Month: May 2024

The story is told of one man who was called to bail his son out of jail. As he left for the jail, a nosey neighbor said, “If he were my kid, I’d leave him in jail.” The father answered, “If he were your kid, I’d leave him in jail too.”

One of the curses of being the oldest child is having kids before your siblings and listening to them tell you how to raise your child. You hear words like, “When I have kids, they will not…”

One of the joys of being the oldest child is watching your younger siblings have children and seeing those children do exactly what their parents said they would never do.

To understand why this happens, read First Peter 4: verse 8, “Love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.” I call this passage a New Testament proverb. It would fit well in the book of Proverbs.

The reason my kid’s sins are not as bad as your kid’s sins is because I love my kids deeply and “love covers a multitude of sins.” It is the way of love to look past faults and imperfections.

Now read it again and this time stop after the word “covers.” It reads “Love each other deeply, because love covers…”

When you love someone, love covers…whatever. It doesn’t make wrong right, but it helps you love one another.
It is the secret of living together in happiness.

I’m Lonnie Davis
And these are thoughts worth thinking.

Our text for today is Proverbs 10:19
“When words are many, sin is unavoidable, but he who restrains his lips is wise.”

We recently did a proverb and talked about the “Yak-Yak” people. They will talk about what they are going to do but never follow up. Today’s proverb talks about the Yakety-Yakety people. These are folks who talk and talk but never say anything. They say what they think, whether they think or not.

I confess to having a tendency toward this fault. I know because when I get home, I sometimes think, “I wish I hadn’t said that.” Plato said, “Wise men speak because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something.” (Remember this quote and you will be able to quote Plato.)

I was married to a woman who was thought of as quiet. I noticed two things about her:

1. When she said something, people cared and listened.
2. In 55 years, I never heard her say, “I wish I hadn’t said that.”

Once, a man was talking to his young daughter as a truck approached their house. He asked her what she knew about the truck. She was stumped, so he told her, ‘The truck is empty, and we know this because an empty truck rattles the most.’

That is the meaning of our text today:
“When words are many, sin is unavoidable, but he who restrains his lips is wise.”

I’m Lonnie Davis
And these are thoughts worth thinking.

Today’s Scripture is Proverbs 10: verse 4.

“Idle hands make one poor, 

 but diligent hands bring wealth.” 

When I was a kid, I was told, “Idle hands are the devil’s workshop.” It sounded like it was from the Bible. The thought is in today’s study. To allow yourself to do nothing, will bring poverty, but if you will diligent in your work, you will find wealth. 

This verse is one of the wonderful places where the Bible gives us a commentary in the next verse. Let’s read it again, with both verses together.

Verse 4, “Idle hands make one poor, 

 but diligent hands bring wealth.”

Verse 5, “He who gathers in summer is a wise son, 

 but he who sleeps during harvest is a disgraceful son.”

This verse is telling us that it is not enough to simply do the right thing, but to do it at the right time. We must gather during the time of harvest, because, if we don’t, then we will miss the harvest and fail..

We see this same principle in our own lives. In school our assignments must be on time or we suffer. A cake taken from the oven too late is ruined. Fuel must be put in the car in a timely way. I’m sure you can think of a hundred ways this applies to your own life. Don’t let your hands be idle, but do what needs to be done and do it in a timely way. 

Someone put it his way, “Fools do eventually, what wise people do immediately.”

I’m Lonnie Davis

And these are thoughts worth thinking.

Our Scripture for today is Proverbs 7:2-3.

“Keep my commandments and live; guard my teachings as the apple of your eye. Tie them to your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart.”

This proverb is a call for the very unpopular thought that we need to pay attention to the authority over us. Of course the greatest authority is God and His Word. Today when you urge people to “keep” God’s commandments, you will be jeered by many as a “commandment keeper.” To some, God is love and has nothing to do with our need to keep commandments. Of course God IS love, but he is also the wise one who gave us commandments. 

Notice in this proverb how God tells us to behave toward his commandments. 

First, “guard his teachings as the apple of your eye.” If anything gets into our eye, we react suddenly with an effort to guard the eye. 

Second, “Tie them to your fingers.” There is an old saying about the need to tie a string around your finger so that you will remember. Each time you see the string on your finger, you will remember why it is there. This is part of the rationale for the wedding ring. 

Third, “Write them on the tablet of your heart.” Take the commandments and memorize them. Because they are in your heart, you can reflect on them at the odd moments of the day.

It is an honor to be called a “commandment keeper.” This proverb calls on us to be so.

I’m Lonnie Davis
And these are thoughts worth thinking.

Our Scripture for today is Proverbs 3:13-14.

“Blessed is the man who finds wisdom,
the man who acquires understanding,
for she is more profitable than silver,
and her gain is better than fine gold.

Often people confuse two terms: knowledge and wisdom. Knowing means you know something. Wisdom means you know the right thing to do. There can be wise factory workers and foolish doctors. I love wise people.

In 50 years of working in churches, I have heard countless prayers. I’m sure I have heard prayers for wisdom, but they are rare. Publicly, Christians are more apt to pray for patience than for wisdom. At least that has been my observation.

That is strange because the Bible tells us that patience comes from enduring hardship. (James 1: verse 3). However, it teaches that we should pray for wisdom (James 1: verse 5). Wisdom also comes from Bible study. (Proverbs 2: verse 2).

1 Kings 3 gives us a famous example of Solomon’s wisdom. Two women brought a case to Solomon about who was the rightful mother of a baby. In those days, there were no medical tests to establish this. Solomon decreed that the baby be cut in half, and each mother would get half. One agreed, and the other offered to give up the child. From this, Solomon knew who the real mother was.

