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11
Nov

Prudence

Posted on November 11th, 2008

If I were to identify the number one error I have committed more than any other as a pastor the last twenty years, I would have to talk about imprudence.  Proverbs is filled with teaching to cultivate this very rare virtue.  I have rushed, reacted, failed to ponder implications of decisions, spoken when it was best to be silent, moved out of anxiety instead of stilling my own soul.   I recently studied every verse in Proverbs about prudence and speech. It was both edifying and sobering. The following are a sampling I shared at a recent NLF staff meeting. I commend them to you for your prayerful meditation:     The wisdom of the prudent is to give thought to their ways -Prov. 14:8  A simple man believes anything,          but a prudent man gives thought to his steps.-Prov. 14:15  The discerning heart seeks knowledge,    but the mouth of a fool feeds on folly.  -Prov. 15:14  The heart of the righteous weighs its answers,    but the mouth of the wicked gushes evil.-Prov. 15:28  It is not good to have zeal without knowledge,   nor to be hasty and miss the way.  –   Prov. 19:2  The plans of the diligent lead to profit   as surely as haste leads to poverty.  – Prov. 21:5  A prudent man sees danger and takes refuge,   but the simple keep going and suffer for it. – Prov. 22:3  Finish your outdoor work and get your fields ready;   after that, build your house.- Prov. 24:27  The prudent see danger and take refuge,   but the simple keep going and suffer for it.   Prov. 27:12  When words are many, sin is not absent,  but he who holds his tongue is wise.  -Prov. 10:19  A man of knowledge uses words with restraint,   and a man of understanding is even-tempered.   Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent,   and discerning if he holds his tongue.  -Prov. 17:27-28 Do you see a man who speaks in haste, There is more hope for a fool than for him.-Prov. 29:20 Why do you think prudence is such a rare virtue among us today?

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