Free Tastes of Wisdom
"He [Solomon] spoke three thousand proverbs" 1 Kings 4:32.

Note: During the next two months this column will focus on mission promises
from the Book of Proverbs.

Have you ever stood in an ice cream shop undecided about which flavor to
order? Nothing helps you make up your mind like some free tastes. The Book of
Proverbs is filled with free samples of God's wisdom.

During my years in Venezuela, I observed that speakers wishing to accentuate
a point would often quote an appropriate homegrown proverb, such as:

• You can't roast corn with smoke.
• Armadillos don't grow feathers.
• Every storekeeper praises his own cheese.
• Where the tiger roars, there is no donkey with rheumatism.

Every culture has its own pithy nuggets of wisdom called proverbs, adages,
refrains or maxims. Venezuelans use them in colloquial speech. Some oral
cultures put them to music for easy memorization. Ages ago, Aesop linked them
to fables. These days you may read them on posters, T-shirts or bumper
stickers.

Due to the wisdom God granted to King Solomon and others, Israel had proverbs of
the highest quality. In fact, the impact of Solomon's proverbs was
international. "Men of all nations came to listen to Solomon's wisdom, sent
by all the kings of the world, who had heard of his wisdom" (1 Kings 4:34).

Confident that the wisdom God gave three thousand years ago still has
universal appeal today, some mission organizations are distributing the Book
of Proverbs--in print and cassette form--within countries like Libya, Egypt,
Turkey, India, Kyrgyz Republic, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Mongolia.

Muslims, Hindus and others unfamiliar with the Bible tend to respect the
Book of Proverbs, because they hear in it many truths they already accept. It
addresses their everyday affairs of business, ethics, politics, morality and
personal relationships.

Here are the reactions of two people who received a free copy of Proverbs:

• "I was an atheistic university graduate and proud of my worldly knowledge
  without God. But this book has taught me that fear of God is the beginning of
  knowledge and without God everything is meaningless."
• "I have two wives and six children, but I was a blind man not knowing
  wisdom. Now I know I have done many things wrong for which I repent."

The people quoted above are not yet believers in Christ, but the free samples
of God's proverbial wisdom have whetted their appetite to explore the New
Testament.

God of Wisdom, please enable and bless the distribution of the Book of Proverbs.
May readers taste and see that Your wisdom is good, and eventually, through
repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, may they taste the rich fare You will prepare
for them at the Wedding Supper of the Lamb (Rev. 19:6-9). Amen.

1. What is one of your favorite proverbs?
2. Where and in what ways are proverbs and adages shared in your culture?
3. What are some homegrown proverbs where you live and serve in God's mission?
   How do they compare--favorably or not--with the Book of Proverbs?
4. How can you use Biblical proverbs and local homegrown proverbs to
   communicate the wisdom of God?