Sweet Like Honey

My son, eat honey because it’s good,And the honeycomb which is sweet to your taste;So shall the knowledge of wisdom be to your soul.

Proverbs 24:13-14 (NKJV)

It’s been said, “You are what you eat.” This applies not only to what you take into the body but what you feed your mind and your soul and your spirit. Honey is both sweet and fascinating. It is compared to the sweetness of the knowledge of wisdom. Lest we view this golden substance as ordinary, here are some interesting facts.

• A honeybee makes 154 trips to produce just one teaspoon of honey.
• To gather a pound of honey, a bee flies a distance equal to more than three times around the world and visits two million flowers.
• Honey has even been found in the Pharaohs’ tombs, still edible after thousands of years.

Just like honey, wisdom isn’t developed quickly or with little effort. Maybe that is why so many young or impatient people are not wise. Here’s a good definition of wisdom: wisdom implies “a mature integration of appropriate knowledge and a seasoned ability to filter the inessential from the essential.” To filter the inessential from the essential, that is a rare and valuable skill. James 3:17 describes wisdom’s rich, multidimensional attributes: “The wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy” (NKJV).

So, ladies, always remember as honey is sweet to the taste, wisdom is sweet, oh, so sweet to the soul.

Make It Personal . . . Live It Out!

James 3 lists gentleness as an attribute of wisdom. Does that surprise you? To be gentle is to be emotionally generous, kind, and patient. Why is that wiser than being overbearing and harsh? Answer: because the world is full of fragile people and delicate situations. Abraham Lincoln once said, “If you would win a man to your cause, first convince him that you are his sincere friend. Therein is a drop of honey that catches his heart.” Abraham Lincoln was not weak, but like our Lord he had great inner strength under the control of compassionate kindness.

Let’s Pray

Lord, gentle me, break me. Make me like you: sweet, compassionate, gentle, and kind.

One Year Bible Reading

Isaiah 62:6–65:25; Philippians 2:19–3:3; Psalm 73:1-28; Proverbs 24:13-14