The writer paints a sad but often true portrait of people given to too much drink in the closing verses (29-35) that are worth earnest thought. It is worth personal consideration, reviewing our life habits and tendencies in this arena. Remember Proverbs is the instruction of a father to his son, and we are all God’s children, right?
Where I found my thoughts rummaging, however, were verses 6-7: Do not eat the food of a stingy man, do not crave his delicacies; for he is the kind of man who is always thinking about the cost. "Eat and drink," he says to you, but his heart is not with you.
It is one thing to be frugal (I am regularly accused of this by my familyJ); it is another to be stingy. The latter often sends mixed messages. They invite you to dinner and slip in THE COST during conversation. I have gone to those dinners. The hosts’ focus on cost sucks the flavor right out of the meal! As I think about this, I have been to meals at the home of people who survive on a meager wage, yet the food they prepared, as basic as it might have been, was offered with friendship and generosity. I’ll choose the latter 100% of the time.
Wow my thoughts spin! The more I think about this, the more I realize I have experienced stinginess in other ways, too. For some it is not the cost they lament, but maybe the ‘time it took’ to prepare, or the ‘effort’ they went through to host the ‘whatever’. Sitting at a party or an evening dinner and hearing the host slip in comments about the cost or effort or time it took, especially when the words are accompanied by that ‘tone of voice,’ just steals the delight of the event. You get the picture…
Next the Lord probed my life… “Don’t be like that, Bill. When you give, when you entertain, do so with an open hand and a generous heart. Joy suckers……don’t be one, Bill.” The Spirit pressed into my spirit.
Lord, cultivate in me the spirit of generosity, not show, not putting on airs, but honest responsible generosity,the kind of person that makes others feel special and loved and appreciated when a gift is given or a compliment is given… Yes, Lord, cultivate that kind of grace in me. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment