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Thoughts of a saint and slave
by Sam Isaacson
'When I was a son with my father, tender, the only one in the sight of my mother, he taught me and said to me, “Let your heart hold fast my words; keep my commandments, and live. Get wisdom; get insight; do not forget, and do not turn away from the words of my mouth. Do not forsake her, and she will keep you; love her, and she will guard you. The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom, and whatever you get, get insight. Prize her highly, and she will exalt you; she will honor you if you embrace her. She will place on your head a graceful garland;she will bestow on you a beautiful crown.”' (Proverbs 4:3-9)
Prioties
At first glance it doesn't seem that this little passage tells us anything more than we got from the opening verses of chapter 4, but there's an important lesson to be learnt from what Solomon's saying. Solomon is about to impart wisdom to his son, and by way of introduction he's saying what his own father said to him. This is something that parents say to their kids all the time: 'When I was a boy, my Dad always taught me to save 10% of my pocket money, and that helped me when I got a job. So I'm going to make you save 10% of your pocket money.' What this shows is that saving was an important priority for the previous generation, has been instilled as a priority for the current generation, and will be instilled into the future generations.
Family characteristics
I suppose I want to ask you this week: What characterises you and your family? Your parents' priorities will have influenced you, and they will be passed on to your children unless you make a real effort. Have a think - are you characterised by joy or worry? Faith or pride? Love or lust? Will you be happy for your children to take those characteristics on?
Solomon
Something I think is important however is to see what Solomon's priorities were, and it's quite predictable: wisdom. Above all else Solomon had sought wisdom for himself, and he wants his children to do the same. But let's not get sidetracked by our society's understanding of wisdom - there's no doubt in Solomon's mind: wisdom and knowledge begins with the fear of the LORD (Proverbs 1:7,9:10) so his ultimate priority is actually worship.
Are you instilling in your children, and in those who look up to you outside the family unit, the value of worship?
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