Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 465 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Courage to Change - Wisdom Unplugged

Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. This is day 470 of our trek, and it is Tuesday and 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 each Tuesday and Thursday. So let’s jump right in with today’s nugget.

Today’s quote is from Reinhold Niebuhr, who tells us, "God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know one from the other."

This is a fairly well-known quote, but one that is so hard to put into practice on a daily basis. We would all like to effect change, but with most situations in life, we do not have the ability to impact change to any great extent. You cannot change others, you cannot change situations outside of your control. The great news is that you can change yourself. So that is the place to start.

We need to know the difference. We need to accept life for how it is, not how we wished it to be. Accept what you cannot change, but stand strong and have the courage to move forward to change what you can. Rely on God to provide you with the wisdom and the peace to accept the outcome regardless. Job 28:23 says, “God alone understands the way to wisdom; he knows where it can be found, for he looks throughout the whole earth and sees everything under the heavens.”

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 access to my database of inspirational quotes, the link is available on the main page of Wisdom-Trek.com.

So encourage your friends and family to join us, and then come along tomorrow for another day of our Wisdom-Trek, Creating a Legacy. 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 Wisdom Wednesday!

 

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 469 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Truth Matters

Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. This is Day 469 of our trek, and today is Motivation Monday. Every Monday we hike the trails of life that will encourage and motivate us to live rich and satisfying lives this week. Today let us explore the trail called “Truth Matters.”

We are broadcasting from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. Our weekend of outdoor work with the leaves and fallen limbs continues as does the indoor unpacking of our Charlotte household. These tasks will certainly keep us busy for several weeks to come. To tell the truth, it is an enjoyable respite from my focused computer-based work. Being involved in difficult physical labor allows my mind to reenergize and focus on long-term life plans. Speaking of telling the truth, something seems not to matter during an election process. I firmly believe and am convinced that truth does matter. As we break camp and head out on our trek for today, keep these words in your mind…

Truth Matters

Do you think before you make a promise to someone? What if you can’t deliver on your word? Does it really matter? Well, actually no, but have you considered the actual consequences?

Many people are pretty casual about making promises. As a result, promises are frequently made at the drop of a hat with no real intention of keeping them. “Let’s do lunch,” “I’ll call you later,” and “I’ll be there in five minutes” are all examples of throwaway promises that are frequently made but seldom kept. However, this casual attitude can have real consequences.

When you break a promise, no matter how small it may seem to you, alarm bells aren’t going to go off, but it can damage a relationship or your reputation. Think about it. When someone else breaks a promise to you or you catch them in a lie, doesn’t that make you feel violated or cheated? You can’t help wondering whether you were wrong to ever trust that person.

Getting away with a lie can also be dangerous because it fools liars into believing they’re invincible and that they have little chance of getting caught. Before you know it, lying can become a habit, forcing liars to spend precious time and energy keeping their stories straight. Once others learn about the lies, some people may forgive, but they surely won’t forget.

· Promise to Tell the Whole Truth

A promise is a promise. Some folks apply a rating scale, believing that breaking a big promise is inexcusable while a small one is acceptable. That’s simply false. While breaking a big promise, such as failing to repay borrowed money, can torpedo a relationship, reneging on promises, such as being on time, casts doubt on future behavior.

Remember, trust is built through a series of experiences shared with others. When behavior is consistent, faith in the relationship develops. When promises are broken or people are misled, the bonds of trust are breached.

Broken promises imply that the offenders either didn’t think before making the promises or don’t care that they’ve let you down. They’re also implying that their needs are more important than yours. So, be careful about the promises that you make and with whom you make them. Here are some practical tips to consider.

Never promise the moon. If you can’t keep a promise, don’t make it. For example, you may not be able to guarantee someone a five percent investment return, but you can show them your track record and promise them that you’ll work hard on their behalf. Another simple example is you can’t guarantee that you’ll arrive in two hours, but you can promise that you’re going to leave at 10 am. In other words,

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 468 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

The Danger of Neglect - Philosophy Part 10

Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy podcast. This is Day 468 of our trek, and today is Philosophy Friday. Every Friday we will ponder some of the basic truths and mysteries of life and how they can impact us in creating our living legacy.

