“Never let loyalty and faithfulness leave you. Tie them around your neck; write them on the tablet of your heart.” Proverbs 3:3

The book of Proverbs amazes me. So much life wisdom packed into only 31 chapters! The way it is written is pretty straight forward and a wonderful guide to how we are to live. Most of the book is credited to have been written by King Solomon. “God gave Solomon wisdom, very great insight, and understanding as vast as the sand of the seashore.” (1 Kings 4:29). His God given wisdom brought peace and great wealth to the land. If this king knew so much, should we not read what he has to say? “Emissaries of all peoples, sent by every king on earth who had heard of his wisdom, came to listen to Solomon’s wisdom.” (1 Kings 4:34). This is remarkable to me! Today, we do not have to leave ours homes to hear wisdom, we just have to open our Bibles.

The book begins with a bold statement. “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, fools despise wisdom and discipline.” (Proverbs 1:7). This weekend I feel like I said “foolishness” more times than I can ever remember. Nothing in me wants our children to live bent on foolishness. However, that seems to be our natural tendency. It is a constant fight to pull our hearts towards wisdom. This reminds me of the olive tree I bought some time ago. The tree has a wooden stake along side of it and the two are tied together. This stake is called a mainstay. A mainstay is defined as “a person or thing on which something else is based or depends.” My desire is for our family to be tied to God as our mainstay. Wisdom can act as the rope that binds us together.

It is common to hear teaching that contradicts fearing the Lord. Messages are blasted constantly that could have us fear failing circumstances, health, relationships, appearances and the list could go on and on. If we have tied ourselves to these as our mainstay, what is this saying about what we have written on our hearts as wisdom? What will happen when one or more of these fail? Our lives will be uprooted and we will fall to the ground. Will we be able to get back up? What will the condition of our hearts be?

This little tree of mine is still in the pot it came in. My husband said pretty soon it will outgrow its confined space and need to be planted permanently. I know, just holding out for different land. I have tended this tree and am watching it grow slowly. It is pulled onto the back porch sometimes and other times left to bear the storms. The rain and wind help strengthen its roots. All the while it stays tied securely to its mainstay. Wisdom keeps us trusting our God when storms come. Where else will we be safe?

Everyday we are writing something on our hearts and those around us. Will we allow God to write words of wisdom, through His Word, with a Sharpie or will we let the world scribble its “truth”? I have found that God’s Word is much harder to wipe off. Believe me, I lived years trying. Thankfully, I did not try very hard to untie myself to Him as my mainstay. However, if you have or are living a life apart from Him today, you are only a prayer away from binding yourself to Him. What is holding you back?

Do you want to hear some of the promises God offers us when we remain loyal and faithful to Him? “Then you will find favor and high regard with God and people.” (Proverbs 3:4). How do we do this? Keep reading. “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and do not rely on your own understanding; in all your ways know him, and he will make your paths straight.” (Proverbs 3:5-6). These verses give us words to write on our hearts. These words give us direction and hope because we know the one who gave them. Our understanding can take us down some pretty crooked paths and we end up so lost. Watch the news if you do not believe me.

What is written on our hearts and what we are bound too, determine our lives here and after we die. Trusting my life to God, based on the great love He gave me, by sending Jesus to die on the cross for my many sins, then rising from the dead and returning to Heaven, has been the best and most important decision I have ever made. With my mainstay in place, I daily desire to have Him write words on my heart and on the hearts of my children. It is a priority in our home. We make God’s word the final authority and our source of wisdom. We take very seriously the command in Deuteronomy that says, “Love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your strength. These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart. Repeat them to your children. Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.” (vs. 5-7).

As we begin a new week, make the words that are being written on your heart and the hearts of all those you come into contact with, words of truth. Speak wisdom and not foolishness. Spend time with God, reading His book that is full of wisdom. Ask Him for wisdom and watch what happens. Read the book of Daniel and see how important wisdom was in his life. There is no end to the treasures you will find in the Bible. Open yours today and begin writing on your heart.