# The Proverbial (Page 4)

“The toil of a fool wearies him,so that he does not know the way to the city.” (Ecclesiastes 10:15). The Road to Nowhere was an oft told story back in the day. Simply put, it is the story of a group of unemployed men. They were ready and willing to work, but hard times had come upon the country and they had become despondent and dispirited. The tale goes that the government put the men to work to build a…

“The rod of correction imparts wisdom,But a child left to himself disgraces his mother” (Proverbs 29:15). I had a father lament to me recently that his move to New Zealand has taken away his ability to physically correct his child. The NZ social services will indeed remove his child and only return him/her when they are good and ready. This leaves Christians, believing the Biblical wisdom of physically correcting a child, in a very precarious position. Apart from returning to…

Anxiety in a man’s heart weighs it down,But a good word makes it glad” (Proverbs 12:25). Have you ever noticed that when Jesus pulled a petrified Peter from the water, he offered no words of comfort? Instead, he rebuked him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” (Mt.14:31).Earlier, the disciples were failing to make headway at the oars in a violent storm. Did Jesus thank them for waking him from his sleep? No, not even a kind word for…

“If you fail under pressure,your strength is too small.” (Proverbs 24:10). Have you seen those surfers who ride the massive tunnel waves? Most of us cringe to think what might happen to us if we found ourselves being driven along by such mighty forces.But men and women surf those monsters every day. And if you asked them how they developed such skill and courage, they would answer, “We just kept on going out to catch another one. We learned by…

“Do not boast about tomorrow,For you do not know what a day may bring forth” (Proverbs 27:1). Remember the guy who had the bumper crop, built new grain silos, retired on the spot, and then dropped dead?I believe his last words were: “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry.”But God’s last words to him were: “You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and…

“The fear of man lays a snare,but whoever trusts in the LORD is safe.” (Proverbs 29:25). Fear is Satan’s oldest successful weapon against us.When he convinced our first parents that God was withholding something from them, the fear of ‘missing out’ gripped them, and sin followed hard on its heels.Nothing has changed in 6000 years. Satan had won. Tragically, man has lived with the fear of death ever since. Doomed to face a just God in an unjustified state. That…

“Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due,When it is in your power to do it.” (Proverbs 3:27). Sunday School teachers would do well to have a list of the mean people in the Bible on there classroom wall. Then the poor victims of bullies, liars, thieves, and wreckers would take comfort in knowing that God speaks up for them.Mean people are neither made nor born that way. They are enabled!To say that there are easy answers…

“Watch over your heart with all diligence,For from it flow the springs of life” (Proverbs 4:23). The Great Wall of China was built to keep out invaders from the north. Interestingly, within its first 100 years, it proved to be a miserable failure at doing so. One imagines thousands of men with grappling hooks and pickaxes being pelted from a great height as they strove to breach the Wall. But not so!In fact, on no less than 3 occasions the…

“A joyful heart is good medicine,but a broken spirit dries up the bones.” (Proverbs 17:22). I was watching a three-year-old boy interacting with some of the brethren as they left church. He was totally uninhibited. He asked them their names and ages, he enquired about their grandchildren (whether they had any, or not), and questioned them about their intended destinations. He rolled around on the front steps while he challenged one of the guys to identify the gender of the…

“Hatred stirs up strife,But love covers all sins” (Proverbs 10:12). Hatred is seldom admitted to. It is sometimes deeply hidden, and sometimes sitting just below the surface.But it will eventually show itself for what it is. It takes little added offence for a heart brimming with malice to overflow.Whether it be with quiet and subtle prods, or open provocations, the hater will confront. Soon come the accusations, the threats, and the regurgitation of historical irritations.Never can they be wrong. Their…