Proverbs 23:6-8 Wise Words #8
We spoke of kings using things to control a person. Now we see that some, even in the lower ranks, do the same. Trapped by treats!
I’m curious why this warning wasn’t included in the last one like it. They probably could have been rolled into one. Maybe it is because of the class distinction and that the speaker wanted to make certain the people understood that strings can be attached by the lower classes too.
I don’t believe these two Wise Words sections are only applying to food. Their principles run through all areas of life. The king or the stingy man have more than just their tables in their arsenals. They can entrap someone through money, favors, proximity, and even marriage. These can ALL come with strings that ensnare the receiver as surely as a rope would. I have a feeling that some of Solomon’s wives came with ‘strings’ attached.
You don’t have to be wary of EVERY person who gives you a gift, invites you to dinner, or offers help. Most are doing it out of a clean heart. There are people who genuinely want to see you succeed. Their hearts are tender towards others. They have a generous spirt. You can tell the difference by watching them with others. It’s kind of like a Google star rating. The more people you talk to the more accurate your assessment will be.
The MOST important one to ask when it comes to receiving is God. When you allow Him, He will guide you in accepting and rejecting what is offered to you. And, YES, there are times to turn down ‘gifts’. There are also times when things happen that we didn’t even know were gifts being given to us. Most times we breeze right through them and don’t recognize their significance until later. Sometimes MUCH later.
When I was in the second grade I was hit by a car. I wound up in the hospital for a few days with a fractured skull and in bed for three months. When the accident happened, I was given at least four gifts. They didn’t look like ‘gifts’ but they are in my mind. You might call them coincidences but not me!
Gift #1: when my mother arrived on the scene of the accident, she saw me apparently awake and crying. She was ready to scoop me up and take me home. Someone said they had already called and ambulance, so we waited for it.
Gift #2: we didn’t wait long for the ambulance. When the drivers approached, my mother said that I was probably alright. The attendants told her that they were already there so we might as well go on to the hospital. She agreed.
Gift #3: I lay quietly in the back of the ambulance all the way to the hospital. There were no outward signs of distress. When we arrived at the hospital, the ambulance attendant said that being I still seemed to be fine that we could leave. My mother replied, you brought her here, you might as well take her in.
Gift #4: I still wasn’t showing signs of distress in the emergency room but I was complaining of a headache. Just to be safe the doctor had X-rays done and convinced my mom to leave me overnight.
In the middle of the night was when the first symptoms of damage hit me. I didn’t know exactly what the cause was but, when I tried to get up to use the bathroom, I was dizzy and ended up vomiting. I was quickly cleaned up and put back in bed. When my parents came the next morning to pick me up, we were FINALLY told the full extent of my injuries.
ANY POINT in this chain of events, if the decision that was made had been the reverse, I would have died. I would have gone home with my mom and continued cleaning my bedroom with my sister. That activity alone could have been my ending. The Holy Spirit ‘put His finger on the scale’ in each of these decision points.
In today’s medical community I would have been given an accurate diagnosis while still in the emergency room. I guess X-rays develop a LOT faster now. My parents would also have been informed the moment the diagnosis was made in today’s world. Even if they weren’t with me in the moment.
I bet if you looked back over your own life, you could identify some ‘gifts’ you were given too that you didn’t recognize as such at the time. I know this wasn’t the only time in my life.
There are others that believe God has to ‘come to their rescue’ in only ONE way. I’m reminded of a story/joke/lesson I’ve heard.
A flood came through this one little town. Everyone was evacuating except this one man. He was convinced God would save him. The water rose until it hit the bottom of his first-floor window. As he is waiting on the ‘hand of God’ a man in a row boat came by. Seeing the man he offered to rescue him and take him to safety. The man refused. “God will save me.”
The water continued to rise and it forced the man into the upper story of his house. As he is still waiting on God to save him a powerboat comes by. The boat owner tried valiantly to talk this man into getting in the boat. Again the man refused, saying “God will save me.”
Water now fills the man’s home. He is perched atop the peak of his roof. A helicopter comes specifically to get him. He refuses ALL their efforts, saying again with conviction “God will save me.” The helicopter pilot has no other choice but to leave.
The man drowns in the flood and he finds himself standing before God. “WHY didn’t You save me!” he cries.
“I sent you a rowboat, a motorboat, and a helicopter. What more did you want?!?”
The man wanted it HIS way and missed out on the gifts God was holding out for him. The only ‘string’ attached was a lifeline. What ‘lifelines’ have we missed out on by not recognizing the ‘Source’? They weren’t as critical to us as they were to the man in our story, otherwise you wouldn’t be reading this. But it IS worth considering.
Ask God what to do in decision times. He is faithful to answer, if we are faithful to listen.
Father God, help me always bring my decision points before You so I can hear the direction YOU know is best for my life. Doing so also helps me avoid MANY pitfalls that I surely would have walked blindly into. You see ALL my life, while I only see the moment before me, remember the past, and hope for the future. NOTHING is hidden from You. Not even the motives of those who come to me with ‘gifts’. Help me discern which to accept, which to hold loosely, and which to RUN away from. Help me also to recognize and accept Your ‘gifts’ however they come. I wonder what ones You have for me in the future.
