“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”
I was on a fishing trip back in the day with some members of our company. One of the guys brought his teenage son along. After going out and catching a lot of trout, we cleaned all the fish and found ourselves back at a house in Corpus. This house belonged to a friend of the company, and we used it as a place to pack the fish in coolers before heading back. My boss pulled out a box, and inside was a brand new vacuum sealer machine. Instantly, the teenager grabbed the box and started unpacking the vacuum sealer and playing with it. My boss said to his son, “You might want to read the directions first.” The teenager kindly ignored his father and went on fiddling, trying to figure it out. After a couple of minutes, it was clear the teenager had not figured out the machine and was forced to read the instructions. It was only then that we vacuum sealed all the fish and started back home.
Oftentimes, we exhibit the characteristics of fools and don’t even know it. We go about our day with an “I can do it” attitude, despising wisdom and instruction. Like the teenager who was so curious he could not help himself, we take on responsibility and forget to listen and take a minute or so to see what the Lord thinks about it. We admit we don’t “despise wisdom or instruction,” we just don’t use either and end up doing something stupid.
The fear of the Lord is simply letting yourself be subject to a higher authority in all matters. Paul tells us we are slaves to Christ, and we should be subject to the Lord in all things. This looks like doing what you should do according to the Bible and not following your own instincts.
End a toxic friendship, commit more time to school, honor your teachers, honor your boss, love your wife as Christ loved the church, and on and on. The knowledge Solomon speaks of is found in the Bible. The Bible says that the Holy Spirit will quicken your body and reveal the mysteries of the Word of God, but you have to read it and get into it before this happens. So today, commit to the program Christ laid out for us. Meet with Him every day, read the Word, spend time in a devotional, commit to the program, and let the Lord impart the “knowledge” to you.
Prayer: Father, I pray that we fear the Lord. I pray that we understand that You have given us Your Word, which is full of Your wisdom. I pray that we despise foolishness and all its poor instruction and rely upon You, Father, in Jesus’ name, amen.
Let It Go 
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