Purpose of Proverbs!

"Let the wise listen to these proverbs and become even wiser. Let those with understanding receive guidance" (Proverbs 1:5 NLT).

A "proverb" by definition is a popular saying (some say of unknown origin) that expresses a common place truth or useful thought (online dictionary). King Solomon is credited with most of the proverbs included in the Bible and we can say (those who Believe The Word) that Solomon was a very wise man. Of course, the wisdom he gained, he received from God and through experience. Experience--is a very wise teacher for those who are able to discern such.

When we look at this one--that supports listening to proverbs--we see that if "we think" we are wise, we can become ever wiser when we pay attention. For those who understand the importance of listening to those who learned by experience so they won't have to "repeat" the stumbling to learn, the proverbs are designed to guide us.

I've often said--of my mother who died at age 58--that I wish she had lived longer to prepare me for the challenges of aging. My grandmother died before she turned 68 and had no real insight to offer us since she had her own challenges to handle. At this point in my life, I plan to live until I'm 95 and I have no problem telling anyone who listens about the challenges I've faced so far. Listen and learn if you plan to live as long as God determines.

1) Don't squander your money when you're young. You'll live to regret it.

2) Don't think youthful, foolish behavior is acceptable past the age of 20. It is not. Learn from living if you want others to respect you as an adult.

3) Seek The Lord in all things by getting acquainted with His Word and developing a relationship with Him early in life. The earlier you hear Him speak, the sooner you benefit from His goodness.

4) Retirement should be uppermost in your mind when you start working. Don't take that job for granted and save as much as you can to provide for yourself as you age.

5) When you have parents who know God and have experienced His goodness--listen to them. It will save you a lot of headaches later in life.

6) Take care of your body--you only have one and you need all of your body parts to live a productive life--keep your lungs healthy, your heart pumping and your blood flowing--unrestrained by toxins and fat. Keep brain cells functioning with clarity and not fogged by smoking (anything), drugs and misuse of alcohol. You'll have healthier children.

7) Don't ignore the warnings of those who have gone before you--most of them know what they're talking about because of their own experience.

Of course, this is just a handful of things I've learned in my life, but when I have any questions and need direction, I seek God for the answers because life is too short to keep making the same mistakes over and over again. I'd like to think that I'm wise enough to listen and receive direction--from Wisdom.

The Last Dance

Sometimes, as we get older we tend to look backwards and reminisce about the things we used to do.
Remembering when we...had our first kiss, our first real jewelry, our first everything and that first dance with the love of our lives. Remembering the place, the song, the mood-we take a quick journey back in time.  Sometimes, we get so caught up in the past we forget about the here-and-now which causes problems for our future.  Sometimes, we look backwards and begin to have thoughts of regret.  Sometimes, in our backward glance, we discover we didn't really like ourselves at all.  And sometimes, we wish we could have changed much sooner than we did.  Sometimes.

Sometimes, even when we reach that "golden time" in our lives where some would just give up on dreams, some of us--reach out even further into the future.  We look ahead, not behind.  We seek to accomplish every dream or goal ever set.  We understand better than ever that time is not to be wasted, thinking about things that cannot be changed, but thinking about how we change what we can to make our tomorrow even better.  It's okay to remember the first dance, but it's better to look forward to the last dance.