The Sister Letters

The Proverbs Challenge Day 8 - Chapter 8

Hi, Woman of God

Welcome to Day 8 of the Challenge!We're diving into our second week of studying Proverbs, the book of wisdom. I'm getting my Bible time in later today after work. I encouraged a lot of girls yesterday to keep opening their Bibles to Proverbs and no matter how long or short your observation, application, or prayers, keep showing up.We are strengthening the habit of opening God's Word in 2024 to allow Him to speak to us and guide us from January all through to December!My prayer for us is that we don't miss the life-changing revelation that God has for each of us in the pages of His word.As always Sis, my study notes for today's chapter are below - today's chapter is a hot one! 

SCRIPTURE

Proverbs Chapter 8 (the chapter as a whole). 

OBSERVATION

This Chapter challenges all our desires and calls them basic in comparison to desiring Wisdom. I am reminded of a guy friend of mine who would tell me that he would pursue God when he’s 40 or 50, because right now he wants to focus on growing his wealth. He believed he was coming from a sincere place in saying this. He would tell me how he wanted to be able to make money to look after his family and build his dream life, which as far as he was concerned, couldn't come from spending time pursuing the things of God, but it could only be attained by pursuing his hustles.I think a lot of people, young men especially, have their priorities this way and the reasoning behind it makes a lot of sense to them because they believe that living for God is only relevant to avoid hell and so they will come back to God when they are older and essentially closer to death. As for now, they believe they are better off seeking after things that will help them the most with life on this earth - which in a lot of cases they conclude is money. Ultimately, they do not believe that seeking God now, in their youth, has any benefit on their lives on this earth, before they die.However, we see how this is the GREATEST lie of the enemy! This chapter reveals that if you pursue God's wisdom you’ve chosen the best thing to pursue. Wisdom will not only show you how to attain wealth & riches righteously to look after your family, your community and those God has called you to serve (v18), Wisdom will also bring love, safety, honour, purpose, peace, deliverance from the immoral woman/man, health, righteousness, happiness, joy, power and strength (v14)... the list goes on. Here are the many things I observe in this chapter about Wisdom and the reasons to desire Wisdom above anything else:

1. She speaks excellent things and she is always right (v6)

2. All her words are true and righteous. There is no wickedness uttered from her lips (v7-8)

3. To know her is worth more than silver, gold and rubies. All the wealth you could desire can't compare to attaining Wisdom (v10-11)

4. To have Wisdom is to have understanding and strength (v14)

5. By Wisdom Kings reign and rulers judge/lead well (v15-16)

6. Wisdom brings riches, but not just any riches, the riches that come with honour and are attained by honest, righteous means. Riches that are enduring and lasting, not fleeting and evaporating (v18)

7. The love of Wisdom brings wealth across all areas of our lives, filling our treasuries left to right (v21)

8. To find wisdom is to find life, and obtain favour from God (v35)

9. To reject wisdom is to choose death and hurt our own souls (v36)

A reader who grasps the words of this chapter should leave the chapter with a hunger for Wisdom, understanding that Wisdom is the key that unlocks all the promises of God. Wisdom desires to be our companion through this life (v31), but we are always free to choose to follow wisdom or to reject wisdom.Proverbs 22-31 speaks of the beautiful relationship of wisdom and our Lord and the role wisdom played and continues to play in the creation of all things beautiful on this earth: "I was besides Him as a master craftsman" (v30). In this way, I see Wisdom extending her hand towards us to be a master craftsman in our own lives: teaching us, transforming us, creating beautiful things in us and through us.This chapter has left me in awe at the excellence of Wisdom.

APPLICATION

I will never tire of praying for God's wisdom. By the grace of God, I will continue to seek and search for wisdom in Your word. I will assess my desires and ensure that I am being led by the wisdom of God in every area of my life, that You Lord may get the glory. 

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, thank you for building my desire for wisdom more and more each day with every chapter of Proverbs. Thank you because wisdom is pleasing to You and You have desired that I know the spirit of wisdom closely. I will never tire of praying for Your wisdom or seeking, that You will have my mind aligned with Your ways and not the ways of this world. I love You so much Lord. For myself and my sisters I pray these things. In Jesus name -  Amen.

See you tomorrow for Day 9Follow me on Instagram at @creatortochi for updates and encouragement throughout our challenge. With my love,Tochi