Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 649 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Don't Avoid Mistakes – Mindshift Monday

Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. This is Day 649 of our trek, and it is time for our Mindshift Monday series. Wisdom-Trek’s primary focus is to assist you in creating your living legacy.

Creating your living legacy can only be accomplished by gaining wisdom in many areas of life. You can only gain wisdom by changing what you allow to go into your mind which is a result of changing the way you think. In other words, to create your living legacy you must choose to be in a continual mode of Mindshift, or “changing the way you think.”

It is easy to get stuck in a mindset that your current circumstances cannot be changed. This is not true, but you must understand this fundamental principle, “In order to change your life, you must change how you think and what you think about.” Our Mindshift Monday podcast and journal will be to provide you practical ways to make a mind-shift to a rich and satisfying life. 

We are broadcasting from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. As mentioned in a couple of previous podcasts, I am podcasting and journaling the details of my July 8th accident and recovery on the Tuesday and Thursday Wisdom Nuggets. If you would like to follow along with me, the first episode is on http://Wisdom-Trek.com/day-645.

Even with an unexpected major life event, we continue to positively look toward the future and what we can learn from them. Our mindset is very important with every aspect of life. If your first inclination is to think negatively, then a Mindshift is required. You cannot get trapped by your current situation and feel there is no way to change it.

Last week I encouraged you to Imagine Life as It Could Be. Imagination is great and needed, but imagination without action is pointless. You need to take action. You might be thinking, if I take action, I will make mistakes. That is very true, you will. So on our trek today I desire you to have a Mindshift that will allow you to realize…

Don’t Avoid Mistakes

In most western cultures we try to avoid mistakes and failures as if they were some sort of deadly plague. This may be based on the Judeo-Christian foundations of our cultures and for many of us reinforced by our Christian upbringing. Somehow we have twisted mistakes and failures to be equated to sin, which is falling short of God’s standards.

While it is true that we all fall short of God’s standards and need salvation, we cannot allow our failures and mistakes to be equated to sin. If we do, we will avoid seeking a Mindshift, which is changing how we think and what we think about. We will be stuck in the same ruts day after day and wondering why our lives do not improve. While we should learn from our mistakes and failure, they are by their very essence the stepping stones needed to create a Mindshift in our lives.

Here are three common misconceptions that leave most people stuck in the ruts of life.

1. Believing that mistakes are always to be avoided.

The reason people try to avoid mistakes is that they feel they are a sign of failure or weakness. Mistakes can be and should be learning experiences. If you haven’t made any mistakes lately, I question whether you are really pursuing the change that you desire in your life. You have not explored all the trails that lie before you on your trek of life. Not all streams have been forged, and summits have been conquered.

We learn from our mistakes. A person cannot grow and learn without making mistakes. Sometimes they will be big, sometimes they will be small, but all the lessons learned will be in proporti...

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 648 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Imagine Your Life Without Fear

Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. This is Day 648 of our trek, and it is time for our Philosophy Friday series. Each Friday we will ponder some of the basic truths and mysteries of life and how they can impact us in creating our living legacy.

For the next several weeks, we will focus how to live with less fear. We will explore the trails on our trek of life, which will help us to be fearless. This does not imply that we will reach the point where were are completely without any fear, though, for that is not only impossible, but also not wise. There is a time and a place for an appropriate level of fear, but most fear that we experience on a daily basis has no grounding and can be eliminated as we grow in wisdom, insight, and understanding. So our objective for these next several Fridays is to experience a FearLess Friday on our trek of life. Today is our first trail on our trek covering Imagine Your Life without Fear.

We are broadcasting from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. Hazel went back to Columbus Children’s Hospital on Friday, and her blood counts were back up into the range where they can continue her chemo regimen. During this phase, she will receive treatments in Columbus every 10 days. Nat and Elizabeth do not have to administer any medicines at home, and Hazel seems to be feeling pretty good. So we are thankful for that.

As mentioned on Wednesday’s trek, on July 8th, I suffered a fall from a ladder that fractured my upper femur bone. I am focusing the next few Tuesday and Thursday “Wisdom-Nugget” episodes sharing my story of the accident and recovery. The story begins with Wisdom-Trek.com/day-645.

