It's my street, and I'll cry if I want to

Wisdom cries out in the street (Proverbs 1:20)
My church does a men's bible study throughout the year and the current session is going through the book of Proverbs.  When I heard this was going to be the plan, I groaned inwardly.  Many people find Proverbs as a source of deep wisdom and comfort, but I have always struggled to apply what I read in Proverbs. Many of the truths listed there come across as "fortune cookie maxims".  I struggle to view them as something I can reconcile with the messy and often painful realities of my life.  There also is a certain amount of repetition associated with the Proverbs that can make a deep dive into the book a challenge.

Although the scripture is God's word breathed onto paper, it is not uncommon to hit a book or passage that is difficult to read.  This could be a section like Numbers where the content is simply dry.  It could be passages like those found in Joshua where there are theological implications that are hard to wrestle with.  Perhaps, it's a book like Proverbs where the style makes the truth difficult to access.  What do you do when you are confronted with a book of the Bible that "not your favorite"?  Do you try and skim through it, like I am tempted to do, to get the Cliff's notes version?  Do you force yourself to slow down and ask God what he is trying to show you?  Do you look for something to share?

I am trying to fight back against my own frustration with the study and approach Proverbs with new eyes.  I have been praying throughout this study, "God, please help me find what you need for me to know in this passage.  You put this book in your Word for a reason.  Please forgive my impatience with it."  I can't say I have fallen in love with the book, but God has been revealing things to me through it.  I am thankful for that.

' Wisdom cries aloud in the street, in the markets she raises her voice; at the head of the noisy streets she cries out; at the entrance of the city gates she speaks:'

Proverbs 1:20-21


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