Parenting By The Book Article

STUDY 208

Proverbs 19

Dear Parents,

DREAMS

All of us have "dreams." Children dream lots too. They dream of becoming heroes. They dream of becoming rich and famous! Dreams are not "bad" or "evil" in themselves.

DREAMS COULD COME TRUE

Dreams often express secret hopes and desires of the heart! These dreams are not to be despised. They could come true!

WHERE DREAMS REMAIN FOREVER AS DREAMS

But there are some whose dreams would never come to pass! The following text is a challenging proverb to comprehend.

"Luxury is not fitting for a fool,
Much less for a servant to rule over princes." Proverbs 19:10

1. Dreaming of luxury

Wealth, in the book of Proverbs, is described as a blessing from the Lord. Consider the following text.

"The blessing of the LORD makes one rich,
and He adds no sorrow to it." Proverbs 10:22

We also need to add another important text, that will complement this one.

"The soul of a lazy man desires, and has nothing,
But the soul of the diligent shall be made rich." Proverbs 13:4

Wealth results when we have the happy combination of the blessing of the Lord, and the hard work put in by the diligent.
However, the fool is too lazy to work hard for a living. The fool also rejects God's hand in his life. Luxury would never come to the fool. It would not be "fitting" for him to obtain and enjoy luxury.

2. "A servant to rule over princes?"

Servants would love to become princes one day. How happy they would be if their station in life could be reversed with their masters! But would that ever be likely to happen?
Could servants ever rise to high positions? The answer is "Yes!" But it would a person like David, who had a strong faith and a wise spirit, to rise from being a humble shepherd lad to become king of Israel! Many merely dream! Only a few dare to attempt to make their dreams come true!

Prayerfully,

Pastor Charlie