A major life event such as this strikes fear into our hearts of how our lives will change or how it could have been even worse. Starting with this Friday’s episode on our Fearless Friday treks, we will explore why we are fearful and how we can live a fearless life or at least a life with less fear. The focus of our trek today is…

Imagine Your Life Without Fear

By nature, I am not a fearful person. I am usually confident and will boldly go where others may not. As I age, I realize that it is not so much the lack of fear, but the willingness to overcome that fear to achieve my goals and better utilize my God-given abilities that drives me. I try to focus on what can be accomplished by moving forward, rather than the scary “what-ifs.”

My recent accident is helping me to realize that while I desire to live a life without fear, I also need to weigh all of the potential outcomes, not only for myself, but also for those that love me. I am certainly not ready to end my living legacy. I am very aware of how much worse my accident could have been. Instead of fracturing my femur, I could have landed on my head or back, or the chain saw could have hit me or those that were helping me, all of which could have ended my life or the lives of others.

There is a twinge of fear when I think of those potential outcomes, mostly because I would no longer be here on earth to positively impact those that I love most. I cannot and will not allow this accident to prevent me from moving forward. As part of living a life without fear, I will be more prudent with the confident choices that I make and consider the outcomes from a much broader perspective.

It is my hope and prayer during these next several Fearless Friday Treks that together we can learn to move boldly forward, regardless of the obstacles that we may face. Together we can certainly learn from those fearful situations and then wisely make the choices needed to live...

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 647 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

The Emergency Room, Life Lessons Learned The Hard Way – Wisdom Unplugged

 

Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. This is day 647 of our trek, and it is time for a special series of stories that will chronicle my recent accident and recovery as we trek “Life Lessons Learned the Hard Way.”

This accident is a major life event that will change life for me for several months to come. In fact, I would say that it will certainly impact me for the remainder of my life. It is my hope and prayer that as I share that it will also positively impact your life as well.

I have often said, we must accept and live life as it truly is, not as we wish it to be. We don’t always know or understand what will become of the uphill climbs and treacherous downhill slopes that we encounter on life’s trek. The key is to learn from these events and allow them to effectively become part of our living legacy, which will positively impact our lives and the lives of all those who we impact. So for the next several Tuesday and Thursday Wisdom Nuggets episodes, we will look at...

The Emergency Room  - Life Lessons Learned the Hard Way

First, for my faithful readers and regular listeners to my Wisdom-Trek Podcast and Journal, I want to apologize for the delay in episodes this week. I will get caught up on all the days and get back on schedule as soon as is feasible. If you would like to catch the first episode of this series, go to http://wisdom-trek.com/day-645.

I ended Day-645 when the Devola Volunteer Rescue Squad was transporting me to Marietta Memorial Hospital with a neck brace and backboard in place. This was after I had gotten kicked off an extension ladder with a chainsaw in hand and landed on the cement walkway below. The EMTs gave me a low dose of morphine to offset the increasing pain in my leg. It seemed like quite a few minutes of prepping me in the ambulance before actually starting to move, but they were very professional, and I felt well taken care of. They also let me know when they were coming up on any rough segments during the drive, realizing that it would accentuate the pain.

We soon arrived at the emergency department of the hospital, where they wheeled me into one of the exam rooms. During major events like this, it is certainly interesting seeing the situation unfold from a first person perspective...From seeing myself being forced backwards from the ladder, falling through the air, hitting the cement walkway below, rolling to a seated position, seeing my leg at an odd angle, laying in the back of the ambulance to seeing the hallway ceilings and bright lights pass by overhead as I was wheeled into the exam room. The ER doctor and nurses needed to quickly assess my injuries, especially since I had the neck collar and backboard in place. As they connected me to the monitoring devices, they quickly became concerned with my low heart rate. I informed them that I exercised extensively and also ran 5-7 miles most days, and my resting heart rate was usually 48-50 bpm. You would think trauma like this would have increased my heart rate some, but other than the searing pain in my leg whenever it was moved, I felt a sense of calm.

