Devotional Series Aug 17-20
This Devotional Series is based on a message delivered on August 16, 2026 and can be viewed at: https://www.kallamgrove.org/messages/wisdom-is-calling/
Wisdom often comes to us through people who have walked the road before us.
Proverbs 1:8-9
Hear, my son, your father’s instruction, and forsake not your mother’s teaching, for they are a graceful garland for your head and pendants for your neck.
Before the father tells his son what to avoid, he tells him whom to listen to.”Your father’s instruction” and “your mother’s teaching.”
Wisdom often comes to us through people who have walked the road before us. That is particularly important when we are young, but it does not stop being true as we grow older. None of us ever reaches a point where we no longer need instruction. The picture here is of a family passing wisdom from one generation to another. A father and mother are not simply trying to control their child’s behavior. They are trying to prepare him to live well in a world where he will encounter choices, temptations, and people who want to influence him.
That makes the next verses especially important. The father is about to warn his son about people who will invite him into sin. The best defense against those voices is not simply knowing what is wrong. It is having already learned to listen to voices that are wise.
There is something here for all of us, regardless of our age. Who are the people whose wisdom has helped shape your faith? Perhaps it was a parent or grandparent. Perhaps it was a pastor, teacher, or friend. Perhaps someone simply lived a faithful life in front of you and showed you what following Christ looks like. And if God has given you years of experience, perhaps there are younger people who need the wisdom you have gained. One of the great privileges of following God is passing what we have learned on to someone else.
Reflection Question: Who has God used to give you wisdom, and who might God be calling you to encourage with the wisdom you have gained?
Prayer: Lord, thank You for the people who have taught me wisdom, and help me faithfully pass that wisdom on to others. Amen
The Temptation Simply Begins With, “Come with us”
Proverbs 1:10-11
My son, if sinners entice you, do not consent. If they say, “Come with us, let us lie in wait for blood; let us ambush the innocent without reason.”
Notice how the temptation begins: “Come with us.”
The sinners do not begin by saying, “Come and destroy your life.” They invite the young man to join them. They appeal to his desire to belong. They make sin sound like an adventure shared with friends.
We tend to imagine temptation as an obvious choice between good and evil. But many temptations come wrapped in friendship, acceptance, excitement, or opportunity. The question is not simply, “Is this wrong?” The question is, “Where is this invitation going to lead me?”
The father gives his son a very simple instruction: “Do not consent.” That is important because there are moments when the wisest response to temptation is not a long conversation. It is a clear no. There are situations where we are better off deciding beforehand what we will not participate in. If we wait until temptation is directly in front of us, we may discover that our desires have already begun negotiating with our convictions.
The son is not told to defeat the sinners in an argument. He is not told to convince them to change. He is told not to join them. There is wisdom in recognizing that some environments and relationships will consistently pull us in a direction we do not want to go. This does not mean withdrawing from everyone who does not share our faith. Jesus Himself spent time with sinners. But there is a difference between loving people who are far from God and allowing their values to become our values. The people around us will influence us. Proverbs asks us to take that seriously.
Reflection Question: Where might you be tempted to say “yes” simply because you want to belong or be accepted?
Prayer: Lord, give me courage to say no when I am invited to participate in something that would pull me away from You. Amen
God’s wisdom is calling out in the middle of everyday life.
Proverbs 1:20-23
Wisdom cries aloud in the street, in the markets she raises her voice; at the head of the noisy streets she cries out; at the entrance of the city gates she speaks: “How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple? How long will scoffers delight in their scoffing and fools hate knowledge? If you turn at my reproof, behold, I will pour out my spirit to you; I will make my words known to you.”
One of the most striking images in Proverbs 1 is that wisdom is not hiding. Wisdom is standing in the streets crying out. She is in the markets. She is at the city gates. In other words, God’s wisdom is calling out in the middle of everyday life. We sometimes imagine that God’s guidance is difficult to find. We wish He would give us a dramatic sign or speak directly from heaven.
But Proverbs gives us a different picture. God has already made His wisdom available. He speaks through His Word. He speaks through godly counsel. He speaks through conviction. He speaks through the wisdom that has been passed down to His people. The problem is often not that wisdom is silent. The problem is that we are not listening.
Notice the invitation in verse 23: “If you turn at my reproof.” Wisdom does not merely tell us what we want to hear. Sometimes wisdom corrects us. That may be one of the clearest tests of whether we truly desire wisdom. Are we willing to listen when God’s Word tells us that we are wrong? It is easy to ask God for guidance when we want Him to confirm our plans. It is much harder to ask Him to correct our plans. But correction is an expression of grace. When God shows us that we are heading in the wrong direction, He is giving us an opportunity to turn around before we go farther down the road.
Reflection Question: Is there something God has been using His Word or other people to correct in your life that you need to take more seriously?
Prayer: Lord, give me ears to hear Your wisdom and humility to turn when You show me that I am going the wrong way. Amen.
The Contrast: Some People Refuse To Listen While Others Listen.
Proverbs 1:32-33
For the simple are killed by their turning away, and the complacency of fools destroys them; but whoever listens to me will dwell secure and will be at ease, without dread of disaster.
The chapter ends with a contrast. There are people who refuse to listen, and there are people who do listen. There are consequences to both choices. That is an important theme throughout Proverbs. Our decisions matter. The direction of our lives matters. Wisdom is not merely interesting information that we can collect. It is something we must respond to.
The word “complacency” is particularly important. We usually think of foolishness as doing something obviously reckless. But Proverbs identifies another danger: simply becoming comfortable. It does not feel dangerous because nothing seems to be happening. We stop examining our hearts. We stop listening to correction. We stop growing. We become satisfied with where we are spiritually.
But a person does not have to actively rebel against God to drift away from Him. Sometimes all it takes is becoming comfortable enough that we stop paying attention. The good news is found in the final verse: “Whoever listens to me will dwell secure.” That does not mean God’s people will never experience suffering or difficulty. Proverbs is not promising a trouble-free life. It is promising something deeper. There is security in walking according to God’s wisdom.
We may not know what tomorrow holds, but we can know that God’s wisdom is trustworthy. We can make decisions based on His Word. We can turn when He corrects us. We can refuse invitations that would pull us away from Him. And when we do, we do not have to live in constant fear that we are walking alone. God’s wisdom leads us toward life.
Reflection Question: Is there any area of your spiritual life where you have become comfortable or complacent instead of continuing to grow?
Prayer: Lord, keep me from spiritual complacency and help me listen to Your wisdom and follow You faithfully each day. Amen