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April 20 “Hold It!”

A prudent person keeps his knowledge to himself, but the heart of fools blurts out folly. ~Proverbs 12:23

The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good. The Lord looks down from heaven on the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God. All have turned aside, they have together become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one. Will evildoers never learn—those who devour my people as men eat bread and who do not call on the Lord? There they are, overwhelmed with dread, for God is present in the company of the righteous. You evildoers frustrate the plans of the poor, but the Lord is their refuge. ~Psalm 14 & 53  

It is interesting that in this proverb it is the prudent person who remains silent. Perhaps a little review here would be helpful. We first met prudence back on February 1. She was introduced as wisdom’s partner. We said that wisdom is the reasoning part of the relationship between wisdom and prudence, and prudence is the caution, the brakes, that allows wisdom the time to think things through.

So, now, we have a contrast. We have a fool who can’t wait to share what he thinks he knows, and a prudent person who has assessed the situation and isn’t saying anything. You would think it would be the other way around, especially since, obviously, the prudent person has something worth listening too. However, it would appear that he hasn’t been asked, so he remains silent. Why speak if no one is listening?

There is an art to knowing when to speak. There is also an art to taking the time to compose, choosing words carefully and only saying what needs to be said. We have visited this theme before. “When words are many, sin is not absent. But he who holds his tongue is wise.” (Proverbs 10:19) and “Do you see one who speaks in haste? There is more hope for a fool then for that one.” (Proverbs 29:20)

When we discussed this before, we talked about the art of listening, but today, we want to focus on the art of speaking well. This is especially important if we are going to be judged for our words to determine if they were worth hearing or not. This is when prudence’s partner, wisdom, steps in to help. A fool doesn’t know wisdom but blurts the first thing that comes to mind. Wisdom helps to compose a message that is worth hearing.

“The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” If the Psalmist can reference that, then this is obviously not a new phenomenon today. Yet, what is the Lord’s response? “The Lord looks down from heaven on the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God.” He is looking for those who will listen.

The Lord Himself demonstrates prudence with His wisdom. His silence doesn’t mean that He is absent, but that He is perhaps waiting for us to stop and really hear what He has to say. He knows His audience.

We too have a message to share. It is His message. The question we need to ask ourselves is, have we earned the right to be heard by the people we would like to speak to? Are we taking the time, using the wisdom He offers, to compose the message well? Who is He preparing to hear what we have to say?

Be confident of this, our message from Him is wise, it is life itself. It needs to be shared. This is not meant to be an encouragement for us to hold back what we have, but it is a call to use the sisters, wisdom and prudence, in how we share and what we say, to truly benefit the listener. God is preparing soil in someone for you to plant the seed. Pray for the Lord’s wisdom to show you where and then plant it well.

Prayer: Father, I do pray for Your wisdom and prudence. Help me to compose the way I would share the gospel and when to share it, tailored to the needs and interests of each different person or audience with whom I would like to share. In Jesus' name, amen.

Song: Lord, Speak to Me

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