INTRO.- More quips and quotes.
- Almost everything comes to him who waits, including gray hair, false teeth, and a potbelly.
- Everything wears out sooner than it used to, including your nerves.
- The house in which a man is the boss is probably still under construction.
- A hospital should have a recovery room next to the cashier’s office.
- If you can express yourself clearly, you should be especially careful not to enter politics.
- Things are so tough these days that even hitchhikers are willing to go either way.
- A pest is someone who goes out of his way to get in yours.
- The most important thing in a relationship between a man and a woman is sincerity, whether you mean it or not.
- Anybody who says this is a man’s world is probably not too bright about other things either.
- There are two things that seem impossible to do: put toothpaste back in the tube and get off a mailing list.
- Some people pay their bills when due, some when overdue, and some never do.
- Everything is changing so fast today that even nostalgia isn’t what it used to be.
- A small town is usually divided by a railroad, a main street, two churches, and a lot of opinions.
- You’re ready the leave the hospital when the food begins to taste good.
- It seems the less a fellow knows the more positive he is about it.
- In the good old days, people stopped spending when they ran out of money.
- A good friend is someone who can tell you all his problems but doesn’t.
- Everything gets easier with practice except getting out of bed in the morning.
- Teenage boys will drive anything except a lawnmower.
- A henpecked husband washes the dishes even when they use paper plates.
- Anyone who knows all the answers isn’t up to date on the questions.
- You’re not necessarily nuts if you talk to yourself – only if you listen.
- It’s surprising how many people will agree with you if you just keep your mouth shut.
- It’s getting to where things ain’t cheap even at half-price.
- The first thing a man makes in his workshop is a mess.
- There are three kinds of traffic: urban, suburban, and bourbon.
- There are no new sins. We just keep rerunning the old ones.
- A budget is an orderly way of discovering that you can’t live on what you’re earning.
- Youngsters always brighten up a home. They never turn out the lights.
- Some men embrace their wives as if they’re afraid of being penalized for holding.
- America is achieving a high standard of poverty.
- Gossip is something that you must hurry to tell someone else before you find out it isn’t true.
- Before you give somebody a piece of your mind, be sure you can get by with what you have left.
- Balance your budget – rotate your creditors.
- Before you have an argument with the boss, you’d better take a good look at both sides – his side and the outside.
- One trouble with TV is that a fellow has to wake up before he can go to bed.
- Nowadays, just about everybody is putting his money where his mouth is – to kiss it goodbye.
Now to the book of Proverbs.
I. WORDS
10:19 “When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise.”
ILL.- Once when introducing Thomas A. Edison at a dinner, the toastmaster mentioned his many inventions, dwelling at length on the talking machine. The aged inventor then rose to his feet, smiled and said gently to his audience: “I thank the gentleman for his kind remarks, but I must insist upon a correction. God invented the talking machine. I only invented the first one that can be shut off.”
Some people are hard to shut off. What do you do when you can’t shut off someone? Leave their presence, I suppose. And I know what some of you are thinking: if the preacher gets too windy or too long, can we leave?
If you can’t leave a person’s presence I guess you can try to ignore them or else you can listen and suffer. All of us need better listening skills, but some people are definitely hard to listen to.
Some people are very windy, but we never think we are, for some reason. But all of us need to rethink our speaking record. Conversation comes naturally for most of us and this is why we talk so much.
ILL.- Here are some quotes in regard to our speaking.
- Some people have gear trouble. They talk in high gear and think in low.
- Isn’t it strange how often small talk comes in such large doses?
- Many a mouth is working overtime while the brain is on vacation.
- Some people’s mouths work faster than their brains. They say things they haven’t even thought of yet.
- It takes a baby about two years to learn to talk, and some 60 or 70 years to learn to keep his mouth shut.
What’s one of the most difficult things to do in our speaking? Probably think before we speak. Weigh our words before we speak them.
ILL.- Someone put it this way: “The best rule for talking is the one carpenters use: measure twice, saw once.” Measure your words before you speak. That’s hard to do because we speak so quickly.
ILL.- Five crows were sitting on a pump handle. The farmer’s wife opened the door and threw out some prunes.
One crow flew off the handle and ate some prunes. He soon died. That left four crows. A second crow flew down and ate some prunes and soon he died. Three crows were left. After a time a third crow flew down and ate some prunes. Yes, he rolled over and died, too. That left two crows. Finally, a fourth crow was tempted by the prunes and he flew down and ate some. Of course, he didn’t live very long. One crow remained. For a time he debated about the prunes and then decided to try them. Well, it wasn’t long until he died.
The moral of the story? Don’t fly off the handle when you are full of prunes. Or perhaps don’t talk when you are full of prunes or perhaps when you have nothing good to say.
ILL.- Someone said, “There is great power in words. All the things that ever get done in the world, good or bad, are done by words.” There is some truth to this statement. Words are powerful. And they do a lot of good in this world, but also a lot of harm.
We need to use our words wisely. This is why I write manuscript sermons. I want to say things the best way possible. And writing hones a person’s speaking skill as well.
If you have trouble speaking well, why not try writing occasionally. It will improve your speaking.
ILL.- It is said that if all of our words were put into print, the result would be this: a single day’s words would fill a 50-page book, while in a year’s time the average person’s words would fill 132 books of 200 pages each! Among all those words there are bound to be some spoken in anger, carelessness, or haste.
Amazing, isn’t it? We didn’t realize that we talked so much. Of course, that may depend on who we are and where we are. If we have a good listening ear at our disposal most of us can talk plenty.
WHEN WORDS ARE MANY. Sometimes they are. Sometimes we do talk too much. When is this? When we should be listening instead.
Occasionally, we are so full of our own lives that we often talk incessantly. We assume people want to hear what we have to say.
