Proverbs 16:1 The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, is from the LORD.
This reminds of a verse: (Ezra 7:10) For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the LORD, and to do it… Preparations are plans. It’s what the heart is planning to do. It’s planning the work and then working the plan. They say that heaven is a prepared place for a prepared people. Just reading over Proverbs 16 teaches us that preparation is much much more than just having a plan; though that is hard enough to accomplish in and of itself.
Through the years, I’ve seen that planning is one of the hardest things to accomplish. If I remember right, it was on a green paper with a picture of a turtle in my economics class: Fail to Plan; Plan to Fail. However, planning is not an easy task. It takes much effort, physical, mental, emotional, and even spiritual, to devise a plan; to conjure up a scheme; to develop a schedule; to invent a method. It’s not easy to lay it all out. There’s unknowns that requires Plan B and C and D and E sometimes. There are limitations that require creativity to overcome. There are frustration that weary you. There are thoughts that hinder you. I’m not talking about working the plan. I’m only talking about planning the work. Planning is work and takes much practice, wisdom, and even help to accomplish it. Sometimes we don’t need a method for our madness, but we desperately need a method for simply coming up with a method.
Let me bring this back down to The preparations of the heart in man… So then, the preparations of the heart is work and requires practice, wisdom, and help. Being gloriously saved is the greatest thing that could happen to a person; but it’s just the beginning of a glorious journey; a glorious preparation of the heart. (Jeremiah 29:11) For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. The proverb says The preparations of the heart… is from the LORD.
The plan is no doubt to get to heaven, but how we must arrive there is yet to be seen. Being saved secures us a place in heaven, but the route in which we take, we’ve never known. Jesus is the door and we may have entered in, but now we trod the narrow way. Let me ask you this: What preparations have you made for this journey? Proverbs 16 has some tremendous prepatory advise to give.
- (16:3) Commit thy works unto the LORD, and thy thoughts shall be established.
- (16:6) By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and by the fear of the LORD men depart from evil.
- (16:7) When a man’s ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.
- (16:8) Better is a little with righteousness than great revenues without right.
- (16:16) How much better is it to get wisdom than gold! and to get understanding rather to be chosen than silver!
- (16:18) Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.
- (16:19) Better it is to be of an humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud.
- (16:25) There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
- (16:32) He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.
I read Proverbs 16 and all these verses were familiar to me, and every one touched and moved this heart. And I thought There’s so much more to this Christian life! I’m satisfied in the Lord Jesus Christ that I’ve been saved. But I am not satisfied with just that; not when there’s so much more to know and to experience; not when there is so much more at stake. How can I (Hebrews 2:3) neglect so great salvation? How can I when Jesus said (John 14:12) Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do? Don’t you wonder what God would do with you if you would truly surrender all to him? I’ll leave you with those great words by Fanny Crosby
Consecrate me now to Thy service, Lord,
By the pow’r of grace divine;
Let my soul look up with a steadfast hope,
And my will be lost in Thine.
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