16 Better a little with the fear of the Lord     than great wealth with turmoil.17 Better a small serving of vegetables with love     than a fattened calf with hatred.18 A hot-tempered person stirs up conflict,     but the one who is patient calms a quarrel.19 The way of the sluggard is blocked with thorns,     but the path of the upright is a highway.20 A wise son brings joy to his father,     but a foolish man despises his mother.REFLECTIONSWritten by Mandy PonnuswamyAs I first read this passage I think I was most drawn to verses 16 & 17. Not because they involve food (although I feel like it’s a great example that he uses to make his point!), but because they really pushed me to think more about the problem of greed.Verse 16 mentions the commonly used phrase ‘the fear of the Lord’ which, looking back to our first devotion on Proverbs, means ‘living in humble, worshipful submission to God’. Even if you only have a little, living with God as your Lord and king is better than even the greatest wealth. This seems to tie in nicely with verse 17. A fattened calf, while a fantastic meal, will not make up for hatred. Love is always better, even if that means it only comes with a few veggies! And we all know that our broken, sinful, fallen world needs love. Sacrificial, selfless, generous love. The kind of love that Jesus poured out for us on the cross. I am challenged in these verses to not choose money or wealth over love. Rather, how can I love others with the money or the material possessions God has graciously given to me?And I am reminded that even though our world idolises wealth, what they really need is ‘love’ and to ‘fear the Lord’ because that is better than anything this world could offer. Maybe there is someone who comes to mind for you? Someone who you could share Jesus’ love with? Let’s thank God for his generosity to us, and pray that we would walk in the ‘fear of the Lord’ and that we might have hearts that are full of love, not greed. ABOUT THE AUTHORMandy is a member of our Bossley Park Morning Church.