Shownotes
Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy
Welcome to Day 370 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.
This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom
The Generous Will Prosper
As we begin our 2nd year of Wisdom-Trek, we are shifting from a daily podcast and creating three themed treks per week, which will be Motivation Monday, Wisdom Wednesday, and Philosophy Friday. Thank you for joining us for our 3 days per week, 12 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 370 of our trek, and today will be our Wisdom Wednesday trek. Each Wednesday our trek will focus on digging for those nuggets of wisdom that are found within the book of Proverbs.
We are broadcasting from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. We have been keeping very busy with our activities in and around The Big House this week. I am sanding the floors in the upstairs and downstairs hallway/foyer and the front and back stairways. The dust certainly makes a mess, but the results are well worth the temporary inconvenience. We have the Crescent Rose Garden replanted with pink and red Knock-Out Roses and Rhododendrons. It is looking really nice.
We are continuing to work on our client and podcasting projects in many different areas, and I keep reminding myself to take it one day at a time. That is what makes for a successful life.
Now it is time to set out on our trek for today as we head up the Wisdom Trail and dig for those nuggets of wisdom that are buried within the 2nd half of Proverbs 11.
The Generous Will Prosper – Proverbs [11:17]-31
17 Your kindness will reward you,
but your cruelty will destroy you.
It is imperative that we are kind to all people at all times. Although this is difficult with some people, we never know what another person is going through. In the same thought, you desire others to be kind to you. Kindness has its reward built within it. If you are not kind to others, then rarely will others be kind to you.
18 Evil people get rich for the moment,
but the reward of the godly will last.
A person with evil intentions may be able to gain temporary riches, but eventually, it will catch up with them, and they will suffer the consequences. If you are honest in your dealings and transactions in life even if you do not gain large amounts of monetary riches, your reward will be a life well lived.
19 Godly people find life;
evil people find death.
Those that practice being good and godly will find a life that is worth living because they will see the goodness in others. Their outlook on life will be one that is positive. In contrast, those that are evil will see evil everywhere they look, and their lives will be dead, difficult to live.
20 The Lord detests people with crooked hearts,
but he delights in those with integrity.
God is a god of justice, so He does not look favorably on those that have evil intentions in their lives and make it a practice of living life without morality. Since God is justice, He delights if our hearts, lives, and actions are filled with doing what is right and good. This is the description of a person with integrity.
21 Evil people will surely be punished,
but the children of the godly will go free.
Although it is difficult to see it sometimes in our world, evil will be punished. It is a punishment in and of itself. Those that are evil see the world as evil, which is not a pleasant place to live. They will be in bondage to their evil practices. As we live our legacy for good each day, not only will we be free to live a rich and satisfying life, but it will also allow our children and grandchildren to live a life of freedom.
22 A beautiful woman who lacks discretion
is like a gold ring in a pig’s snout.
Solomon uses a humorous analogy in this verse, but one that is so true. If a woman, or man, no matter how beautiful they are, lack discretion, then it’s just like trying to make a pig beautiful. No matter whether you put a gold ring in its snout or lipstick on its lips, it is still a pig. This is especially meaningful in the Hebrew culture, as a pig is considered a filthy and despised animal and was forbidden to be eaten under their dietary laws.
23 The godly can look forward to a reward,
while the wicked can expect only judgment.
It is always right to do right. When you live honestly, you never have to be concerned about what you say or do to another. This gives a peace of mind and internal freedom that will enable you to live your best, which is indeed a reward. Wicked people judge others by their own lifestyles. They expect others to be evil, so that is what they see in others. Life itself becomes their punishment.
24 Give freely and become more wealthy;
be stingy and lose everything.
25 The generous will prosper;
those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed.
26 People curse those who hoard their grain,
but they bless the one who sells in time of need.
Verses 24-26 are all on the same topic, which is being generous to others. It is a basic principle of life. If you are wise with what you obtain through hard work and perseverance, then you will have more than enough for yourself and should be willing and able to give to others. It is part of our living legacy to allow the resources that we have obtained to flow through us to the benefit of others. It is the abundance mindset to realize there is more than enough for everyone. It is the law of giving and receiving. The realization that we will truly be blessed and refreshed only to the measure that we are willing to bless and refresh others is a powerful one.
27 If you search for good, you will find favor;
but if you search for evil, it will find you!
Another basic principle of life is that how we see others and the world at large is what our world will be. If we see good and abundance in the world, then we will find goodness and abundance and be able to live the rich and satisfying life. If we see the world as an evil and scary place and think that everyone is out to get us, then that is exactly how our world will be. It is up to us what our world is like.
28 Trust in your money and down you go!
But the godly flourish like leaves in spring.
There is no security in money or any earthly wealth. It is fleeting as a summer rain in the desert, that soaks the ground for a few minutes, and then the ground is dried and cracked. If we instead place our trust in God for our wealth, then we will have abundant real growth in our lives that will last.
29 Those who bring trouble on their families inherit the wind.
The fool will be a servant to the wise.
Throughout the scriptures, the family unit is very important. If we do not take care of our family properly from a financial, spiritual, and emotional basis, their inheritance will be fleeting as the wind. Also, if we are foolish in the matter of our families, we will be forever be servants to those who are making wise choices.
30 The seeds of good deeds become a tree of life;
a wise person wins friends.
What we plant in this world will be what we harvest. It is another basic principle of life. Our small seeds of kindness and goodness will produce a bountiful return and will bring life to all those that we impact. Through this principle, we will be wise, and others will seek us out to be our friends.
31 If the righteous are rewarded here on earth,
what will happen to wicked sinners?
One of the basic principles of life is that our lives will be strongly influenced by how we view the world. If we are living right, good and godly lives, we will have the rich and satisfying life that is possible. This will be the opposite for those who view the world as evil and live a life in manner. Their “reward” will be one of problems and evil in this life.
On the Trail of Wisdom today, we have uncovered many nuggets of wisdom that we can apply to our lives immediately. We will experience life as we perceive it. A wise person will see a life of abundance, and in doing so will also be generous in all ways to others. So much of our life is influenced by our mindset. While some days it is harder to control than others, it is still our responsibility to live a life positively and with an abundance mindset. This will ensure that our living legacy will positively impact generations throughout eternity.
Remember to be faithful in the Proverbs 31-day challenge. For each day of June, read the chapter in Proverbs that corresponds to the day of the month. In less than five minutes per day, you can take your daily wisdom supplements, which if repeated each day, will make you healthy, wealthy, and wise.
Our next trek will be Philosophy Friday where we will continue on our trail learning about the cycles and seasons of life. You won’t want to miss it, so encourage your friends and family to join us. Then come along on Friday for another day of our Wisdom-Trek, Creating a Legacy.
That will finish our trek for today. Just as you enjoy your dose of wisdom, we ask you to help us grow Wisdom-Trek by sharing with your family and friends through email, Facebook, Twitter, or in person and invite them to come along with us each day. If you would like to listen to any of the past daily treks, they are available at Wisdom-Trek.com. Don’t forget to subscribe to Wisdom-Trek on iTunes, Spreaker, Stitcher, Soundcloud, iHeart Radio, and Google Play, so each trek will be downloaded to you automatically.
The journal for today’s trek is available at Wisdom-Trek.com. Thank you 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 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!