Regardless of this, the doctor nor the monitor were pleased if my heart rate dropped below 45bpm. This especially became a concern at one point when it dropped to the mid-30s. For the most part, though, my heart rate remained around 50.

Since there could possibly have been neck and back injuries, they informed me that they would have to cut off the t-shirt I was wearing. I was wearing an old t-shirt from the days when we had our computer business and told them th...

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 646 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

I am Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Harmony And Restraint - Proverbs 17

Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. Today is Day 646 of our trek, and it is Wisdom Wednesday. Every Wednesday along life’s trails we dig for the nuggets of wisdom that are found within the book of Proverbs. Today we will explore Proverbs 17 from The Voice Translation, which will give us a fresh perspective on this book of timeless wisdom.

We are broadcasting from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. If you are a regular listener or reader of the Wisdom-Trek Podcast and Journal, you may realize that we are publishing these episodes a couple of days late this week. This is due to an unfortunate and serious accident I had this past weekend.

I will be chronicling the accident and my subsequent recovery on our Tuesday and Thursday “Wisdom-Nugget” episodes for a few weeks. I published the first segment on Wisdom-Trek.com/day-645 if you would like to follow along with my saga of “Life Lessons Learned the Hard Way.” I think that you will enjoy the story as we all realize that at age 60 there are still some hard lessons about life to be learned.

Our granddaughter Hazel will return to Columbus Children’s Hospital for more bloodwork. If the counts are high enough, she will begin her next regimen of chemo treatments. If not, they will test her bone marrow again to make sure that it is continuing to produce the good cells needed for full recovery. Life is one of balance. Proverbs 17 describes it as…

Harmony and Restraint

The proverbs are so good! Check out the first verse in this chapter about household harmony, "Better to gnaw on a bit of dry crust in peace than to feast in a house full of stress." Solomon gets it – whether you’re a father, son, brother, friend, old or young, harmony is always more favorable than strife.How do we foster harmony? Because harmony comes from exercising restraint these proverbs really emphasize self-control. Look at the chapter’s design…The first 14 proverbs end with a compelling image about self-control – "Picking a fight is like leaking water from a crack in a dam, so walk away from an argument before the outburst." – while another 14 proverbs end with even more wisdom on self-control over our words. The self-control at the end is about how we use our words. Words can get us into a lot of trouble, and Solomon reminds us that less is often more.

Much of the wisdom in this chapter is directed at the fool, particularly the foolish son. It would seem from Chapter 17 that the household is the natural place where fools learn and grow. Let’s instead make our homes laboratories of wisdom! As I read Chapter 17, think about your home and how you can make it a place that embodies self-control.Listen intently as I read Proverbs 17.

1 Better to gnaw on a bit of dry crust in peace

than to feast in a house full of stress.

2 A wise servant will be put in charge of a child who behaves badly

and will take a share of the inheritance like one of the family.

3 Silver is purified in the crucible, gold in the furnace,

but motives of the heart are judged by the Eternal.

4 Wrongdoers perk up when listening to gossip,

and liars lean in close to hear talk of mischief.

5 Anyone who makes fun of the poor disparages his Maker,

and those who celebrate another’s misfortune will not escape certain punishment.

6 Grandchildren are the crowning glory and ultimate delight of old age,

and parents are the pride of their children.

7 Elegant speech sounds odd when it comes from a fool,

and a lie on the lips of a leader is even more out of place!

8 A bribe is like an enchanting charm to one who c...

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 645 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

The Fall, Life Lessons Learned The Hard Way – Wisdom Unplugged

Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. This is day 645 of our trek, and it is time for a 3-minute mini-trek called Wisdom Unplugged. Today we are taking a break from our normal wisdom nugget to update you and chronicle a major life event that will change life for me for several months to come. In fact, I would say that it will certainly impact me for the remainder of my life. It is my hope and prayer that as I share that it will also positively impact your life as well. I have often said, we must accept and live life as it truly is, not as we wished it to be. I guess I also must practice what I preach. So for the next several Tuesday and Thursday Wisdom Nuggets episodes, we will look at...

