2/29/24

Good morning!

Today is a reflection day (thanks to leap year).

Proverbs 17:27-28 are a obvious, even a bit humorous, but also worthy of some serious contemplation:

Whoever restrains his words has knowledge,
    and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding.
Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise;
    when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent.
v27 reminds us that restraint of our words is wise, and especially when there is emotion.  Having a “cool” (the actual Hebrew word) spirit that keeps our speech from being inflammatory is always good.  For me, that takes discipline, because when I am getting “hot” my words get less scrutiny before they spew out of my mouth.

And then v28 is the funny one.  Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps his mouth shut.  That’s because a wise person is the one who is able to choose silence – and silence is unlikely for the fool.  Now, I am a big mouth.  You know that, I suspect. When I put these two verses together, I think a good axiom about talking is “less is best.”   Easy to write, but very difficult for some of us to practice.  I once knew a man who memorized verses like these and had astonishing results with his own bad habits in communication.  When His Word is “hidden in my heart” it can come to the fore when I need it most.   I think I have some memory work ahead of me!

in Him, Mike