7 When a man's ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.
And, there's verse 9:
9 A man's heart plans his way, But the Lord directs his steps.
9 A man's heart plans his way, But the Lord directs his steps.
If we claim to live by the Word, a working knowledge of the Scriptures is a necessary component. The book of Proverbs is a collection of practical sayings that, when observed and appropriated in our lives, can teach us the heart of God and help us to develop wisdom. On top of that, if we believe the Word of God is alive, then careful study and meditation on these verses can activate the power of God to live by His instruction found not only in Proverbs but throughout the Bible.
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The Proverbs can give us insight into God's ways and help us to develop wisdom for our lives. One of my favorites is Proverbs 4:23: "Keep your heart with all diligence, For out of it spring the issues of life." There's Proverbs 11:3, which says, "The integrity of the upright will guide them, But the perversity of the unfaithful will destroy them."
Another weighty verse is Proverbs 16:3, which says, "Commit your works to the Lord, And your thoughts will be established."
Someone who is known for words of wisdom, albeit in a different sense, turned 90 this week...He was born Lawrence Peter Berra, but he was better known as Yogi. His father had immigrated from Italy in 1909; Yogi's four older brothers gave up baseball after their dad ordered them to get jobs, according to a recent USA Today piece, which reported that Yogi, who acquired the name after someone thought he looked like a Hindu yogi, appeared headed for the same fate when he dropped out of school after the eighth grade and went to work. By the way, it is generally thought that the name of the cartoon character, Yogi Bear, was taken from the baseball player, although the producers, Hanna-Barbera,denied it. Strange coincidence, don't you think?
But, as the story goes, he kept playing baseball, and in 1942 the Yankees offered him a $500 signing bonus and a contract worth $90 a month. That was the beginning of an illustrious career that included 2,150 hits in 19 big-league seasons, including 358 home runs. He was inducted into baseball's Hall of Fame.
As USA Today reports, Berra handled pitching staffs that helped the Yankees win five consecutive World Series titles between 1949 and 1953 and four more World Series titles before 1963, Berra's last season with the Yankees. He played in 15 All-Star Games, won 10 World Series championships and earned three American League MVP awards. He was the catcher for Don Larsen's 1956 World Series perfect game. He tried his hand at managing, also, leading the New York Mets to the National League pennant in 1973; he also spent one season and a short portion of the next as the Yankees manager.
A story is related in the article from pitcher Jim Bouton, who said that a manager took Yogi to task for hitting bad balls. The manager told him to think when he stepped to the plate and make the pitcher come in with the ball. Berra reportedly responded after striking out, "How can anybody think and hit at the same time?"
That is what you call a Yogi-ism. And, beyond or instead of the stats, that may be what this baseball legend is best known for - short, offbeat phrases that defy description. The Yogi Berra Museum and Learning Center has a list on its website. Here are some with which you may be familiar:
“It’s deja vu all over again”
“When you come to a fork in the road … take it”
“You can observe a lot by watching”
“The future ain’t what it used to be”
“It gets late early out here”
and
“Why buy good luggage, you only use it when you travel”
This is just a sampling, but it does give you a feel for the memorable statements for which Berra was known. And, I would dare say that what he said overshadowed what he did. It doesn't always work that way in life, but for Yogi, that was the case, I believe.
I am reminded that there was someone who was a king in Jerusalem, someone known for his great wisdom, who has related that wisdom in short, memorable statements which provide treasures of knowledge for each of us. His name was Solomon, and while he did do some great exploits during his reign, perhaps he is best known for the book of Proverbs. I would say that his words definitely overshadowed his actions.
Let's think together about some of these wonderful and wise sayings.
The You Version Bible app has 2 adjacent Proverbs that placed in its top 10 list of most popular verses for 2014:
At #7, Proverbs 3:5 says..."Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding..." Verse 6, the 10th most popular verse, says, "In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths."
BibleStudyTools.com lists its 25 most popular Bible verses, and Proverbs 3, verses 5 and 6 is there. So is Proverbs 22:6, which says, "Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it."
So what's your favorite Proverb? These verses contain incredible jewels of wisdom, and can help us to understand the ways of God.
This week, Yogi Berra turned 90, and some of his sayings have become rather familiar. For the Christian, we can think about the importance of familiar sayings: I would hope that the sayings of Scripture are familiar to us, and providing the direction we need for our lives. We can become more synchronized with the ways of the Lord and appropriate His wisdom as we expose ourselves to His wise counsel. The book of Proverbs gives us short, manageable, memorable sayings that can provide power for daily living.
And, remember, perhaps we can become known for what we say, speaking words of wisdom from a heart devoted to Christ. God desires for us to abide in His Word, and we can bring our tongues into more conformity to His wisdom. If we claim to be wise, the words we speak will verify what God is doing in our hearts.
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