Currently, we are in a multi-week trek as we explore the teachings from some of my virtual mentors such as Jim Rohn, Zig Ziglar, and Earl Nightingale. The core of our current trek is based primarily on Jim Rohn’s book The Five Major Pieces to the Life Puzzle. I have learned a considerable amount from reading and re-reading this book on my own trek of life, and I trust that it will benefit you also. Keeping with the continuity of Wisdom-Trek, I will be adapting it to The Five Trails on Life’s Trek.

We are broadcasting from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. It has been a steady week of client work and continuing to make progress on unpacking our Charlotte boxes. I do need to get refocused on the podcast-related projects soon, as they were set aside for a bit as our extra time has been consumed with moving our Charlotte household items and consolidating everything in The Big House.

I would like to make much faster progress on these various project, but continually remind myself that life is a marathon, not a sprint. As with most of life, it is the simple disciplines practiced every day that will allow us to succeed at any project, no matter how large and overwhelming it may appear at times. This is why it is so important that we Develop a Powerful Personal Philosophy.

If you have missed the past few Philosophy Friday treks, it would be good to go back and review them to get caught up on our progress so far. We have a lot of ground to cover today, so let’s break camp and continue on the first trail of this extended trek as we cover…

The Five Trails on Life’s Trek–Philosophy, Part 10

As a reminder, our overall extended trek will cover these five trails:

Philosophy

Attitude

Activity

Results

Lifestyle

Last week on our hike we focused on the formula for success which is actually quite simple because success is made up of a few simple disciplines practiced every day. As we continue our trek today, we will focus on “The Danger of Neglect” and the importance of “Learning to Listen to the Right Voice”:

1. The Danger of Neglect

The things that are easy to do are also easy not to do. The primary reason most people are not doing as well as they could and should can be summed up in a single word – neglect.

It is not the lack of money. The banks are full of money, and the government continues to print more. It is not the lack of opportunity. America continues to offer the most unprecedented and abundant opportunities of any nation in the last six thousand plus years of recorded history, and these opportunities are spreading globally. It is not the lack of books. Libraries and online sources are full of books, and many of them are free! It is not the schools. While there are some issues in education, the classrooms are full of good teachers, and there is nothing stopping you or anyone else from learning on their own. There are also plenty of ministers, leaders, counselors, and advisors to help you in any area of life.

Everything you would ever need to become rich, powerful, sophisticated, and satisfied with life is within your reach. The major reason that so few take advantage of all that we have is simply neglect. Don’t let this be the case in your life.  You have heard the expression,

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 467 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Keep Moving Foward - Wisdom Unplugged

Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. This is day 467 of our trek, and it is Thursday and 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 each Tuesday and Thursday. So let’s jump right in with today’s nugget.

Today’s quote is from Croft M. Pentz, who says, "Failure is merely the opportunity to start over again, wiser than before."

We will all experience failure to various degrees in our lives. Practically every day we attempt tasks and actions where we fall short. This is to be expected and should be welcomed. We can learn so many great lessons and gain much wisdom as we strive to succeed in various areas of our lives. While none of us desire to fail, neither should we fear it. If our decisions and subsequent actions do not cause loss of life or limb, then we can overcome nearly every other outcome of failure.

One of my favorite animated movies is the Disney movie called Meet the Robinsons in which the entire overriding premise of the animated film is that we should rejoice when the projects we are working on fail because it allows us to gain wisdom and provides one more verifiable way we know does not work. The tagline of the animated movie, which I have adopted for myself, is to "Keep moving forward." So, do not fear failure. Instead, embrace it, learn from it, and gain wisdom through it. Then learn to enjoy your journey, even with its detours and obstacles, as you "keep moving forward."  2 Timothy 1:7 instructs us, "For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline."

That’s a wrap for today’s Wisdom Unplugged. If you would like access to my database of over 10,000 inspirational quotes, the link is available on the main page of Wisdom-Trek.com.  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. 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!

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 466 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Choose a Good Reputation Over Great Riches - Proverbs 22:1-16

Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. This is Day 466 of our trek, and today 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 the 1st half of chapter 22.

