I Can Be Taught But Will I Learn?

They were singing and dancing in the streets, welcoming and honoring this young man who had defended the name of their God. If there is a single statement that best describes David at this time in his life, it would be this one: "David was prospering in all his ways for the LORD was with him" - 1 Samuel 18:14

(It might help to read from verse 5 through 16...) Four times in this one chapter we read that David "prospered." That interested me, so I looked up the Hebrew of that word to understand where it came from. The word sakal from which "prospered" is the root word. I discovered two insightful things about that term. Proverbs 10:19 reveals the first: When there are many words, transgression is unavoidable, but he who restrains his lips is wise [sakal]

A person who is wise (who prospers) knows how to keep his mouth shut. He can keep confidences when people say, "Look, don't share this with anyone but..." I would also say it's a great characteristic of a good friend, and certainly should be a foundational component between brothers and sisters in Christ. A good friend, a godly friend, can be trusted with the details of your life; they keep things to themselves between the two of you appropriately.

Furthermore, when they open their mouth, they do so with discretion. That's a sign of a sakal person. That was David.

And the second insight is in Proverbs 21:11: When the scoffer is punished, the naive becomes wise; but when the wise is instructed [sakal], he receives knowledge.

The sakal person is teachable. Again, that's the kind of man David was. He was wise because he guarded his lips, and he maintained a teachable spirit.

So, what's my point? How about this, no matter how fast the promotion or how beaming the accolades may be, we are never to lose our teachability. We never reach a level where we are above criticism or we no longer need the input of others. And, frankly, there are times when our best lessons can be learned from our enemies.

A quiet spirit, a closed mouth, a teachable spirit...my hope is, this week, I practice all three. Together they create sakal. God knows I can use all I can get! I remain...

InHISgrip,
~J~