Intro To Proverbs

The Backdrop

I’ve been marinating on Proverbs for awhile. Twenty years, at least. 

The first time I read the book of Proverbs, I was in high school. It rocked me, because it seemed to speak to a hundred different situations I was facing.

I’d read something that stuck, try to apply it that day, come back the next day, and do it again. It was invigorating and a top tier challenge as a teenager. 

Three other books rocked me at that time. They were Matthew, John, and Ecclesiastes.

• Matthew because I never had heard such amazing teachings. Some were life-giving, some gentle, some confrontational, and they all came from a guy named Jesus.
• John because I saw Jesus again, but in a different light. His I AM statements seemed awfully convincing and his Last Discourse blew my mind and heart.
• Ecclesiastes because it seemed like the post-conventional wisdom Proverbs. I felt like the author was reading my journal and writing my perspective.

We’ll get to those another time. But, back to the topic at hand, the Proverbs. So pithy, so memorable, so practical.

A Chapter Per Day Keeps The Doctor Away

In fact, the guy who led our youth group / small group read the Proverbs every single month. He’d read one chapter a day and when the month ended, he’d start again. 31 days in most months, 31 chapters. Perfect fit.

To his credit, he was one of the most successful guys I knew at the time, and his wisdom showed. He was probably late 20s, maybe 30 when he led our youth group, but when he spoke, it felt like you were listening to a 60 year old. 

He was fit and active, he had a beautiful wife, they had just started having kids, and he had a well-paying job for a Fortune 50 company. I thought this guy had it all. And when I heard he read Proverbs every day, I said,

“Self, you’d be wise to do the same.”

Now, I’m not as regimented as him — or maybe I just like to read more broadly — so I haven’t read a chapter of Proverbs every day for the past 20 years. But, I have read the book of Proverbs at least 20 times, aka once per year. There’s more to the book than meets the eye.

Call me crazy, but I think there’s ancient wisdom from 3,000 years ago that could be applicable to us today.

It’s been applicable to me, foundational to my development as a man. It’s been foundational to my approach to life. It has helped me as a husband, as a dad, and as a friend.

So we’ll dive in over the coming days, weeks, months ahead. But I won’t write about Proverbs every day. As I mentioned, theology is just one of the buckets. There are four other buckets of goodies we’ll explore: family, business, design, and learning.

The Wrap

For today, that’s enough on Proverbs. Just a set-up. You have to start somewhere.

Maybe it’s a good enough cliffhanger that there’s 20+ years of marinating as a backdrop. And the more you read it, the more years of wisdom it gives you.

Is there anything you’ve thought about for 20+ years?

Have you met any of those folks that seem to be twice their age in wisdom?

I love those folks!