The Fall, Life Lessons Learned the Hard Way

First, for my faithful readers and regular listeners to my Wisdom-Trek Podcast and Journal, I want to apologize for the delay in episodes over the past couple of days.  I will get caught up on all the days and get back on schedule as soon as feasible.2017 is turning out to be a year of life-changing and very challenging moments for the Chamberlain family, as I have mentioned in several podcasts and weekly newsletters previously. On April 15th our granddaughter Hazel was diagnosed with leukemia.  This has been a life-altering event for the entire family, and her path to recovery is a long two-year process, with the potential for many twists and turns along the way. We are already realizing this as her immune system has been too low this past month for the normal treatment regime. I will keep you posted of her progress in the intro comments to our podcast as they become available.

This past weekend yet another life-altering event took place. Here is the beginning of my story that started this past Saturday. I enjoy working outside on the weekends, and this past Saturday was no different. The storms of last week brought down a sizeable limb near our house, and Saturday I was in the process of clearing it and cutting it up for firewood. I had previously asked my brother to also help me cut a limb from a tree in front of our house that was growing over our front porch.

When Jack and his grown son Rob returned from work, they came over to assist.  While I strive to be safe when using power tools, I did not fully grasp the dangers that are inherent when you mix a combination of a large chainsaw, an extension ladder, a fairly sizeable tree limb, and a cement sidewalk. As my mind has flashed back dozens of times to the events of Saturday, the foolishness of my task is now so evident.

I felt that two grown men steadily holding the ladder would provide the platform needed to remove the limb safely. It was not large in diameter, only about 4 inches, but it turned out to be longer than I realized.

I climbed the ladder with the chainsaw to a secure footing height of about 10 feet and began to cut it off.  We were nearly through the limb when it seized the chainsaw blade, which became wedged in place. Jack pulled the limb to the side while I freed the chainsaw and made the final small cut. None of us realized that when I finished the cut that the tension on the tree limb would kick the chainsaw backward propelling me, and the chainsaw, away from the ladder.

Although it is difficult to remember all the details as it happened pretty fast, I do remember that I kept the chainsaw away from my body as I rotated to my left. As I dropped the chainsaw safely away from myself, Jack, and Rob I had rotated to where the left side of my body was parallel to the ground, but there was also a cement walkway,

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 644 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Imagine Life as It Could Be – Mindshift Monday

Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. This is Day 644 of our trek, and it is time for our Mindshift Monday series. Wisdom-Trek’s primary focus is to assist you in creating your living legacy. Creating your living legacy can only be accomplished by gaining wisdom in many areas of life.  You can only gain wisdom by changing what you allow to go into your mind which is a result of changing the way you think. In other words, to create your living legacy you must choose to be in a continual mode of Mindshift or “changing the way you think.”

It is easy to get stuck in a mindset that your current circumstances cannot be changed. This is not true, but you must understand this fundamental principle…In order to change your life, you must change how you think and what you think about. Our Mindshift Monday podcast and journal will be to provide you practical ways to make a mind-shift to a rich and satisfying life. 

We are broadcasting from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. After a warm and rainy week, the weather finally moderated a bit over the weekend, and we were able to get out and do more chainsaw work and mowing. One of the storms on Friday brought down a sizable limb in one of the old majestic oak trees beside our house. Fortunately, it did not hit any of the house. It added to my list of wood that needs cut for firewood, so we will work at this as we have the opportunity.

We are still waiting for Hazel’s blood county and immune system to rebound from the past three weeks of being low. She did have an appointment on Friday, and the oncology team will reassess her situation after her next blood test on Tuesday. If her count is back up, they will continue with the chemo treatments, if not they will investigate as to the cause. The waiting is difficult, but we realize that God is in control of her situation, and physically she seems to be feeling pretty good.

We continue to positively look towards the future. Our mindset is very important with every aspect of life. If your first inclination is to think negatively, then a Mindshift is required. You cannot get trapped by your current situation and feel there is no way to change it. So on our trek today I desire you to have a Mindshift that will allow you to…

Imagine Life As It Could Be

George Bernard Shaw once said, “Some men see things as they are and say ‘Why?’  I dream of things that never were and say ‘Why Not?’”  In order to have this type of thinking, most of us will need a Mindshift. In other words, we need to change how we think and what we think about.

