Skip to main content

Prudence


Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? (Matthew 6:27)

The path of life leads upward for the prudent to keep them from going down to the realm of the dead. (Proverbs 15:24) 

Today, I have to begin with what I believe this verse is not saying. It’s not saying, “Be stoic, just grin and bear it,” or “Be fatalistic, there’s nothing you can do about it.” Even more, it’s not saying, “Chuck your brain in the garbage. Don’t worry. Be happy.” Scripture teaches repeatedly that we should be prudent, which means acting and showing care and thought for the future. None of the responses listed involve being prudent. 
As I think about the idea of prudence, it seems to me that it is a good goal for the summer. The area where I live just went “green.” I suspect some people think that means no more masks, dining out regularly, parties, rallies, and protests all permitted. What it means is that businesses may open – carefully, but that all the same general precautions remain. If you don’t want to get sick, and don’t want to give COVID-19 to others, you’ll keep wearing masks and staying away from other people when possible. My old adage works here: “Don’t be stupid. Don’t over-react. Don’t be stupid. Don’t under-react.”  And I’ll add one more, “Don’t be stupid. Don’t act like you’re the health police, or at the very least, be polite about it.” 
There’s a different, however, between being prudent and worrying. One piece of the difference is that worrying deals with what one can’t do anything about, while prudence addresses what one can do something about. Somewhere along the line, the term prudent fell into disfavor. The modern term used in its place is pro-active. 
When I came home from Florida this spring, I was facing a future that wasn’t what I planned, but I was also facing a sense that I am not prepared for emergencies, or (if the truth be told) for much else. Quite frankly, I think a lot of people are in the same boat. I see and hear a lot of people basically looking to someone else to keep them safe and solve their problems. My adventures in solving my own problems are announced regularly on Facebook, partly to motivate me, and partly to motivate my friends. It’s not about doing what I’m doing. I’m not sure I’d wish what I’m doing on an enemy. It’s about doing what you can – being prudent – and leaving what you can’t do to God.
Are you praying, studying Scripture, trusting God, building relationships with your family and friends (including new friends), reading, learning, exercising, getting enough sleep, drinking enough water, eating right, gardening, crafting, singing, dancing, recording what is happening in your life, cooking, preserving…? In short, are you doing anything that moves you forward? Are you being prudent? Or, are you watching TV, looking out your window (not at the birds) and worrying? Or, have you given up?
Friends, we have six months left to 2020. It’s hasn’t been the most pleasant year we’ve ever faced, but while I hope things will get better soon, it’s also possible that things will get much worse. Don’t worry, but take prudent action now to prepare.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Saved?

  I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” (John 10:28-30) “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, “I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ ” (Matthew 7:21-23) Not at all! Let God be true, and every human being a liar. As it is written: “So that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge.” (Romans 3:4)   What conclusion do you draw when someone who was raised in a Christian family and church, perhaps even playing a significant role in a chur...
Post a Comment
Read more

A Virgin?

           Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14)           This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. (Matthew 1:18)           But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”            “How will this be,” Mary asked the...
Post a Comment
Read more

Meditations of the Heart

  May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer. (Psalm19:14)           As I started writing this post, I noted that the meditations of my heart are all over the mental landscape, from a hub where eight superhighways come together to a lunar or nuclear landscape. Do you see my error? The moment I read the word meditation , I think about thoughts. But what’s described here is the meditations of our hearts ; our wills.           While the meditations of our minds may be all over the place, the meditations of our wills tend to be a little more stable by the time we are adults. We no longer tend to want to pursue the ten separate careers we did in any given day as children. Part of this is humble acceptance of reality. We come to understand that we can’t do it all. I think another part of it is disappointmen...
Post a Comment
Read more