Prescribing Proverbs – RX Seventeen – August 17th

PRESCRIBING PROVERBS
August 17, 2021

A Proverb a day keeps Untruth away

Proverbs 1:1-6, ‘These are the wise sayings of Solomon, David’s son, Israel’s king—written down so we’ll know how to live well and right, to understand what life means and where it’s going; a manual for living, for learning what’s right and just and fair; to teach the inexperienced the ropes and give our young people a grasp on reality. There’s something here also for seasoned men and women, still a thing or two for the experienced to learn—fresh wisdom to probe and penetrate, the rhymes and reasons of wise men and women.’ (MSG)

Prescription (RX) Seventeen: He’s Not Heavy; He’s My Brother

Proverbs 17:17, ‘A friend loves at all times and a brother is born for a time of adversity.’ (NIV)

I have gone through a lot the last couple of years; my whole life actually, but it is the last couple of years that stick out to me greatly. Much of what I have muddled my way through has been the undoing of all my doing, the suturing back together the frayed and raveled edges of having come undone. You know, we make choices that often make us in the end. And sometimes people you thought you could count on, you find out on the other side of it, you couldn’t at all. Likewise, there are some who go with you into the storm that you never once thought would do so on your behalf. This has been very true for me during this season.

I have learned so much about loyalty and true sisterhood/brotherhood and friendship. I always considered myself a really good friend and I thought I knew the true meaning of loyalty. But I now have a deeper understanding this past year or two of what faithfulness and being trustworthy truly means, and I have a visual image in my mind of whose pictures should decorate the headers and footers next to those words in a Dictionary. There is a timelessness and a fierceness to loyalty, a dependability at all costs, no matter the weather or the time of day or night. It is a surety, and it eats its way through any hindrance and catapults all obstacles and is still standing tall next to you even if your own bravery and substance has wavered and grown thin.

I also have learned that when we navigate through different seasons and various storms, not everyone will go with you when you embark on your new journey. Not everyone will understand nor be supportive. I have also learned that this is okay. How painful to write someone into the next chapter if they don’t want to be included, and you find you have to then edit them out. Or perhaps they even edit themselves out of your story. There is freedom in the letting go, and realizing what is meant for you may not be meant for everyone.
But, there are some…there are some who will not waver; one or a couple who persevere right alongside you, their sleeves rolled up and their handkerchief ready to wipe away the emotion. When you find that friend, when you have that sister or brother, cherish them, as they are special. The journey then becomes so much more of what the Lord intended it to be, so much less than the assumptions made by those who blocked, unfollowed and unfriended you. There are those who fail to understand or see what Jesus is doing in your story, but there are those special few who don’t need to understand. They simply trust He has you right where He wants you and He is doing a good work because He is a good Father.

I encourage you to do your own study of Proverbs as well as follow along with me! How it works: take a Proverb a day (there are 31, so perfect for the month of August) and read the chapter that corresponds with the day. Then stop on a verse that grips your attention. Focus on the verse(s) for the day as it is highly possible the Holy Spirit is speaking to you through what He helped you unearth. It’s almost like a Treasure Hunt! I will share with you this month Golden Nuggets the Holy Spirit leads me to, and I would love to have you share with me what He reveals to you in your mining excavation also!