Discretion Shall Preserve Thee

Ken

“Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee” (Proverbs 2:11 KJV). Discretion is a sense of caution or judgment. When shall discretion preserve you? “When wisdom entereth into thine heart, and knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul” (2:10). When you notice “knowledge is pleasant” (2:10) to you, then “wisdom entereth into thine heart” (2:10). In the KJV, “through desire a man, having separated himself, seeketh and intermeddleth with all wisdom” (18:1). Here, we are the actor, exercising strong desire, separating ourselves toward wisdom, seeking it, and interacting with it. “For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of His mouth cometh knowledge and understanding” (2:6). Do we wait for God to give us wisdom, or do we seek after wisdom? Both. “My Father worketh hitherto, and I work” (John 5:17). Our seeking is His working in us. The discretion that will preserve us is our exercising discretion with the attitude He must be working in us to be discrete. We talk much of walking with God, but unless we are sensitive to this dynamic of His working in us, while we exercise ourselves to the utmost to accomplish His work, then we will become  either sinfully proud of our efforts or slothfully waiting for God to do our work for us. “See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise” (Ephesians 5:15). Father, grant us discretion that we may walk discretely. Preserve us in Your way. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.