In our personal and public prayers, we should pray for wisdom.

I’m Lonnie Davis
And these are thoughts worth thinking.

Our text for today is Proverbs 16:26

“A worker’s appetite works for him because his hunger drives him onward.”

It sounds unspiritual to set a goal of working for a material possession. I sometimes refer to life’s little treasures as “things and stuff and junk.” That comment makes it sound wrong to like nice things.

After church services one sweet lady who had been contemplating retirement, told me that she was going to keep working because she likes things and stuff. We both laughed. It is not wrong to like things. In fact our proverbs tells us that working for something is what gives us motivation.

Do you want a new car? Work for it.
Do you want a new house? Work for it.
Do you want a nice vacation? Work for it.

The only time it is wrong is when such a goal becomes your idol and chief purpose in life. Work is so important that Paul told the Thessalonians, “If anyone is unwilling to work, he shall not eat.”

We sometimes think that working is a curse. The curse was the hard toil involved in tending the ground. (Genesis 3:17)

Before the curse, man worked in the Garden of Eden. We were made for work. Our appetite motivates us to do more work.

If you hate your work, change jobs.
If you are a young person, learn to work at something you will enjoy.
If you are not getting rewarded for your labor, work differently.

I’m Lonnie Davis
And these are thoughts worth thinking.

Our text for today is Proverbs 1: verse 8

“Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction
 and do not forsake the teaching of your mother.” 

Mark Twain once said, “When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished at how much he had learned in seven years,”

I think of the book of Proverbs as though a wise man is coming to the end of his life, and he writes down wise words to guide his kids. 

Out of the 3,000 proverbs Solomon knew, the first one he listed was the one we read today: “Listen to your mother and father.”

I have asked many people, “What saying do you use that starts with ‘My mother always said,’ or ‘My daddy used to say.’” 

My own grandad used to say, “Don’t take no wooden nickels.”

One lady told me, “My daddy always said, ‘Don’t ever take advice from anyone who has nothing to lose in giving it.’” 

As wise words go, these are good, but what if we had a list of wise words from the wisest man who ever lived? We do! It is called the book of Proverbs.

Here is a great plan: There are 31 chapters in Proverbs. Why not read the whole book through in a month—a chapter a day? Then next month, do it again. 

If you use this plan for one year, you will become a wiser person. 
You will find yourself quoting Solomon.
You will be blessed.

I’m Lonnie Davis
And these are thoughts worth thinking.

Proverbs 23:1-2

Our text for today is Proverbs 23: verses 1 and 2

“When you sit down to dine with a ruler, consider carefully what is set before you, and put a knife to your throat if you possess a great appetite.”

It may seem odd to select this proverb as relevant. The verse says to “put a knife to your throat.”

First we should note that this is symbolic language. Solomon is not saying you should cut your own throat. No, he is teaching that you ought to realize where you are and behave in an appropriate manner. 

At a funeral, in a worship, before a special person, or any other event, observe where you are and behave in a proper manner. 

We do this all the time.

A person bites their tongue and holds back from saying something rude or offensive to their boss. Those who don’t behave in this way, usually hop from job to job.

To maintain harmony, certain subjects are not discussed at family gatherings, or at least should not be discussed. You know what the subjects are.

A parent refrains from disciplining their child in public. Instead, we say things like, “When we get home we will discuss this.”

Today’s proverb is actually an urgent lesson. Pay attention to where you are and behave accordingly. Those who ignore this rule never quite fit in.

I’m Lonnie Davis
And these are thoughts worth thinking.

Our text for today is Proverbs 15:12.

“Mockers resent correction, so they avoid the wise.

Our Scripture has two parts to it. One we understand, but the other we sometimes overlook.

Part ONE: Mockers get upset when you correct them.

I get this. I really do. I even admit that sometimes I have not wanted to be corrected. That is to my shame. It is also a very human condition. No one likes to be criticized, but we all need it.

Part TWO: Mockers avoid the wise.

Mockers will not consult with those who disagree with them. That is not only wrong, it is foolish. Don’t you want to see both sides of an issue? Listening to others can make you better.

Do you want to be a better singer? Listen to others who will be honest.
Do you want to be a better writer? Seek advice from good writers.
Do you want to be a better driver? Take driving lessons from a professional.
Do you want to be wise? Consult the wise.
If you want to be better at anything, seek the counsel of others.

Mockers don’t do that. They avoid the wise. If you disagree with them, you will be avoided. Don’t be a mocker. Seek out the opinions of others, even if they disagree with you – especially if they disagree with you. It will make you better.

I’m Lonnie Davis
And these are thoughts worth thinking.

Our Scripture for today is First Kings 3: verse 5

“One night the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream, and God said, ‘Ask, and I will give it to you!’”

When you were a kid, did you ever play the game of three wishes? It goes, suppose you rubbed a lamp, and a genie came out and gave you three wishes; what would they be.” The first two wishes are easy, but the third wish requires thought because it is the last one. Finally, you might cleverly say, “I wish I could have unlimited wishes.”

Today’s verse does not involve some child playing a game. It was real. It was God. 

God said to Solomon, “Ask, and I will give it to you.”

What would your answer be to that real promise?

Would you say wealth, or health, or unlimited wishes?

Knowing myself, I don’t know what I would ask.

Knowing the story, I am amazed at Solomon’s answer.

Solomon said, “Give Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people and to discern between good and evil. For who is able to govern this great people of Yours?” Solomon used his one great request to help others. He essentially said, “Lord, let my will be Thine.”

If this were you, what would your request be? 

God is waiting for your answer. I love the famous adage, “When people show you who they are, believe them.” 

He is also watching for our answer.

I’m Lonnie Davis
And these are thoughts worth thinking.