It was our son’s senior year at Oklahoma Christian University (Edmond, OK) when he asked an unusual question. “Dad, do you know the most important thing you and Mom did when I was growing up?”
David was finishing his bachelor’s degree in Bible, so I went down that road: “Going to church Sundays and Wednesdays?”
“Nope, that’s not it.”
So I ventured, “Our home devotionals?”
He replied with a wry grin, “You know, Dad, they weren’t as good as you think they were!” then giggled a bit.
“Maybe how we sang devotional songs in three-part harmony when we were in the car?”
“Nope,” again.
Now I was getting perplexed, so I just asked, “What?”
He replied in a wisdom that I had seen growing in him. “It was the way you and Mom taught us to read one chapter of Proverbs each day, according to the day of the month,” (31 chapters so it works out well).
He went on to describe the strengths of his education at OC and some of the professors and their wisdom. “But reading a chapter of the book of Proverbs each day, reading the whole book twelve times per year has been the greatest education on life that I could ever get.” God’s wisdom through Solomon’s pen had taught him how life works and especially how cause and effect work in daily life.
I was almost speechless. We had learned that idea from a family seminar we had attended and had latched onto it as a practical tool for not only raising children but for all people of all ages. I am still convinced that this book of wisdom is still the answer to navigating the changing landscape of today’s weak and weary culture.
As our institutes of higher learning continue to devolve into institutions of lower living, Proverbs still lays out a clear map of both understanding life and applying successful principles. Whatever curves the pop culture throws out, the wisdom of Provers straightens out.
Today, as marriage falls out of vogue and couples just “move in together,” Proverbs still warns of the outcomes of sexual sin. When the screaming social warriors decry genuine manhood as “toxic masculinity,” Proverbs defines true, mature manhood and leads men to become the kind husbands wives have longed for throughout the ages.
Whatever new and ungodly schemes our unholy society might dream up, God’s wisdom from Proverbs stands tall and not only answers the naysayers but defeats the basis of their assumptions.
I recall teaching an adult class on Proverbs about 20 years ago when an astute student said, “Maybe I’m doing this wrong.” (I had given a homework assignment for each person to write the words, “cause” and “effect” in their margins as they saw the principles taught in the text.)
“What chapters are you in?” I asked.
She answered, “I’m in the teen chapters,” meaning chapters 13-19, “and I’m writing ‘cause and effect’ every two or three verses.”
“Then you are doing it exactly right—the middle ten chapters of the book are all about cause and effect!”
Right here, right now, I beg, I beseech every reader to physically do this exercise: read Proverbs (particularly the middle ten chapters) and physically write “cause” and “effect” in the margins of your Bible. You will be astounded at two things: 1) The clarity and practicality of the wisdom imparted, and 2) how often you write those words in the margin.
God is literally guiding us through life, showing which choices lead to which outcomes. Like a heavenly GPS (Global Positioning System) in your phone or car, God’s wisdom from Proverbs leads us, turn by turn, through life’s challenging terrain. Let’s call it God’s Providential System (GPS!) as it provides us foreknowledge of where each type of life’s choices leads. My wife once said, “Unless a compass has ‘home’ written on it, it won’t do me any good!” Years later when she bought her first “Street Pilot” GPS, I told her, “This one has ‘home’ written on it and will guide you right to the house!”
Need wisdom to be the best father? It’s in there. Need an example of an excellent wife? It’s in there. Need to know how to make life successful as a son or daughter, it’s in there. In fact, the whole book of Proverbs reminds me of II Peter 1:3-4.
His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. Through these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world on account of lust.
Proverbs is like that. No, Proverbs does not contain the New Testament plan of salvation nor the New Testament worship God plans for us today. But Proverbs does give us the foundational, practical principles of life that teach us how to live in such a way as to stay saved, stay close to Him, and be the godly men and women who mold strong mature families.
No wonder Romans 15:4 tells us that the things written in earlier times (referring to the Old Testament) lead to perseverance and encouragement. Success is encouraging!
God’s GPS (God’s Providential System) in Proverbs will help lead you to have not only a happier home here but also lead you to His eternal home. May God bless your study as you seek to know the cause and effect that shape the joyful lives of those who follow Him.
