The One Year Wisdom for Women Devotional: 365 Devotions through the Proverbs (65 page)

September 2

Dare to Discipline

     
A youngster’s heart is filled with foolishness,

          
but physical discipline will drive it far away.

Discipline, correction, punishment—all of these are unpopular concepts in our society.

Years ago I took a psychology class. One day the teacher walked into the classroom and threw a book against the wall. The book was
Dare to Discipline
, by Dr. James Dobson. This teacher thought and taught his students that it was outrageous for parents to inflict their values of right and wrong on their children. But Dobson states, “
Discipline and love are not antithetical;
one is a function of the other. The parent must convince himself that [loving discipline] is not something he [or she] does
to
the child; it is something he does
for
the child.”

Jon Courson states, “Regardless of what psychologists say in any era, God’s Word specifically tells us that a child’s heart is inherently, innately in need of correction.”

Young parents are often shocked to discover that their precious little one has a temper at a very early age. No one needs to teach a child to be stubborn or selfish or defiant. Our proverb tells us this foolishness is bound in his or her heart. If you look around, you’ll see that not only two-year-olds throw tantrums, but some are still doing so at twenty-two and even sixty-two. Yikes.

Back to Dobson’s book
Dare to Discipline
—I highly recommend it. It’s especially geared toward parents raising small children. If you didn’t grow up in a home where there was firm, loving discipline, it’s hard to even know what that looks like. Dr. Dobson shares insights that are loving, wise, and down to earth.

Make It Personal . . . Live It Out!

Do you question why it is important to believe and apply the wisdom of God instead of following the whims of the latest psychology trend? God’s wisdom is timeless. God alone knows the inner working of a child’s soul; he made us. He knows that a child without training and boundaries often struggles with self-discipline and boundaries in adult life.

“While yielding to the loving leadership of their parents, children are also learning to yield to the benevolent leadership of God Himself” (James Dobson in
The Strong-Willed Chil
d
).

One Year Bible Reading

Ecclesiastes 1:1–3:22; 2 Corinthians 6:1-13; Psalm 46:1-11; Proverbs 22:15

September 3

Getting Ahead Is Losing Ground

     
A person who gets ahead by oppressing the poor

          
or by showering gifts on the rich will end in poverty.

Ladies, how do you think this applies to us? In this verse there are two things criticized: oppressing the poor and showering gifts on the rich. At first glance these two things would appear to have nothing in common, but when we think about it, we realize that both of these things are done to get ahead, to be seen, to gain, even if someone else has to lose. This kind of striving—even when giving—is just plain old-fashioned selfishness, and it’s self serving.

It’s been said that “the world provides enough for every man’s need, but not enough for every man’s greed.”

In Luke 6:33 Jesus said, “If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same”
(NKJV
).

And in Luke 14:12-14 Jesus said, “When you give a dinner or a supper, do not ask your friends, your brothers, your relatives, nor rich neighbors, lest they also invite you back, and you be repaid. But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind. And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you; for you shall be repaid at the resurrection of the just” (
NKJV
).

So the bottom line is this: Jesus said, “You will be blessed.” The blessed life is the giving life. It is the life of doing little, random acts of kindness. It’s adding a blessing to someone else. It’s putting someone else first—just because.

Make It Personal . . . Live It Out!

Jesus did not promise us a cushy, pampered life as the formula for abundance. Quite the contrary. He said, “I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels—a plentiful harvest of new lives” (John 12:24).

Let’s Pray

Lord, help me to resist the selfish moments, knowing that the giving life is rich in blessing and joy.

One Year Bible Reading

Ecclesiastes 4:1–6:12; 2 Corinthians 6:14–7:7; Psalm 47:1-9; Proverbs 22:16

September 4

Rewired

     
Listen to the words of the wise;

          
apply your heart to my instruction.

     
For it is good to keep these sayings in your heart

          
and always ready on your lips.

     
I am teaching you today—yes, you—

          
so you will trust in the L
ORD
.

This beautiful proverb is so imploring! Please,
please
lean into God’s rich, true wisdom. Don’t just read God’s Word or listen with your ears. Let it completely rewire you from the inside out.

Life has many complicated twists and turns. David was a man who hid God’s Word deep within his heart. In 1 Samuel 24:1-32 David was fleeing for his life from King Saul. In En-gedi he and his men were hidden in a cave. Saul came in, not realizing David was there—so close David could cut off a corner of his robe. Oh, how his men would have loved for him to strike Saul dead on the spot so they all could return to their homes. But David refused. He said to his men, “The L
ORD
forbid that I should do this to my lord the king and attack the L
ORD
’s anointed one” (1 Samuel 24:6). It’s times like this that we need God’s will and ways engraved deep within us. A set of pat answers and some tidy rules just don’t cut it when things start screaming out of control and we have tough choices.

On a practical level, is it worth it to yield to God’s will and ways? Good question. David chose to honor God instead of yielding to revenge. When he did, he set the standard for his own future reign as king. He honored God, and God then honored him.

Make It Personal . . . Live It Out!

David’s example in the cave shows us what it looks like to trust the Lord, even when it goes against our own natural instincts. I have a feeling David slept very well that night. So did his men. They knew they were being led by a man of integrity. Child of God, can’t you see how a life of trustful obedience is the greatest life there could ever be? We never have to look over our shoulders; we never have to fear. When we have placed ourselves entirely in the faithful hands of our almighty God, we are safe.

One Year Bible Reading

Ecclesiastes 7:1–9:18; 2 Corinthians 7:8-16; Psalm 48:1-14; Proverbs 22:17-19

September 5

The Classroom of Life

     
Have I not written to you excellent things

     
Of counsels and knowledge,

     
That I may make you know the certainty of the words of truth,

     
That you may answer words of truth to those who send to you?

God is our master instructor. His Word and his Spirit counsel and guide. Life is our classroom. No university program could ever compare with the education and insight and knowledge he imparts in even the small moments of life.

Let me tell you a story. Jean Louis Agassiz (1807–1873) is regarded as one of the greatest scientists of the nineteenth century. One day he gave a student a fish, told him to study it, and left the room. After several hours the student felt he had learned all he could, but Agassiz did not return. So he observed some more. Finally Agassiz returned with the brief comment that the student had made a fair beginning and left again. The student fell to his study in earnest and after months of investigation declared that a fish was the most fascinating of studies.

Life was indeed Agassiz’s classroom. He saw the divine plan of God omnipresent in nature and could not accept Darwinism, a theory that denied the intelligent design he saw everywhere in the natural world. He concluded that if it required an intelligent mind just to study the facts of biology, “it must have required an intelligent mind to establish them.”

We may not be scientists, but we can be just as eager and interested in the wonderful lessons God puts in our paths every day. Don’t let your interest fade. There’s always something new to learn—in his Word, from the people around us, from the storms that come our way, and from the natural wonder of his magnificent creation.

Make It Personal . . . Live It Out!

King Solomon, the author God used to write Proverbs and the book of Ecclesiastes, was also an ardent student of life. He approached every angle with curiosity. Try reading Ecclesiastes 10:1–12:14 today and picture him walking around, observing all the circumstances and details around him with the intention of gaining insight. Then try carrying your own pad of paper and making a few notes as you go about your ordinary day in our extraordinary world.

One Year Bible Reading

Ecclesiastes 10:1–12:14; 2 Corinthians 8:1-15; Psalm 49:1-20; Proverbs 22:20-21