Year 5, Day 292: Proverbs 1

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Abide

• Abide: This is a moment, day, or even a season when we focus on God.  It is a time when we are rejuvenated by God.  It is the time for us to gather up what we will need for the coming growth after a season of pruning.  However, abiding is not the end.  We abide so that we can grow, bear fruit, prune, and abide again.

I’m going to take a different position on abiding than normal today.  Abiding is typically thought of as resting, relaxing, and regaining energy.  But as I read through my blog post for three years ago, I was reminded of one of my favorite childhood memories.  In High School, I would often come home from school and sit with my dad and talk.  I would usually ask questions, my dad would usually listen and then talk and invite me to think.  In many ways, that was some of my favorite moments for abiding that I’ve ever had.

That’s the same kind of spirit with which Solomon begins this book.  The wise person is willing to look for people around them that can teach them and then they sit and listen.  They absorb.  They recognize that they have a place to learn and grow their experience and they take full advantage of it.

Abiding doesn’t mean that we aren’t learning.  In fact, I might even argue that genuine abiding often involves learning.  As we prepare for growth, we need to study and learn so that when we grow we have something that we are ready to apply!

It really all does come back to wisdom, though.  Am I willing to abide?  Am I wise enough to listen when I feel like talking?  Am I willing to learn what I can when inside I’d rather be proving how smart I am?  Am I truly willing to abide and show wisdom in doing so?

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