In Proverbs 11, there is a repeated theme of walking righteously compared with living in wickedness. Repeatedly you find the joy, life, and protection that results from living righteously. In contrast, you also notice the destruction and death that wickedness produces. Sadly, because we don’t always experience immediate consequences or physical blessings, we can be led to think that our choices don’t matter so much.
Serving at VOH has reminded me of the destruction of living foolishly. One morning I was reading in Proverbs 11 and comparing the righteous with the wicked. Not only have I observed this while serving as an intern, but I see it in my own heart too. We all have choices each day to walk in obedience to the Father or to live for temporary pleasure. How important it is to walk blamelessly!
Righteousness is described as delivering multiple times in Proverbs 11. But wickedness is shown to ensnare and bring death. Those are powerful words. I want to walk righteously.
Another thing that you notice in Proverbs 11 is that the righteous knows when it is appropriate to speak, when to remain quiet, and their mouth overflows with words of wisdom. This is definitely a challenge for each one of us, but especially women, as we tend to speak too much. It was thought-provoking to ask myself, “Do I know when it is appropriate to speak? Does wisdom come from my tongue, or just my own opinions?”
There is great blessing for walking righteously. Proverbs 11 tells us that “those who sow righteousness get a sure reward (v. 18)” and that “whoever is steadfast in righteousness will live (v. 19).” He says “the desire of the righteous ends only in good (v. 23)” and “the righteousness will flourish like a green leaf (v. 28)”. This challenged me to not give up or grow weary in doing good. It may not seem like it’s bearing fruit, but God promises blessing to those who walk uprightly. It’s not often what we think of as “blessing”, that is wealth or an easy life. But His ways are good and He never fails on His promises.