We are broadcasting from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. This past weekend was very productive. We were able to make a pass of the entire lawn to clean up the leaves that have fallen so far. Most of the leaves have not fallen yet, but I still had 8 loads that I gathered up, and each load contains about 450 gallons of leaves. Paula gathered many loads of branches from a large limb that fell out of a tree on my brother’s property in last week’s storm. Inside the house, we unpacked several more boxes and setup the parlor with furniture. Taking care of the family homestead does require a lot of work, in addition to our consulting business, but it is rewarding and part of a much larger legacy that we are creating and living each day. We certainly enjoy thinking about, planning, and accomplishing our dreams.

What we think about and focus our time on is what we become. While most of us have heard the axiom “You are what you eat,” I believe a more true one is “You are what you think.” What you think about becomes your actions, and your actions become who you really are. It is part of your reputation. As we break camp for our trek today, let us explore the nuggets of wisdom found in the first half of Proverbs 22 where we will learn to…

Choose a Good Reputation Over Great Riches

Let’s start our trek with verse 1.

1 Choose a good reputation over great riches;

being held in high esteem is better than silver or gold.

There is no amount of money that can purchase a good reputation. Solomon’s wise advice instructs us to choose a good reputation and high esteem over any amount of riches. It is truly better than unlimited silver and gold. What would you prefer? It is evident today, as it has been throughout history, that many would choose riches.

 

2 The rich and poor have this in common:

The Lord made them both.

Just as we come into the world naked and helpless, we leave the same way. It is important to realize that during the years in between, regardless of whether we are rich or poor, we have all been created in God’s image. We should love each other unconditionally, regardless of our economic status.

 

3 A prudent person foresees danger and takes precautions.

The simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences.

To be wise and prudent means that you make wise choices in life. It is the ability to anticipate the consequences of your choices and decide the best path to take. Otherwise, you are a simple person, or it may be said an unwise person. A simple person makes decisions and choices in life without understanding the consequence of those choices. This usually results in short-term thinking that causes long-term problems.

 

4 True humility and fear of the Lord

lead to riches, honor, and long life.

When you are wise, you will also be humble and respect the Lord who created you. When you are, then the choices that you make in life will be good and will result in good outcomes such as wealth, respect, and longevity of life.

 

5 Corrupt people walk a thorny, treacherous road;

whoever values life will avoid it.

When a person’s mind is wicked,

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 465 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Excellence Is the Result - Wisdom Unplugged

Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. This is day 465 of our trek, and it is Tuesday and 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 each Tuesday and Thursday. So, let’s jump right in with today’s nugget.

Today’s quote is from Ronnie Oldham who tells us, "Excellence is the result of caring more than others think is wise; risking more than others think is safe; dreaming more than others think is practical and expecting more than others think is possible."

Do you go above and beyond what is expected?  Many people do not. If you desire to impact the lives of others positively, then it is required that you stretch yourself beyond what you or others may feel is necessary. Do not settle for being ordinary or average. Instead, strive to be extraordinary and excellent in all that you do. Care deeply for others, even though it will expose you to being hurt. Take the risk that may cause you some discomfort. Dream bigger dreams than you feel that you can ever accomplish.  Expect more of yourself than others expect from you. In doing so, you will not only impact others greatly, you will achieve a level that you did not even think was possible.

Think in the way that the Apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 3:12-14, "I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us."

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 access to my database of inspirational quotes, the link is available on the main page of Wisdom-Trek.com.

So encourage your friends and family to join us, and then come along tomorrow for another day of our Wisdom-Trek, Creating a Legacy. 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 Wisdom Wednesday!

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 464 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

It's Your Choice

Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. This is Day 464 of our trek, and today is Motivation Monday. Every Monday we hike the trails of life that will encourage and motivate you to live a rich and satisfying life this week. Today let us explore the trailed called, “It’s Your Choice.”

We are broadcasting from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. The unpacking and cleaning continues indoors while wood cutting and leaf pickup goes on outside. The weekends do give us an opportunity to focus on non-client work. It is always great to be able to work outdoors and enjoy the cool fall weather. The choice to invest the time doing what we enjoy and what will help us to grow personally is important.

What you do in life is based on the small choices you make every day. How your life turns out is a direct result of these choices. There are consequences to every choice that you make, that will affect all of your tomorrows, both positively and negatively. As we break camp and head out on our trek for today keep these words in your mind…

It’s Your Choice

We’re all confronted with countless choices each day. Some have minimal consequences, such as whether to have our ice cream in a cup or cone while other decisions can be life changing.  While some of these choices may impact our lives today, other choices may not affect us for years to come.

