The majority of this chapter is dedicated to the topic of being able to receive discipline and reproof without taking offense to it.  It is about being humble enough to be corrected, to be adjusted...it is about accepting the fact that I don’t have it all figured out.  Now, this is a thing where I would like to say that I am reasonably well-suited...I am stubborn and I may fight for what I believe in, but apologizing and accepting when I am wrong and changing to a better way is an area where I do fairly well.  So, I will only make a brief comment on this - I don’t want to be a finger-pointer!  It is very difficult to grow to your potential if you can’t be wrong, and worse than that, if you can’t apologize.

When was the last time you apologized to someone?  I mean a REAL apology...not the “I am sorry I forgot the milk”, but something like, “You know, I have to say, you have been right all of these years about this and I just didn’t see it...I realize that I have hurt you...I am sorry.”  For some people, apologizing is just something they really struggle with...and, often times, these same people are the people that can’t seem to forgive either, because they don’t want to ‘let the other person off of the hook’ or they don’t want to be perceived as ‘condoning’ something.  Our responsibility is to be open to truth...from God, from others, etc...it is our responsibility to live life with open hands in that way, palms up.  It is also our responsibility to forgive.  It is God’s, and only God’s, responsibility to make things right in the end.

I think the last couple of verses pretty much hit the nail on the head:

“Whoever ignores instruction despises himself, but he who listens to reproof gains intelligence.

The fear of the Lord is instruction in wisdom, and humility comes before honor.”

I know I am stubborn and I know I am not a great listener at times...and those are areas where I can certainly grow.  The key though, is to be open to the reality that I am not doing something right, that I don’t have it all figured out...in my heart of hearts, am I humble enough to admit that to myself?  That’s a great thought.

For today though, the great question for this chapter for me would be this: “To whom do I need to apologize, with a REAL apology, and for what?”