If someone asked you what it means to be wise, what would you say?

Maybe you would picture someone highly educated or someone financially successful or someone who gives great advice.

The book of Proverbs starts somewhere different.

• It doesn’t begin with intelligence.
• It doesn’t begin with experience.
• It doesn’t even begin with self-improvement.

It begins with the fear of the Lord.

That word “fear” can sound harsh to modern ears. We tend to think of fear as panic or dread. But in Proverbs, fear means something deeper. It means reverence. Awe. Recognizing that God is God and we are not. It is the humble awareness that He is the Creator and we are the created.

In very practical terms, the fear of the Lord means this:
I don’t start with my opinion. I start with Him.

Before I decide what is right or wrong, I look to what God says on the matter. Before I claim what is true or false, I look to the one who is “the way, the truth, and the life.” If I disagree with something in God’s Word, I don’t reject what God has said, I change how I think.

That changes how we approach every aspect of our lives.

• It changes how we handle money.
• It changes how we speak to our spouse.
• It changes how we respond when we’re frustrated at work.
• It changes what we do when no one is watching.

Wisdom doesn’t begin when I accumulate information. It begins when I bow. And that bowing isn’t crushing. It’s grounding.

Because the Lord we fear is also the Lord who loves. The One who calls us into wisdom is not distant. He is patient. He instructs, corrects and forgives. He teaches His children how to walk in His ways and even gives them the strength and the will to do it.

In our Proverbs devotions, we’ll look at words from Proverbs that touch everyday life — speech, anger, friendship, work, money, anxiety, integrity. Some days will encourage. Some may confront. But all of them invite us into a wiser way of living.

Today is simple.

Start by believing in God, specifically God as He reveals Himself in the Bible.

Along with that, consider what in your life is grounded in your own opinions and ideas and ask yourself, “How would things change if I grounded those things in what God says?”

Wisdom begins there.

Let’s begin there too.

Let’s pray…

Heavenly Father,

You are the beginning of wisdom. I know I can never truly be wise without first believing in the one who created all things, defines wisdom, and saved me. Help me to believe in You and change my thoughts and actions to align with Your wisdom.

Amen.

As part of your devotion time, I encourage you to also pray for at least some of the following:

• Your family
• Your local church
• Your pastor
• Some of your fellow church members
• The people on your B.L.E.S.S. list
• Your country and her leaders
• Your community

After praying for these people, you may want to finish your devotion time with the Lord’s Prayer…

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. They will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory, forever and every. Amen.