Proverbs 365 - August Review

September 4th, 2010

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I usually try to post a review of my Proverbs 365 project on the first day of each month -- but I'm only now getting around to posting August's review (not to mention the fact that I never managed to post a review for July!).  In any event, I'm now two-thirds of the way through this adventure in which I'm taking a Proverb for each day of the year and then considering it and applying it for 21st Century living.  It's been a significant challenge to keep up with posting, especially in the midst of a busy work season with lots of travel -- but I'm glad to say that I'm still going!  That being said, I'm highlighting three of my personal favorites from the past month (always withthe hope that I might encourage some cross-over readership).  So here are my top three from August:

One of the interesting evolutions in the Proverbs 365 project has been the shift more and more towards short-form fiction as exposition of Scripture (as opposed to more standard devotional writing or essays, which had dominated the earliest entries in the project).  One example of this approach to the Proverbs can be seen in the post entitled P2213 - Lions Outside.  It's a character sketch based on Proverbs 22:13, which says, "The sluggard says, "There is a lion outside! or, "I will be murdered in the streets!" So I took this Proverb and created a story about an old man who's shut himself into his house, out of fear for the dangers of the modern world.  Perhaps you've met someone like this old man and can relate to the piece on that level.  Or even better, maybe you might benefit from considering the implications of such a scenario for your own life.

It just so happens that I know a lot of people who are getting married very soon, or who have just recently gotten married -- and, of course, I know a lot of people who are single, too.  Thus when I read Proverbs 18:22 -- "He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the LORD" -- I was challenged to consider its meaning both for newlyweds and for singles (I believe, by the way, that the verse is not just written for newlyweds).  After meditating on the Proverb for awhile, I wrote my reflections in an essay entitled P1822 - Finding What is Good.  It proved to be a very valuable reminder for my own life, and I would submit that it's good stuff for anyone to think about, regardless of marital status.

And then there was an Ohio-inspired entry.  While visiting my home state, of course it's natural that I would have reflected upon the Proverbs in that context.  Even so, I especially enjoyed the opportunity to interact with my grandfather-in-law, who shared some wisdom from his decades of farming and working the land, which helped to illuminate Proverbs 12:3 - "A man cannot be established through wickedness, but the righteous cannot be uprooted." I wrote about the interaction in P1203 - The Lesson of the Wind-Strengthened Tree.  And if I do say so myself, it offers some great insight into the development of character.

For a more comprehensive listing of August's content, here are the titles of all 31 entries, along with direct links to the rest of the content.

I feel like I've finally made it over the hump in my Proverbs 365 project -- that it's really starting to become more and more realistic that I will complete the full project!  I'm excited about that idea, but even more excited to think about the possibilities for pursuing further publication beyond the end of the blogging project.  Check it out for yourself at http://proverbs365.ericasp.com. Please feel free to spread the word, too... One of the distinct advantages of the Proverbs is that it's easy to tune into them, whenever one might so choose. It's not like if you missed the first six months, then you're "behind" or anything like that. The Proverbs are just like these little power pellets that can be consumed and digested immediately. It's never too late to start enjoying them!

This entry is filed under The Bible, Writing, Reading the Bible, Proverbs 365.