer of Proverbs 18 obviously wanted us to know the dangers of not listening before speaking and how our words can lead to our ruin.

My favorite example of someone taking a moment before speaking/reacting is Jesus in John 8:2-11. Read the passage and think about how Jesus takes a moment, a moment that shows His wisdom and understanding, before He speaks a simple phrase that carries such magnitude. How loved are we that Jesus takes these moments with us as well! Take a moment before you speak and see how God uses your words for His glory!

Jordan Stevenson

Similar Posts

  • Mighty Mouth!

    ByBibleChallenge

    Day 54 Leviticus 14:1‐57; Mark 6:30‐56; Psalm 40:1‐10; Proverbs 10:11‐12 Mighty Mouth! We all know the rhyme: “Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me.” We all know it is not true. Words are extremely effective at causing hurt. That is actually why the rhyme came to be, we teach…

  • A Joyful Approach

    ByBibleChallenge

    Day 337 Daniel 11:2-35; 1 John 3:7-24; Psalm 122:1-9; Proverbs 29:1 A Joyful Approach “I was glad when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.’” Psalm 122 is a Song of Ascents where it refers to going up to the city of Jerusalem to pay honor and praise and…

  • Can We Get “Good Enough”?

    ByBibleChallenge

    Day 29 Exodus 7:25‐9:35; Matthew 19:13‐30; Psalm 24:1‐10; Proverbs 6:1‐5 Can We Get “Good Enough”? In today’s reading from Matthew, Jesus is called “Good Teacher” by the man inquiring how to inherit eternal life. Jesus assures him no one is “good” except God, and that to go to heaven, he needs to keep God’s commands….

  • The Test of Eternity

    ByBibleChallenge

    Day 327  Ezekiel 45:13-46:24; 1 Peter 1:13-2:10; Psalm 119:33-48; Proverbs 28:11 The Test of Eternity There was a time when my father worked as a mason’s apprentice. He would come home every evening dirty, exhausted, and yet content. As a teenager, I once spent a day with him doing the back-breaking work as a “gopher,”…

  • The Means of Salvation

    ByBibleChallenge

    Day 121 Judges 13:1‐14:20; John 1:29‐51; Psalm 102:1‐28; Proverbs 14:15‐16 The Means of Salvation In the Gospel reading, we find significant pictures of salvation. First there is the proclamation by John the Baptist: “Behold the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world.“ Offerings of lambs sacrificed in the temple were common…