Last week, I noted that Proverbs paints a picture of two paths: the path of wisdom and the path of foolishness. Each path is a choice that begins with the direction we are leaning. We walk in the direction we lean. Once we decide to go down a path (a leaning), it becomes hard to consider doubling back toward the other path. This is why early in Proverbs, Solomon, the author, sets up the core choice – which way will we lean. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.” He could have just as easily said, “Lean into the Lord with all your being, and don’t trust in your own understanding.”
The fundamental decision in Proverbs, between wisdom and foolishness, is the choice of who we will trust. Will we trust in our own strength, our own smarts, and our own ability to figure things out, or will we admit that life is too complex, and our motives are too mixed to trust ourselves with picking the right path? Wisdom begins with the humility to lean on God’s ways, even when we don’t understand what He is doing. Wisdom is a series of choices to lean on God with daily life decisions – how we will spend our money, who we will hang around with, and what we will watch with our eyes.
Everyone reading this, including myself, is faced with decisions to make today. Some are big, and some are small. Will we strive to figure it all out independently, or will we lean into God? Many decisions, frankly, He leaves up to us, but if we seek Him, we may find that wisdom has more to say than we thought. Small leanings and baby steps form a path that eventually leads to a destination.
After urging us to trust God with all our hearts and lean not on our own wisdom, Solomon takes the next step. “Acknowledge Him in all your ways, and He will make your path straight” (vs 6). Our trust is very imperfect. We don’t often have a big note drop down from heaven telling us to go right or go left. That is why where we lean is so critical. If we do our part and lean toward Him, He will do His part and make our paths straight.
Which way are you leaning? As we continue in Proverbs over the weeks ahead, we will learn the subtle, nuanced wisdom that can direct the paths of our lives if we let them. These truths are often counter-intuitive, going against the natural leanings of our own understanding. With each truth, we will have the choice to trust God’s ways or pursue our own inclinations. We will lean. It only remains to be seen which way we will lean.