We are a product of the choices we make. Each decision helps to define who we are and how we’re different from everyone else.

Unfortunately, some people prefer to make their decisions in a haphazard fashion. They “shoot from the hip” or flip a coin rather than reviewing their options in a deliberate manner. Others make decisions in a vacuum without taking the time to collect the facts or consider the consequences. Still, others simply follow the crowd to avoid taking personal responsibility, or they base their decisions solely on the advice of another person, rather than on an idea’s true merits. Lastly, some individuals are more interested in checking an item off their to-do list than in making a sound choice. In this case, expediency trumps effectiveness.

Of course, not every decision requires in-depth analysis. Some should be practically “automatic,” like stepping on the brake pedal when the traffic ahead begins to slow down. Another choice is to apply the lessons learned from your past experiences to help make the decision process more automatic and less traumatic. Poor choices and good choices do have their consequences, and being fully engaged in the decision process is a good practice in itself.

· It’s Your Choice: Values Matter

Personal values should serve as your guiding star in making good choices. Values are like a pilot’s flight plan…without them, you’re flying blind. Unfortunately, some people don’t take the time to define them, so by default, their values may not be ethical. Take a moment and ponder the following questions. Each question is designed as a continuum, so your response doesn’t have to be limited to one extreme, or another.

Remember, there’s no right or wrong answer to each question. The answer that you provide should be the right one for YOU.

Work/Life Integration: Do you put more effort into building your career and becoming wealthy or investing time with friends and family?

Self-Satisfaction: Do you invest more time trying to please yourself or to satisfy others?

Willpower: Do you try to eliminate bad habits or simply give in?

Risk: Are you risk averse or would you gamble to win big?

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 463 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Success Disciplines on Life's Trek - Philosophy Part 9

Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy podcast. This is Day 463 of our trek, and today is Philosophy Friday. Every Friday we ponder some of the basic truths and mysteries of life and how they can impact us in creating our living legacy.

Currently, we are in a multi-week trek as we explore the teachings from some of my virtual mentors, such as Jim Rohn, Zig Ziglar, and Earl Nightingale. The core of our current trek is based primarily on Jim Rohn’s book called The Five Major Pieces to the Life Puzzle. I have learned a considerable amount from reading and re-reading this book on my own trek of life, and I trust that it will benefit you also. Keeping with the continuity of Wisdom-Trek, I will be adapting it to The Five Trails on Life’s Trek.

We are broadcasting from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. It has been a steady week of client work, and we are making progress on unpacking all of the boxes from Charlotte.

This weekend we will be working with my brother Jack on cleaning up a couple of large limbs that came down in last week’s storm. Fortunately, neither one did any damage to our homes although Jack will need to replace a couple of sections of a small fence he has off his back porch.

The majority of the leaves continue to hang on as we enjoy the ever changing colors. Leaf harvest will occupy a good bit of our time over the next several weekends also. As with most of life, it is the simple discipline practices every day that will allow us to succeed at any task, no matter how large and overwhelming it may appear at times. This is why it is so important that we Develop a Powerful Personal Philosophy.

If you have missed the past few Philosophy Friday treks, it would be good to go back and review them to get caught up on our progress so far. We have a lot of ground to cover today, so let’s break camp and continue on the first trail of this extended trek as we cover…

The Five Trails on Life’s Trek – Philosophy Part 9

As a reminder, our overall extended trek will cover these five trails:

Philosophy

Attitude

Activity

Results

Lifestyle

Last week on our hike we focused on the failures in our lives which are caused by an accumulation of poor thinking and poor choices. Failure is nothing more than a few errors in judgment repeated every day. We also briefly glanced at the formula for success. As we continue our trek today, we will focus on success which is nothing more than…

1. Success Is a Few Simple Disciplines Practiced Every Day

One of the exciting things about the formula for success is that the results are almost immediate. As you voluntarily change daily errors into daily disciplines, you experience positive results in a very short period of time. When you change your diet, your health improves noticeably in just a few weeks. When you start exercising, you feel a new vitality almost immediately. When you begin reading, you experience a growing awareness and a new level of self-confidence. Whatever new discipline you begin to practice daily will produce exciting results that will drive you to become even better at developing new disciplines.