When words are many sin is not absent. This is probably because we sin so easily with our speaking. Most of us would not DO certain deeds, but we would SPEAK words that hurt.
A careless word may kindle strife.
A cruel word may wreck a life.
A brutal word may smite and kill
However,
A gracious word may light the day.
A timely word may lessen stress.
A loving word may heal and bless.
What’s that old saying? If you can’t say anything good then don’t say anything at all.
Prov. 10:31-32 “The mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom, but a perverse tongue will be cut out.
The lips of the righteous know what is fitting, but the mouth of the wicked only what is perverse.”
Prov. 11:12-13 “A man who lacks judgment derides his neighbor, but a man of understanding holds his tongue. A gossip betrays a confidence, but a trustworthy man keeps a secret.”
Prov. 12:18 “Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.”
Prov. 13:3 “He who guards his lips guards his life, but he who speaks rashly will come to ruin.”
10:19 “When words are many, sin is not absent,
but he who holds his tongue is wise.”
Calvin Coolidge once said, “I have never been hurt by anything I didn’t say.” And I might add, no one else can be hurt by things we don’t say.
II. GUIDANCE
11:14 “For lack of guidance a nation falls, but many advisers make victory sure.”
For lack of guidance a nation falls and people fall.
ILL.- It’s been said that parents spend the first part of a child’s life urging him to walk and talk, and the rest of his childhood making him sit down and keep quiet. Very true and it is also very true that all children need guidance in life and it must first of all come from their parents.
ILL.- For example, what would you say to your third grade daughter if she came home one day and said she was in love with a boy at school and she was going to marry him? One mother said, “That’s fine,” (going along with her), “Does he have a job?” The little girl said, “Oh, yes. He erases the blackboard in our class.”
Our children have worse problems than saying they’re in love when they are in the third grade. But they all need guidance.
ILL.- My daughter Holly went to Lincoln Christian College and one thing the students had to do in order to graduate was to do an internship in some kind of ministry. Before Holly met her husband Chris she wanted to do some kind of mission work. One day she called me and said, “Dad, I know what I want to do for my internship.” I asked, “What?” She said, “I want to go to Vietnam and work in a children’s home.”
It really took me back. I nearly fainted. I thought a moment and said, “Honey, if the Lord wants you to go to Vietnam then He will have to provide for you, because I am not going to borrow money so you can go.” That was the guidance I gave her.
And it’s amazing how the Lord does provide for people. Along came a young man named Chris Santasiere. They got married and he took her off my hands. lol. She didn’t listen to me anyway.
Every child needs guidance in life, but so does everyone else, young or old. As it’s been said, “You’re never too old to learn.” And I have found that about the time you think you’ve seen it all, something else happens to prove you wrong. WE ALL NEED A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF GUIDANCE ALL OUR LIVES!
How do we get it? Where do we get it?
Prov. 27:17 “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.”
On an individual basis, hopefully, we have some good friends we can depend on for guidance, solid advice and encouragement.
ILL.- For example, I had an elder in the First Christian Church of Iberia, MO, I could always depend on. I don’t think he ever gave me bad advice about anything. In fact, I don’t think he was ever quick to give me advice, but whenever I asked for advice it was very good.
But I can’t say I’ve always received good advice from everyone I’ve had an acquaintance with. There are a few souls whom I wished I had never talked to or listened to.
ILL.- It’s like the story about the blind man with a white cane waiting at an intersection for someone to help him cross the street. Soon a man came to his side. They began to talk. The blind took his arm and the two of them began to cross the street. Tap, tap, tap, as they crossed the street together. Other people watched in fear as the two crossed the busy street. The reason: both men were blind. It was the blind leading the blind.
And so it is with us in life at times. If we are not careful from whom we receive direction or guidance, it may well be the blind leading the blind. The moral is: choose your friends and leaders wisely. Jesus referred to the Pharisees as “blind guides.”
But hopefully, we all have some good, faithful friends and good leaders whom we can count on to share life’s problems and receive encouragement from.
ILL.- Dr. George Washington Carver (1864-1943) who invented several hundred uses for peanuts, sweet potatoes and soybean once said, “There is no need for anyone be without direction in life. Are we not plainly told, ‘in all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths’?”
It was said that Carver’s custom was to rise at 4 every morning to seek God’s guidance for his life. In speaking of the blessings of those early mornings, he said, “At no other time have I so sharp an understanding of what God means to do with me as in those hours when other folks are still asleep. Then I hear God best and learn His plan.” Good advice for seeking God’s guidance in life.
I would hope to think that he got this example from the Lord He apparently believed in.
Mark 1:35 “Very early in the morning while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.”
I don’t think people have to necessarily get up at four in the morning to seek God’s guidance for their lives, but I do think it is good idea to seek God’s guidance the first thing in the morning before going to work. I encourage everyone to rise a bit earlier so they can pray and read and seek the Lord and His guidance. And I think we should ALWAYS seek the Lord’s guidance in all things in life. We should pray and wait before we do most things.
11:14 “For lack of guidance a nation falls, but many advisers make victory sure.”
Many advisers make victory sure. Hopefully, this always holds true. Two heads are generally better than one. This is why God ordained both a father and mother to be the parents of children.
And this is why God ordained a plurality of leadership in the church. One man or one person can’t do it all and doesn’t have all the answers.
Some think they do, but they don’t. Many advisers make victory sure.
CONCLUSION--------------------------------
ILL.- Someone said, “If you could kick the person responsible for most of your troubles in the backside, you wouldn’t be able to sit down for two weeks.”
Too many words and not enough guidance can get a person into trouble. Both spell trouble. And generally we are responsible for this trouble.
We are the authors of our own words and we choose our own chums who give guidance to our lives.
What’s the answer to better speaking and better guidance?
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight.
