Proverbs 1:8–9

Hear, my son (child), your father’s instruction
And do not forsake your mother’s teaching,

Indeed, they are a graceful wreath to your head
And ornaments about your neck. (Parenthesis mine.)

There is something tender happening in these two verses. Solomon shifts from the cosmic — the fear of the Lord, the goals of wisdom — to the deeply personal: listen to your father, don’t forsake your mothe The first place wisdom is meant to be transmitted is not a classroom or a sanctuary, but a home. A kitchen table. A bedtime conversation. A parent who loves God enough to pass that love along. If you had that, it is worth pausing to be grateful. It is not something everyone receives.

Solomon describes a parent’s instruction as a graceful garland for your head and pendants for your neck — jewelry, adornment, something beautiful worn publicly. That’s a striking image. The wisdom your parents instilled in you is not a chain around your ankle. It is an ornament. It goes with you into every room, every relationship, every hard moment, quietly doing its work.

Many of us can trace our deepest convictions about God, about honesty, about how to treat people, directly back to something a parent said or modeled, often without even knowing they were teaching.

And for those whose parents did not offer this gift, whose home was marked by absence, dysfunction, or outright harm, this passage is not meant to sting. It is meant to remind us that God Himself steps into that role. He is the Father who instructs with perfect wisdom and unfailing love. And the body of Christ is full of spiritual mothers and fathers who carry that same graceful garland to offer. No one is without a source of godly wisdom if they are willing to seek it.

Reflect: Who in your life has handed you godly wisdom — a parent, a mentor, a spiritual mother? Have you thanked God for them lately?

Pray: Lord, thank You for the people You have placed in my life who have pointed me toward You. Help me to honor their investment by living wisely. And for those around me who are younger in faith or in years, make me the kind of woman who passes the garland along. Amen.

God bless and have a great day.

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