Scripture
“Train up a child in the way he should go; Even when he is old he will not depart from it.”
PROVERBS 22:6
“Hear, O sons, the instruction of a father, And give attention that you may gain understanding, for I give you sound teaching; do not abandon my instruction.”
PROVERBS 4:1-2
“My son, eat honey, for it is good, yes, the honey from the comb is sweet to your taste; know that wisdom is thus for your soul; if you find it, then there will be a future, and your hope will not be cut off.”
PROVERBS 24:13-14
“A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children, but a sinner’s wealth is laid up for the righteous.”
PROVERBS 13:22
Quotes/Color
“A careful man I want to be,
A little fellow follows me;
I do not dare to go astray,
For fear he’ll go the self-same way.”
John Wooden
“The first qualification for judging any piece of workmanship from a corkscrew to a cathedral is to know what it is, what it is intended to do and how it is meant to be used.”
C.S. Lewis
Context
Let’s use C.S. Lewis’ quote above to kind of unpack what I think a GreatValue Proverb is…
What is a GreatValue Proverb?
A weekly devotional of wisdom, purposefully couched in silliness… In other words, the Wal-Mart version of your favorite Christian devo.
The purpose in me putting pen to paper for 52 mediocre devotionals is ultimately the arrival of my first child, Wes Rhodes, in December 2023. I wanted to know what I would want to value and teach him in preparation for him coming into the earth. So I wrote all of these devotionals for him… and adapted them to be shared with anyone who is interested.
Anticipating his arrival, I’ve spent a great deal of time reflecting on (1) the person I want to be for my son, (2) the lessons God has taught me along the way and (3) how I want to communicate those lessons and instill them in him throughout his life.
See… I want him to be knowledgeable and know God’s word. Right? I want him to take God’s teachings seriously. Very seriously! (What could be more serious and more important than God’s teachings)? I want him to work hard… The HARDEST! Be the hardest worker in the room! And be humble too while he’s grinding! You know, no ego or anything. So like not in your face about it… But still awesome! And I want him to learn all the time! Lots of learning! Be like a little sponge and never stop learning. And be the smartest person ever and know everything about God and live an awesome life and become President of the United States and Pastor of a church on the side and drive race cars in his free time and just kill it all the time! That’s what I want!
But…
While I want him to be knowledgeable and know God’s word inside and out… I want him to be able to actually watch life unfold and be able to apply it even better than he knows it.
And while I want him to take God’s teachings very seriously and be mature… I also have learned that life is entirely too difficult to take too seriously. So I want him to be a generous laugher. And I want him to be an expert at making the dull things in life fun (cause there are lots of dull things in life).
And while I want him to work hard and be awesome and President of the United States/Pastor/Racecar driver and all of that… But I also really want him to be content offering a simple, well-lived life to God as an offering. And not feel like he has to kill it in every moment of every day to receive God’s abundant love in his life. It’s there no matter what.
That is more or less the approach of GreatValue Proverbs. They are supposed to be:
Self-Aware
They are intended to be self-aware. Listen, I know that I am not a great writer. Or a particularly gifted analyst of Scripture. That’s why it is called “GreatValue” Proverbs, people. This is the “Wal-Mart brand” of your favorite devotional in terms of content.
If you wake up every morning, limber up with some Jonathan Edwards and John Calvin and then move on to unpacking your bible in the original Hebrew/Greek text… you are very likely not going to like what you see here. But that’s alright. Different functions, different purpose.
A New Nugget… With Fun
They are intended to each and every one have a valuable, non-watered down nugget of wisdom… couched in silliness. Hard questions and good nuggets of wisdom disarmed by humor. That is the goal. Light-hearted comments are written in Comic Sans font (seemed fitting) – the rest in Arial font. Every GreatValue Proverb has at least 1 meme. In my life, I’ve found that lessons are a lot more “sticky” (they stick in your head – are easier to remember) if they are fun while they are taught. That is the intention with GreatValue Proverbs. Offer something new to learn and encourage… And here’s a meme that hopefully helps you remember it and look forward to the nugget.
It is intended to be a funny devotional.
Now you may read them as they come and say to yourself, “Bryan, this is neither funny nor devoted.” That is entirely possible. Maybe even likely. But to that I would say… “I tried on both.” Nothing but good intentions.
Applicable
Like the book of Proverbs itself, each GreatValue Proverb is intended to be applicable. That’s what proverbs are. “Watch out for this!” “Be careful of this!” “Have you seen this in your own life?” The book of Proverbs was written by King Solomon for his own son. GreatValue Proverbs are my best attempt at imitating that. So by their very nature they inspect your life and challenge you to live or think in a different way. It doesn’t read like a Sunday School lesson on important topics. It reads like a chat you’d have with a friend or mentor. Casual.
Structured
Every single GreatValue Proverb follows this structure:
- Scripture – the foundation
- Quotes/Color – these are applicable quotes from books I’ve read/things I’ve heard in my life… I keep a little log of quotes when I come across things I like 🙂
- Context – applicable story or context to the scripture
- Application – specific items to take away
- Something to Chew On – questions to ask yourself and simmer on later in your day
- GreatValue Proverb – your little nugget for the day, all in one sentence (usually)
Structure in my life is good and allows freedom within it. Similarly, all of these devotionals follow the same structure. Or else, since I’m writing them, they would end up as a scattered string of random incoherent words.
Application
That’s the intention and use of my little project. I hope it is something you enjoy. There are 52 of them, sent once a week for the whole year. All of them already written.
I picture it being a little pick-me-up reminder of God’s presence in your life in your work inbox in the morning… A quick read to re-center on the Lord amidst a busy class schedule… Or a little devotion for someone young or young at heart who might need some fun memes to keep their attention.
God bless and share with a friend, family member or young person if you’re so inclined.