My second Faith & Family Business series considers the book of Proverbs. Though written thousands of years ago, these proverbs still have a timeliness and power today. My aim is to consider these maxims in the context of our current experience of living and working with family members. Thanks for your feedback and sharing this post with others.
Last week I used the metaphors of field work and house building to contrast the immediate and necessary work of the family business with the longer-term, cultural and structural activities. This week I continue with the house metaphor in these two verses:
By wisdom a house is built, and by understanding it is established; by knowledge the rooms are filled with all precious and pleasant riches. (Prov. 24:3-4)
The idea is that wisdom, understanding and knowledge are key components in establishing a lasting and beneficial structure in our lives. In secular culture, where the ‘house’ might represent our career safety or financial security, the tools might be expertise, negotiation, and life hacks. But Proverbs is pointing to a more eternal structure: the structure of our spiritual life, the structure of our soul.
The purpose of gaining wisdom, understanding and knowledge, then, is not be more clever than our neighbor, or to get a leg up on the competition, or even to make more money. The goal is to nourish our spiritual life, to learn how to be a blessing to others, to strengthen our relationship with God. Those are precious and pleasant riches indeed!
What activity, routine, or relationship has most strengthened your spiritual life? If you were asked to list some of the 'precious and pleasant riches' in your house today, what would be on that list?