In some area of life, all of us are leaders. That may be in your home with children, a business leader, or a leader of a ministry. John Quincy Adams said it this way, “If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, you are a leader.” Nearly everyone inspires others in some manner.

As a leader, one of your distinguishing characteristics is that you have a vision for the future. Vision is the ability to imagine life as it could be, not to be stuck with life as it is today. Part of vision is realizing that you must accept life today as it is, not what you wish it to be. This does not mean that you need to remain where you are today, just acknowledge it so that you can move forward with a vision to change what otherwise would be your destiny.

True leaders see life as it could be. They always see a little farther with a little more complete than those around them. To change your mindshift, you need to change the way you speak. Most people will say,

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 643 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Freedom from Worry

Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. This is Day 643 of our trek, and it is time for our Philosophy Friday series. Each Friday we will ponder some of the basic truths and mysteries of life and how they can impact us in creating our living legacy.

For the next several weeks we will focus how to live with less fear. We will explore the trails on our trek of life that will help us to be fearless. This does not imply that we will reach the point where were are completely without any fear, for that is not only impossible, but also not wise. There is a time and a place for an appropriate level of fear, but most fear that we experience on a daily basis has no grounding and can be eliminated as we grow in wisdom, insight, and understanding. So our objective for these next several Fridays is to experience a FearLess Friday on our trek of life. Today is our third installment about worry.

We are broadcasting from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. The wildlife around our home appears to be flourishing. In addition to the two young hawks, which are very active and vocal, our deer population appears to be growing. I had previously mentioned the two bucks and two doe, and this week we saw another mama doe with two brand new fawns. They are very small, and their coats are spotted with bright white spots. None of the wildlife seems very concerned that we are around and will usually remain within site even when we are outside. It is enjoyable to watch as we go about our normal work duties. Just as the wildlife does not seem to worry about us, we need to take steps in our lives towards…

Freedom from Worry

Not only is worry counterproductive, but it is also a form of disobedience. God has told us not to worry, so to worry is to disregard His guidance. Isn't it strange that we don't usually think of worry as sin? But it is! Confess it as sin. Choose with your will to obey God and by faith depend on Him for the ability. Here are some practical tips that may help you in your pursuit of freedom from worry.

· Meditate on God's Word Daily

Plan a time daily when you can invest some time—even if it's only fifteen minutes—reading the Bible. Think about what you read and go over the phrases. Put your name in place of the pronouns, applying each verse to specific situations in your life. Memorize passages that will help you. God's Word is powerful—it will renew and protect your mind. As King David tells us in Psalm 119:11, “I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.”

· Condition Yourself to Relax

Choose a phrase from Scripture or a hymn that you can repeat to yourself at the first hint of anxiety. Psalms 23:1 – The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need. The entire 23rd Chapter is good. As you repeat the phrase, you will encourage yourself with its message and remind yourself to relax. 

· Listen to Soothing Music

Just as David's music on the harp soothed King Saul's anxiety and depression, hymns, and spiritual songs are wonderful tranquilizers for us today. Haven't you had the experience of hearing or singing a hymn that lifted your spirits and eased your mind? You might want to listen to a recording, play an instrument, or sing yourself. Reflect on the words and relax in the melody.

· Talk through Your Problems

When you are worried about an issue or a relationship, don't fail to communicate. If you need to talk with a friend or your spouse, schedule a time when you can honestly tell them your concerns and listen to what they say. If it's necessary, talk with your supervisor or employer about some troublesome aspect of your job.

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 642 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Life and Death – Wisdom Unplugged

 

Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. This is day 642 of our trek, and it is time for our 3-minute mini-trek called Wisdom Unplugged. This short nugget of wisdom includes an inspirational quote with a little additional content for today’s trek. Consider this your vitamin supplement of wisdom for today. So let’s jump right in with today’s nugget.

