Proverbs 27

Once again, this chapter is filled with some of my favorite words of wisdom. There is the familiar, “Iron sharpens iron: so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend” (v. 17), and one of my all-time favorites is found in v. 15, “A continuous dripping in a very rainy day and a contentious woman are alike.” In fact, it is wisdom that keeps me from dealing with this verse at this time!

For today’s thought, I would like to focus on verse 1. “Boast not thyself of tomorrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.”

Have you ever considered the importance of time? God asks us to be good stewards of all things and how we spend our days is important to the heart of God. Every moment we share with one another, whether it be family, friends or acquaintances, should be valued. In fact, when we give each other our time we are probably giving the greatest gift we can give.

Consider these thoughts:

1. When I give you my time, I am giving you my life, for time is life.

2. If I spend some time with you, I am giving you a gift that can be given only to YOU!

3. For you to give me a moment, or for me to give you a moment, is to exchange the only moment that we actually know we have.

4. Giving a moment to a friend is a gift that neither Heaven nor God can give because there is no time in Heaven and God is eternal.

We honor one another when we are good stewards of this precious gift. God’s word reminds us that our days on this earth are very short in light of eternity (Psalm 39:5 and James 4:14).

Psalm 90:12 instructs us to “redeem the time that we may apply our hearts to wisdom” and Ephesians 5:16 instructs us to “redeem the time because the days are evil.” As I close, thank you for giving some of your life to read these words.

--Ron Upton