Sounds The Same

It sounded like a baby crying and it was coming from just outside my bedroom window.

Proverbs 9:1-18

Reference:  v.4 & 16 “Let all who are simple come in here!” she says to those who lack judgment.  (NIV Bible)

Explore:  One night I was suddenly woken by a noise.  The sound almost threw me from my sleep, so much so that I thought maybe it had only been a dream.  However, as I lay motionless, listening intently, I heard the noise again.  It sounded like a baby crying and it was coming from just outside my bedroom window.  ‘No, that can’t be right,’ I thought.  And so I searched my brain for anything else that would make that sound in the middle of the night.  Nothing came to mind, so I lay very still to have the sound confirmed… yes, there is was again.  Just on the other side of my window there must be a baby.  I started to think of who would drop a baby outside my window during the night and just as I was about to jump out of bed I heard a different sound… “meow”.  It was the neighbour’s cat.  All along it had been the neighbours cat!  I don’t know whether the initial sound was a mating call or protecting it’s territory, however it had sounded exactly like a baby crying!  While the sounds had been the same, the reality was quite different to my original thought.

Application:  Two people who initially sound the same are Wisdom and Folly.  In Proverbs 9 we are introduced to them both and their introductory statement is exactly the same.  Each one is inviting those who are of simple minds to come to them.  They both sound the same however the reality is quite different.  While one bring life the other leads to death.  Although they may start of seeming similiar, their reality is poles apart.
We must be discerning when we follow a particular path.  Is it Wisdom we are following or did it just sound like Wisdom in the beginning?  It’s scary to see how similar they can initially sound, however it shouldn’t take long before we can see the difference in the pathways.  It’s not too late to turn around and gain the true wisdom.  It will take sacrifices but it will be worth it.

Prayer:  Lord, sometimes we feel so deeply intrenched in a particular pathway we have taken we can’t seem to see a way out, even though we know it will not lead to life.  Open a door so that we may see the options that you bring.  Amen.

When has Wisdom and Folly sounded the same in your experience?

Proverbs