Today's quote is from St. Ambrose, and it is, "To the good man to die is gain. The foolish fear death as the greatest of evils, the wise desire it as a rest after labors and the end of ills."Most people do not like to think about or discuss the issue of our mortality, which is death. This is certainly interesting because all of us will at some point die. While none of us desire to go through a painful death, we must be prepared for the eventuality that it will happen, and there is nothing that will prevent it. While I am a very strong advocate for taking care of our physical bodies so that we do not die prematurely from a cause we may have prevented, the fact is that God knows when our work on earth is complete.

We should be prepared financially, mentally, emotionally, and most importantly, spiritually. If we have accepted Jesus Christ as our substitute and advocate before God, then the spiritual aspect is guaranteed. The Apostle Paul put it this way in 2 Corinthians 5:21, "For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ." Once our standing before God is secured, then it is our responsibility to prepare the other areas of our lives.We should not do foolish things that will hasten our death, but we should also not fear it. As we are faithful in fulfilling God’s purpose in our lives, then when death does come, we are prepared and can look forward to the eternal rest that we will have in God’s presence. No one knows if our deaths will be soon or if we have decades of life ahead of us.

We will all die, so our life objective is to create a legacy that will live on through the lives of others for many generations to come. Your daily impact does matter. When we do come to the end of our lives here on earth, let us be able to say as the Apostle Paul said in 2 Timothy 4:7, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful."

That’s a wrap for today’s Wisdom Unplugged quote. If you would like free access to my database of over 10,000 inspirational quotes, the link is available on the main page of Wisdom-Trek.com. Just as you enjoy these nuggets of wisdom, encourage your friends and family to join us and then come along tomorrow for another day of our Wisdom-Trek, Creating a Legacy.If you would like to listen to any of our past treks or read the Wisdom Journal, they are available at Wisdom-Trek.com. You can also subscribe on iTunes or Google play so that each day’s trek will be downloaded automatically.

Thank you for allowing me to be your guide, mentor, and most importantly your friend as I serve you through the Wisdom-Trek podcast and journal each day.

As we take this trek of life together, let us always:

Live Abundantly (Fully)

Love Unconditionally

Listen Intentionally

Learn Continuously

Lend to others Generously

Lead with Integrity

Leave a Living Legacy Each Day

This is Guthrie Chamberlain reminding you to Keep Moving Forward, Enjoy Your Journey, and Create a Great Day Every Day! See you tomorrow for Fearless Friday!

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 641 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

I am Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Being Wise Before God - Proverbs 16

Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. Today is Day 641 of our trek, and it is Wisdom Wednesday. Every Wednesday along life’s trails we dig for the nuggets of wisdom that are found within the book of Proverbs. Today we will explore Proverbs 16 from The Voice Translation, which will give us a fresh perspective on this book of timeless wisdom.

We are broadcasting from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. As we celebrate Independence Day in the United States this week, it does give us an opportunity to pause, reflect, and be grateful for the freedoms that we enjoy. If you live elsewhere in the world, I pray that you also have the opportunity to enjoy the freedom to live, work, play, and worship without fear of reprisal. Regardless of our societal freedoms that we have, as Christ followers we do have freedom from the bondage and penalty of our unwise choices and actions. This freedom comes through the perfect advocate, Jesus Christ. As the Apostle Paul wrote in his letter in Galatians 5:1, "So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don’t get tied up again in slavery to the law." Understanding and accepting this freedom is found in our topic for today in Proverbs 16 which is...

Being Wise Before God

Chapters 10-15 contained proverbs that use contrast as a teaching tool. Here Chapter 16 shifts to a comparison style model. Basically, the “but, but, but” of Chapter 12 is replaced with “and, and, and.” These comparison sayings often state one basic idea and go on to explore it in two ways. It’s like studying an object first with one eye shut and then again with both eyes open. You gain a new appreciation for its depth and substance.

This chapter continues to frequently use God’s personal covenant name, Yahweh. Of the 375 Proverbs of Solomon (10:1-22:16) only 55 use the name Yahweh, and nearly half of those are in these two chapters (9 times in Chapter 15, 11 times in Chapter 16). What do you think accounts for this high concentration of God’s name?

