Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

Saying 16
Listen, my son, and be wise,
    and set your heart on the right path:
Do not join those who drink too much wine
    or gorge themselves on meat,
for drunkards and gluttons become poor,
    and drowsiness clothes them in rags.
Saying 17
Listen to your father, who gave you life,
    and do not despise your mother when she is old.
Buy the truth and do not sell it—
    wisdom, instruction and insight as well.
The father of a righteous child has great joy;
    a man who fathers a wise son rejoices in him.
May your father and mother rejoice;
    may she who gave you birth be joyful!

• Proverbs 23:19-25

Proverbs 23:11Buy the truth: ”Obtain the truth at all costs. Cf. 4:5–7; Matt. 13:44–46. Then never relinquish it at any price (see Dan. 1:8ff.).”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

The Message

Saying 16 is an exhortation to avoid over-indulgence.  Food and wine are good, in the right proportions.  Over indulgence, creating gluttons and/or drunkards, leads to eventual ruin.  In personal confession, I have never been drunk, always controlling my drinking of alcoholic beverages.  As of now, a complete teetotaler due to medication that I take.  But I have been known to eat too much.  My wife was the same way.  She would often order too much at a meal and then halfway through our meal at a restaurant, she’d ask me to finish her meal.  We’d ask for “go home” containers, formerly doggie bags.

In reorganizing the kitchen and doing an overall kitchen redo, I put my standard snacks where I do not see them.  If I need a little sugary treat, they are there.  But for the most part, I can go weeks without opening the jar.  The fresh fruit is front and center.  So, if you are on a “see food” diet – the joke does not work so well when you print it, seafood versus see food – then you can avoid the eating of the food by not seeing it in the first place.  For those that do not know the joke, a see food diet is when you see food, you eat the food.  When my diabetes was out of control, maybe due to medical issues that had me stressed, I cut out as much sugar as possible.  Oddly, I did not lose weight.

Saying 17 basically equates wisdom with honoring your mother and father.  I told my boys that obeying God’s Commandments and loving God was the only way to honor their mother and father.  Nothing else that they succeeded in would substitute for that.  One resented me saying that; the other gave me a hug.  One brought tears to his mother’s eyes every day and every night.  The other was a welcome phone call and cheerful conversation, whether our son was doing well or not.  He loved God and through loving God, he honored us.

As for me, within God’s will, I obeyed and loved my parents.  The love was not returned in each case, but a lot of what my mother taught me stays with me today.  My Dad was stern most of the time, but soft when it counted.  His parents taught me the love of wisdom, learning, and thinking for myself.  My mother’s father may have been grumpy with the other children, but he saw in me someone who wanted to learn, and he taught me a lot.  Besides, I knew how to be quiet while he was at work.  But my mother’s mother taught me how to have fun.  There were boundaries, but within those boundaries, she loved watching me play and have fun.

They say it takes a village, and those six parents and grandparents, and my older brother and sister were my village.

And now let us sing.

The following song is Loving God, Loving Each Other.  This is sung by the Gaither Vocal Band, the Oak Ridge Boys, and the Gatlin Brothers.

Closing Prayer

Dear Lord,
We need Your wisdom.  Help us to value wisdom.  I still have my times of temptation with a “see food” diet.  But You, Lord, have taught me a lot in that regard.  In controlling portion size, I cook less, and I go to the grocery store less.  And while I know why my mother was the way that she was, I tried my best in honoring her during her life, while trying to understand once she was gone.  But I thank you for all those who have shaped me, especially in their passionate teachings that caused me to love wisdom, love learning, and especially loving You, oh, Lord.
In thy Name we pray.
Amen

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.