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To my beloved son (Proverbs 1:8)
We made it! Yes, it took almost seven months to get through only 31 chapters, but I loved every minute. We slowly digested the depth of God’s wisdom in Proverbs a few verses at a time. I was not disciplined to make sure we stayed on task many nights. Sporting games, extra work, and tiredness led to my apathy to our goal of completing our task before football ended. Please forgive me. I am thankful that many nights you were the one to bring us back to the Word. I still remember when I asked you to read Proverbs this past summer. You replied without hesitation, “Let’s do it!” Your willingness to be in God’s Word is exponentially better than when I was your age. Solomon wrote, “A wise son brings joy to his father (Proverbs 10:1).” Your wisdom, especially as we reflected on God’s Word together, has brought more joy to me than you will ever know.
Solomon wrote Proverbs like a father’s letter to his son (Proverbs 3:1-2). It is not only a well-crafted, poetic masterpiece of wisdom beyond any other book, it is the living and active Word of God (Hebrews 4:12) that makes one wise for salvation (2 Timothy 3:15-17). You are called to fear and trust in the LORD and lean not on your own understanding (Proverbs 1:7; 3:5-6). This fear of the LORD does not that shudders in a corner, but a fear that trusts that He, the Creator of the Universe, knows what you need (Matthew 6:32). You are to follow Him because He knows you (Isaiah 43:1), He claimed you in baptism on November 30, 2008, redeemed you by the blood of Christ (Colossians 1:13-14), and called you to live a life of holiness (I Thessalonians 4:3-7).
The words of Proverbs are to be treasured, remembered, and received with humility. We learned the importance of discipline (12:1), repentance (28:13), honor (21:21), strength (24:5), being slow to anger (14:29), and if He wills it, finding a godly wife (31:10-31). Yet, a godly man is compassionate to others, especially to the poor (11:17; 19:17) as our LORD is compassionate to us. The Lord has called you to strive to live out these words, not for the sake of your glory, but for His (Romans 11:36).
I bring you and your sisters to the Lord daily in prayer. I ask that He fill you with faith, hope, and love in Christ and keep you in the shadow of His wings. He will give you what you need in all your vocations for He is faithful. The world needs godly men, and you are well on your way.
In Christ (John 20:22-23)
Dad
p.s. As we now read the Gospel of John, please keep us focused or it will take 2 years at my pace.
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