This collection of proverbs has three main sections: wisdom for living before Yahweh (verses 1-9), wisdom for how to behave in the presence of a king (verses 10-15), and wisdom for getting along in God’s world (16-33). These proverbs are trying to point us down the path of wisdom in three significant realms of life: God, authority, and our community.

Finally, notice the recurring theme of God’s sovereignty that’s peppered throughout, interspersed in verses 1 and 9 as well as verses 25 and 33. The underlying point is clear, “Hey, don’t forget!” the author reminds us, “People make many plans, but the final say is up to God.”

Listen intently as I read Proverbs 16:

1 People go about making their plans,

but the Eternal has the final word.

2 Even when you think you have good intentions,

He knows your real motives.

3 Whatever you do, do it as service to Him,

and He will guarantee your success.

4 The Eternal made everything for a reason.

Even wrongdoers fit in His plans; troubled times await them.

5 He abhors arrogant people.

Make no mistake about it! They will be punished!

6 The penalty of sin is removed by love and loyalty;

and by devotion to the Eternal, evil is avoided.

7 When people make good choices, He is pleased;

He even causes their enemies to live peacefully near them.

8 Better to have little and stand for what is right

than to become rich by doing what is wrong.

9 People do their best making plans for their lives,

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 640 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

A Fool May Talk, But a Wise Man Speaks – Wisdom Unplugged

Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. This is day 640 of our trek, and it is time for a 3-minute mini-trek called Wisdom Unplugged. This short nugget of wisdom includes an inspirational quote with a little additional content for today’s trek. Consider this your vitamin supplement of wisdom for today. So let’s jump right in with today’s nugget.

Today’s quote is from Ben Jonson who said, "To speak and to speak well are two different things. A fool may talk, but a wise man speaks."Based on my observations, it is evident that most of us speak much more than is necessary or advisable. We all want to pontificate and air our opinions on a myriad of life issues, even if we do not have the wisdom or knowledge in that particular area.  We are so ready to speak and add our 2 cents worth that we really don’t even listen to what another person is really saying.

I refer to this as verbal diarrhea as it adds little value and becomes unpleasant to others that are part of the conversation. This happens when we engage our tongue before we engage our brains…we are all prone to fall into this trap.

It would do all of us well to truly listen to what is being said and only add to the conversation if it will be beneficial and encouraging to those with whom we are speaking. There is nothing wrong or awkward to allow silence to permeate a conversation so that we can really understand. A person who has learned to bridle his tongue is a mature, wise, and discerning person. The next time that you are having a conversation with someone or are part of a group conversation, try only adding to the conversation when it will truly benefit those who are there. I believe that you will find that you are speaking much less and learning much more. This is how wisdom is increased in our lives.

The Book of Wisdom, Proverbs, is full of warnings to those who speak too much or inappropriately. Here are a three that apply to today's thoughts:

Proverbs 10:19

Too much talk leads to sin. Be sensible and keep your mouth shut.

Proverbs 17:27

A truly wise person uses few words; a person with understanding is even-tempered.

Proverbs 29:20

There is more hope for a fool than for someone who speaks without thinking.That’s a wrap for today’s Wisdom Unplugged. If you enjoy these quotes, I have created and published a searchable database of over 10,000 quotes that I have collected for many years. If you would like free access to my database of inspirational quotes, the link is available on the main page of Wisdom-Trek.com.

As you enjoy these nuggets of wisdom, please encourage your friends and family to join us and then come along tomorrow for another day of our Wisdom-Trek, Creating a Legacy.

If you would like to listen to any of our past treks or read the Wisdom Journal, they are available at Wisdom-Trek.com. You can also subscribe at iTunes or Google Play so that each day’s trek will be downloaded automatically.

Thank you so much for allowing me to be your guide, mentor, and most of all your friend as I serve you through the Wisdom-Trek podcast and journal.

As we take this trek of life together, let us always:

Live Abundantly (Fully)

Love Unconditionally

Listen Intentionally

Learn Continuously

Lend to others Generously

Lead with Integrity

Leave a Living Legacy Each Day

This is Guthrie Chamberlain reminding you to Keep Moving Forward, Enjoy Your Journey, and Create a Great Day Every Day!