View our weekly devotional archives.

Fortune Cookies from God

“The way of a fool seems right to him, but a wise man listens to advice." Proverbs 12:15

I was driving my daughter to school the other day and asked her to read out of Proverbs. I like reading a Proverb a day since there is a chapter for every day of the month, and I thought this was a great way to get a "two-fer" - I get my daily dose of Proverbs and Madison gets some of God's word too. Plus, it made good use of our drive time.

So she started reading. Part way through the chapter she said, "Mom - these sound like fortune cookies! They're little bits of wisdom...but without the Lottery numbers!" After laughing heartily, I had to agree that she had a point. Those Chinese have given out their share of decent (and sometimes quite funny) advice, but nothing compares to the wisdom of God.

Reading Proverbs is a reminder that the way of wisdom, the journey of faith is indeed a narrow way. It is so much easier to go the way of the fool. Just in Proverbs 12 (today's reading - my personal favorite) read what the fool is like:

• hates correction
  
• is crafty, wicked, disgraceful
  
• offers deceitful advice
  
• pretends to be a "somebody" but can't provide for himself
  
• chases fantasies
  
• is trapped by his sinful talk
  
• follows his own advice rather than listening to advice from others
  
• shows his annoyance at once (when someone insults him)
  
• offers reckless words
  
• lies
• blurts out folly (rather than having discretion)

That is quite a convicting list! What I love about Proverbs is the vivid contrasts the writer paints between foolishness and wisdom. There is no doubt left after reading that we would want to pursue the way of wisdom, even though it is the narrow way. That's why it is a great book of the Bible to read with my pre-teen girls. I want them thinking about God's standard, and the clear contrast between foolishness and wisdom as they make choices about obedience, friends, and the like.

And it's why I love reading a chapter a day. I am forgetful - and I want God's best in front of me on a regular basis. But aren't the descriptors above our more "natural" tendencies, left to our own ways? It takes prayer, surrender, listening, being "God-aware" and a large dose of humility in every moment to choose the wise way.

So the next time you open your fortune cookie after a Chinese meal, see if you can recall some of God's wisdom...and read a chapter of Proverbs a day!

Blessings - Kristi