A Well of Wisdom

Wells are only valuable if they contain life-giving water. People come to be refreshed, whether prepared with a bucket or a cup. At some wells, you simply dipped the bucket in, but others required you to muscle a pump. In either case, water was worth the effort.

Dehydration can become a life-or-death matter. My Goddaughter was just sharing with me her experience as a young child with food poisoning. She vomited so much that her parents finally took her to the hospital. They were shocked when the doctor said, “If you had waited much longer, she could have died.” She said she was in the hospital on IVs for two days.

Wisdom is on my mind since I just completed the Book of Proverbs. It’s easy to review my list of thirty-one stand-out verses. Take Proverbs 23:23 *(NLT) for example: Get the truth and never sell it; also get wisdom, discipline, and good judgment.  

Wisdom comes from the wise. I did a little side study in Proverbs on the “words of the wise.” Here are four out of fifteen entries.  

THE WORDS of the WISE:

Bring healing (Prov. 12:18b)

Satisfy like a good meal (Prov. 18:20)

Come from the lips of people with understanding (Prov. 10:13)

Are like deep waters (Prov. 18:4a)

Deep waters bring us back to the idea of wells. The Book of Proverbs is like a waiting well of wisdom, but are we thirsty for it? Reading a chapter might be like coming to the well with a bucket. Choosing a verse might be like coming with a cup. Either way, water has a life-giving effect.

Proverbs gives us powerful truths through contrasts. It is a practical book; it doesn’t require deep studies in theology. For example, the contrasts between the wise and the foolish are as clear to the man on the street as to the king in his palace.

Are you desiring changes in your life? Are you willing to come to the well of wisdom for refreshing? Don't allow yourself to become dehydrated.

*Photo by Pixabay: Clean Countryside Drink, Public Domain Pictures.

*All scriptures are NLT from the New Living Translation/Life Application Study Bible copyright 1988, 1990, 1993, 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. All Rights Reserved.