Small salads and gluten free muffins — Proverbs 15 (sort of)

If you are up-to-date through today — and Bravo if you are — you will get a break. Yesterday’s post was a long one. This one will be more succinct. Today, we will zoom in on two topics that are emphasized in Proverbs 15.

But first, a memory verse alert! Here is a nice one to tuck into your noggin:

“A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” Proverbs 15:1

Now, let’s revisit the format from yesterday that highlights a verse and attempts to summarize and apply it in one sentence (“Brevity is the soul of wit,” said ole Billy Shakespeare).

Possessions/Contentment:

• Verse 6 –  How you earn it is more than important than how much you earn. The ungodly might make a killing, but it might feel like a killing, too. What the ungodly gain can often be tiresome and troublesome.
• Verse 16 – Having Christ can bring contentment in little; having much can result in much trouble. In fact, with more wealth comes more worries.
• Verse 17 – It’s better have a small salad with loved ones than a high class meal with the hateful.

Growth:

• Verse 12 – Scoffers have no taste for correction, and avoid the wise like gluten-free muffins. Scoffers harbor disdain for the ones who correct and advise them, and will walk a long way around the wise. Why? You know, it’s pride, again. They cannot bear being wrong or found out as foolish. You might want to skip ahead and read Proverbs 16:18. It will cast a 400 lumen LED light on this idea.
• Verse 22 – Godly counsel helps avoid missteps and misfortune.
• Verse 28 – The wise have deliberate, principled responses; the ungodly are a gushing fountain of foolishness. 

It should come as no surprise that this chapter pairs up possessions/contentment and growth. They are joined at the heart, your heart. If you are content with God’s allotment in your life, you will be better equipped to grow closer to Him. If you are discontent, expect distance between you and Him.

As contentment increases, so does your joy in Christ. As your joy in Christ grows, your contentment will as well. You see how it works. It turns the other way too. Be careful. You can have possessions and gain, but do not let them have you.