Wisdom From the ProverbsSample

Proverbs 7

As with all of the devotionals in this series, we would encourage you to read the entire chapter of Proverbs 7 before moving on.

As I read Proverbs 7, I was struck by the imagery used in verse 3: ‘Tie them to your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart.’

The Message translation of the Bible puts it like this: ‘Write it out on the back of your hands; etch it on the chambers of your heart.’

These beautiful verses advise us to make a point of ensuring scripture – specifically God’s commands and instruction for our lives – are within us. It advises us to not just memorise scripture so that we have something to spout on a Sunday at church to impress, or to keep the quiet-time guilt off our backs.

No. We are encouraged to have scripture always before us and within us.

Before Us

This kind of scriptural presence in our lives can take on many forms.

For me, I like to have scripture around my house so that when I am in a moment of crisis or need, I can turn to the Word of God that surrounds my home.

My favourite expression of scripture in my home are 3 posters that display Matthew 11:28-30: 'Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.'

These wise verses remind me when I am relaxing in my home, that it is ok to take a break, to sit and rest awhile. It reminds me of the principle of Sabbath and that God is not a taskmaster, but a gentle, humble leader.

How can you find ways to visibly display scripture around your home?

Within Us

Perhaps the more obvious of the two ways we can keep scripture with us is to store it up in our hearts.

I once read a story of a woman who was part of the Chinese church. She had had her rare Bible confiscated upon being thrown into prison, a punishment issued because of her faith in Jesus Christ.

For most of us, we would be lost without our Bibles. We may know a handful of verses but, on the whole, we rely on the ability to pick up our Bibles and read/research to know what it says in its entirety.

Not this lady.

When interviewed upon her release, she said that she had memorised large parts of the Bible. Her time in prison had been tough, but the Word of God had never been taken away from her. It lived within her.

Friends let us be people who commit to having scripture ever before us and always within us.