Wisdom and Folly – Which Do You Listen?

“And so, my children,listen to me, for all who follow my ways are joyful.
Listen to my instruction and be wise.
Don’t ignore it.
Joyful are those who listen to me, watching for me daily at my gates,
waiting for me outside my home!
For whoever finds me finds life and receives favor from the Lord.
But those who miss me injure themselves.
All who hate me love death.”             Proverbs 8:32-36 (NLT)

The woman named Folly is brash.
She is ignorant and doesn’t know it.
She sits in her doorway on the heights overlooking the city.
She calls out to men going by who are minding their own business.
“Come in with me,” she urges the simple.
To those who lack good judgment, she says,
“Stolen water is refreshing; food eaten in secret tastes the best!”
But little do they know that the dead are there.
Her guests are in the depths of the grave.         Proverbs 9:13-18 (NLT)

Proverbs 8 and 9 are part of my Sunday School lesson this week so I have been reading them. I want to be a student who is prepared! The topic this week is “Wisdom”. I definitely want more of that in my life so I want to soak up what God has to say in His Word and through the people in my class.

In these two chapters I see first “Wisdom” speaking; telling me to LISTEN! I believe that the more that I seek wisdom and am obedient to wisdom, the louder her voice gets in my spirit.

I love those who love me, and those who seek me find me. v17 (NIV)

I am promised treasures and wealth. But before I line up a financial planner, I must remember that God’s definitions for those words include a much larger view than money. There is discipline and correction involved. A person who seeks and listens to God’s wisdom is blessed but those who turn away – are choosing death. That is sobering and, yes, scary.

Then Folly has her say. She is seductive and can look really good. She is easier to find than Wisdom. Folly is on the wide path while Wisdom is found on the narrow path. By following Folly I can find myself in a “happy place”, deceived by instant gratification and quick fix. The place that seemed “happy” becomes a place of destruction.

I am reminded of the baked potato. THE best potato is that Idaho spud that is washed and wrapped in foil, poked with a fork 2-3 times and placed in a 350 degree oven for 1 hour. It’s been a long time since I made a baked potato like that. I’m usually in a hurry to throw the meal together and so I decide to use the microwave and have my potato in 6-8 minutes. I “settle” for easy instead of “best”.

Now that may not matter in baked potatoes but it does matter when I am choosing between wisdom and folly. This week has been really busy but I have been truly blessed when I took time to read these chapters more than once. It was like soaking up wisdom. There may be a ‘rainy day’ down the road in my life when I will need what I have been given today. Or maybe it will be something to pass along to another person walking the narrow path and seeking wisdom.

You Raise Me Up by Rolf Lovland and Brendan Graham, sung by Josh Groban