This morning as I read Proverbs 2, I was reading with Bethany. She saved me from cbeebies early in the morning. Wait. It was too early for cbeebies – it was just the songs on repeat which Beth isn’t fond of. So we drank coffee (me) and milk (her). And talked. As she was playing ‘take-aways’ with the Russian Dolls: she said “I better not climb on top of the tv to reach them, can you get them mum?”. Wait babe. YOU climb the tv?! I don’t like knowing this. She promised she didn’t do it yesterday (and I don’t think she would ever actually have done it, I mean i *hope* she wouldn’t!)
So I opened my Bible and started reading (NLT today) and she was interested in the number 3 on the page, so I read aloud from Proverbs 2, she too was interested 🙂 I think reading it aloud in child language made it even easier for me to understand. She called us the ‘wise girls’. Oh I pray so 🙂
Proverbs 2 // The Benefits of Wisdom
1 My child, listen to what I say,
and treasure my commands.
2 Tune your ears to wisdom,
and concentrate on understanding.
3 Cry out for insight,
and ask for understanding.
Here we are offered the opportunity to tune into wisdom. As if tuning a radio for frequency. We can chose to listen to wisdom, or chose to ignore it. By asking for insight and understanding: we will be granted it!
4 Search for them as you would for silver;
seek them like hidden treasures.
5 Then you will understand what it means to fear the LORD,
and you will gain knowledge of God.
Search for them like ‘hidden treasure’. My dad has lost something really precious to him, he borrowed a metal detector and although not yet found, he is still looking. You know when you are desperate to find something you search everywhere, even the places it may not be. Even the places you have already searched? Even the places it most definitely won’t be (and that’s where it is if I’m looking for something my children have lost!). By searching we will learn fear of the Lord. Always a concept I don’t fully grasp. I fear the Lord. But fear and love are opposites. I am willing to learn.
6 For the LORD grants wisdom!
From his mouth come knowledge and understanding.
7 He grants a treasure of common sense to the honest.
He is a shield to those who walk with integrity.
8 He guards the paths of the just
and protects those who are faithful to him.
A treasure of common sense: wow. I need that – and more so whilst I am pregnant. How is it that simple things can be forgotten, misplaced, lost ….? A shield: a protection, for walking in integrity. A guarded path with protection. These are all promises for you and I as we seek wisdom. All we have to do on our part is be honest, walk in integrity and be just. Yes, with God’s help it is possible.
12 Wisdom will save you from evil people,
from those whose words are twisted.
13 These men turn from the right way
to walk down dark paths.
14 They take pleasure in doing wrong,
and they enjoy the twisted ways of evil.
15 Their actions are crooked,
and their ways are wrong.16 Wisdom will save you from the immoral woman,
from the seductive words of the promiscuous woman.
17 She has abandoned her husband
and ignores the covenant she made before God.
18 Entering her house leads to death;
it is the road to the grave.[b]
19 The man who visits her is doomed.
He will never reach the paths of life.20 Follow the steps of good men instead,
and stay on the paths of the righteous.
21 For only the godly will live in the land,
and those with integrity will remain in it.
22 But the wicked will be removed from the land,
and the treacherous will be uprooted.
As I read the rest of the chapter aloud, we chatted about different parts of it. The main thing that stood out to Beth was when I paraphrased v 18: don’t go to bad people’s houses….! You like that! Don’t go with the wrong crowd. Obv I changed some words but left the meaning the same – be careful who you hang out with. Which led to chats about her friends at school and her not-friends. We decided we wanted to be godly – to have God in our heart and walk with integrity – to be pure, to do the right thing in God’s eyes. Yes, we did a little bible study… I loved that I could share God’s wisdom with my daughter – not done it like this before.
When we finished Beth asked if there’s a Bethany in the bible. Ohh yes my girl… So we read John 12 and Luke 10 (I think) about Jesus at Bethany (House!) I’m sure I’ve told the beautiful story of Jesus being anointed at Bethany before. But she was mesmerised. Not only by the very very very expensive perfume – she barely gets a spray of my Channel Eau Tendre 😉 But if you keep reading, the guy Jesus brought back from the dead, Lazarus, was (from what I read there) killed by the bad guys because people were really interested in Jesus. We had a giggle. She said “sometimes people don’t understand God”. I know. Sometimes we don’t know why people would want to kill a guy who’s just been resurrected. We’d want to know what life-after-death is like. We would have hundreds of questions. But to want to murder him because he is bringing Jesus attention…. “Sometimes people don’t understand God” And that was my nugget of wisdom for today: reread verse 21.
Love from A xox
annabakerbarnes 