The real magic of new disciplines is that they cause you to amend your thinking. If you were to start to read books, keep a journal, attend classes, listen more, and observe more today, then today would be the first day of a new life leading to a better future. If you were to start to try harder today, and in every way make a conscious and consistent effort to change subtle and deadly errors into...

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 462 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Everybody Can Find Happiness - Wisdom Unplugged

Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. This is day 462 of our trek, and it is Thursday and 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 each Tuesday and Thursday. So let’s jump right in with today’s nugget.

Today’s quote is from Kurt W. DeNard, who says, "Everybody can find happiness. It is just a matter of choice to be compassionate, wise, generous, and loving."

As we ponder this quote, I would like to ask you, What brings true happiness into your life?  Contrary to what we think many times, it is not purchasing things that brings happiness because we may be content for a little while, but it will not be long before we desire something more or something different. As with most aspects of life, happiness is a choice that we make every day.  The choices that bring lasting happiness in our own lives is when we choose to positively impact the lives of others. It is really up to you.

Do you desire to be happy? Then choose each day to be kind, be compassionate, be wise, be generous, be thoughtful, and be loving with an unconditional love toward others. It is then you will find the path to true happiness. Ephesians 4:32 instructs us, "Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you."

That’s a wrap for today’s Wisdom Unplugged. If you would like access to my database of over 10,000 inspirational quotes, the link is available on the main page of Wisdom-Trek.com.

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. 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 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 Philosophy Friday!

Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 461 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Watch Your Tongue - Proverbs 21:17-31

Thank you for joining us for our 5 days per week wisdom and legacy building podcast. This is Day 461 of our trek, and today 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 the 2nd half of Chapter 21.

We are broadcasting from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. We are starting to settle into a routine here after consolidating households. Between the falling leaves, clearing fallen branches from a heavy storm from last week, unpacking of our household items, and completing our normal client work, we have plenty to keep us busy each day.

The leaves continue to change and then fall, as the temperatures cool down to a normal autumn range. The deer, woodpeckers, squirrels, and hawks that we see out our windows are all preparing for the coming of winter. In the same manner, we need to prepare for each changing season of our lives. In every season of life, we need to seek wisdom, insight, and understanding both from God’s Word and from other wise individuals. Let us not forget our own preparations as we break camp for our trek today, and let us explore the nuggets of wisdom found in the second half of Proverbs 21 where we will learn to…

Watch Your Tongue

Let’s start our trek with verse 17.

17 Those who love pleasure become poor;

those who love wine and luxury will never be rich.

While there is nothing wrong with occasionally relaxing and enjoying the pleasures of life, if it becomes our focus, to the detriment of our work, then it will lead to poverty. In the same manner when we are consumed with vices and things instead of impacting the lives of others, then we will never become wealthy.

 

18 The wicked are punished in place of the godly,

and traitors in place of the honest.

There are certain precepts and practices that we must adhere to that are in accordance with God’s Word. If we choose not to, then we will suffer the consequences of our choices. If we choose to live godly and honestly, then we will be rewarded for our choices.

 

19 It’s better to live alone in the desert

than with a quarrelsome, complaining wife.

While the context of this verse references a quarrelsome, complaining wife, it can be equally true of a husband. While I do not have personal experience with this issue, I have seen couples that are so negative and choose to argue all the time. I can only imagine that it would be easier to live alone than in a contentious marriage.

 

20 The wise have wealth and luxury,

but fools spend whatever they get.

The reason the wise have wealth and luxury is that they are frugal and prudent in their spending habits. When we honestly analyze our lives and our spending habits, it is evident that there are very few true needs in our lives. Most of what we have are wants. The difference is that fools will spend all that they earn and not invest or save. Many will even go into debt for that which is not a necessity. In doing so, they make themselves perpetually poor.

 

21 Whoever pursues righteousness and unfailing love

will find life, righteousness, and honor.

What we think about we pursue. When what we pursue is in line with God’s precepts, such as living right and with unconditional love for others, we will live a rich and satisfying life.

 

22 The wise conquer the city of the strong

and level the fortress in which they trust.