The Proverbs 365 project has now completed its course.

We have succeeded in cataloguing 365 distinct and separate entries -- short stories, essays, poems, and personal anecdotes -- about 365 distinct and separate proverbs of King Solomon.  Some of the entries are certainly rougher than others, but we're hoping to have time to smooth things out a bit further and develop plans for further publication, as soon as possible.

If you've been a part of this journey through the Proverbs, thank you for the energy that you've brought into the process.  Any feedback that you might have would be welcomed (eagerly accepted, thankfully received, and indeed highly sought after!) -- however, with this post we are now officially planning to re-route communication back through EricAsp.com.  For the time being, the content from Proverbs 365 will remain intact, here at http://proverbs365.ericasp.com -- but I could easily imagine that there will come a time when this space from the website will be reallocated for other purposes.  As much as possible, I will do my best to inform you about any of these changes ahead of time.

Again, thank you for your interest in the Proverbs 365 project.  I'll never forget the year that I spent soaking in the wisdom of the Proverbs... And I hope that in some small way, the same might be true for anyone else who was along for the ride.

[A wife of noble character] sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks (Proverbs 31:17).

The "Proverbs 31 Woman" is an intriguing concept.  Much has been written about her already:  almost all of it positive.  Even so, I still know a number of women who resist the mantle and model of the Proverbs 31 Woman.

Why is this?  Perhaps it's because the Proverbs 31 Woman has become something of a catch-all for our ideals of womanhood, which can feel at turns limiting, and at turns impossible to live up to... Perhaps it's because of patriarchal overtones embedded within the story of the Proverbs 31 Woman -- that is, the chapter speaks of her primary sphere of influence being the home, and she plays a bit of a traditional support role to her husband... Perhaps it's because she's called a "wife" before she's called a person (v. 10), because she provides food for her family (v. 15), because she does a lot of sewing and weaving (v. 19), and in essence she is linked to so many of those things that has come to be associated with weakness and subservience in our cultural context -- and of course, no reasonable woman wants to be labeled as weak or subservient.

This is where I think that Proverbs 31:17 is a very important part of defining the Proverbs 31 Woman.  This verse reminds us that of all the things that the Proverbs 31 Woman may or may not be, we are to make no mistake:  the Proverbs 31 Woman is hard-core, bad-ass, tough-as-nails, weaker-than-nobody, intrinsically-subservient-to-none.

In fact, she sets about her work vigorously.  Her arms are strong for her tasks.  She's not passive, or weak, subservient in the least.  For a more extensive treatment of the strengths (in contrast to the oft-presumed weaknesses) of the Proverbs 31 Woman, I would highly recommend a look at the writings of Amber Van Schooneveld, who blogs at Clever Phrase Here.  "Biblical Feminism" might be too strong of a phrasing, but she provides a point of view that feels refreshingly balanced, in my opinion.  A perspective worth analyzing, in any event.  As for me, personally, I just want to say that the Proverbs 31 Woman seems like an extremely admirable person, not just an extremely admirable woman.  Even I, as a man, can look up to her strength and resourcefulness.  In fact, if I read the descriptions from Proverbs 31:17 -- praising the Proverbs 31 Woman's vigor and upper-body strength -- I think I would be a little bit intimidated to be a "bad guy" running into this biblical super-hero in some dark alleyway.

If nothing else, I think the Proverbs 31 Woman is a valuable tool for dialogue.  It brings up expectations, ideals, anxieties, and insecurities; and it gives us a forum for interacting with each other about these things.  I hope that we can all feel free to vigorously debate these issues over an extended period of time... But if it ever gets down to arm-wrestling over it, I certainly don't want to be one who has to go up against a Proverbs 31 Woman.

Do not slander a servant to his master, or he will curse you, and you will pay for it (Proverbs 30:10).

I spend entirely too much of my prayer time whining to God.  Specifically, I notice that I spend too much time griping to God about other people:  how much they bother me, how much they make my life more difficult, how much I wish they'd just go away and get out of my life.  Basically, it occurs to me that I enter into prayer with the assumption that I am a good and righteous person -- and that everything would just be fine, if other people could get their crap taken care of and let me get in with my own life.  I'm good at making it sound all spiritual and godly and stuff:  "Lord, please bless Johnny So-and-So, even though he's creating so many difficulties for me right now... Lord, I just know that there's got to be some serious pain in Sally Whoziwhatsit's life -- so could you please heal that pain in her life so that we can all move on..."  But when you really break it down, it's glorified complaining and whining about other people.  And it's wrong.

Proverbs 30:10 reminds me a lot of Romans 14:1-4, where it says, "Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters.  One person’s faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables.  The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them.  Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand."

Basically, these verses point to the fact that we are trying to position ourselves as someone else's master -- or boss, or superior, or authority -- when we judge their actions or attitudes as being "bad" or "wrong."  I (consciously or subconsciously) slander another person because it gives me a higher moral ranking, relatively speaking.  But the obvious problem with this is that I'm not the master / boss / supervisor / authority for other people's lives.  Even if I have some level of authority in another person's life (serving as their father or pastor or job supervisor), that doesn't mean that my authority stretches to all aspects of their existence.  Certainly not their personal relationship with God.  So when I try to judge someone else, or complain about someone else, or slander someone else (even if it's in my own "private" prayer life), then I'm positioning myself in a role that is not mine to play.  I'm putting myself in the place of God.  And it's impossible to put myself in the place of God without paying for it dearly at some point or another.

I love the simplicity of that question from Romans 14:3:  "Who are you to judge someone else's servant?"  The fact is that I need to look first and foremost to what God is doing in my life and not worry about others.  And even when my mind wanders, my mouth definitely shouldn't.  "Do not slander a servant to his master, or he will curse you, and you will pay for it."  When it all comes down to it, I need to mind my own business.

A man who remains stiff-necked after many rebukes will suddenly be destroyed -- without remedy (Proverbs 29:1).

I'm so glad to be down to my last three days in this Proverbs 365 project.  It's been a good experience, overall, but it's become exhausting -- particularly here through the home stretch, over the last month or so.  At times, it's felt like it's all I can do to just put one foot in front of the other and keep making progress, getting closer to the finish line.  Even if it's ugly.  As much as I've tried to keep things fresh and avoid making it feel this way, these little reflections on the Proverbs have recently become a sort of homework.  I do it out of a sense of obligation, not out of a desire to learn.  On a certain level, I've just resigned myself to this fact.  I tell myself:  "You can't quit now.  Who cares if the stuff that's coming out from day to day is total crap?  You've just got to get it finished at this point.  Bang out a first draft, and then all the crap can be reworked in the next draft.  Just finish what you've set out to do."

Suffice to say:  the calendar can be a cruel task-master.  Even though I entered into the situation willingly (and even eagerly), I've lately become a slave to the daily grind.  The same things happen in marriage, in ministry, in physical fitness, in financial management.  Even while I'm reading all this incredible material from one of my favorite books of the Bible, I'm tuning out just so I can get done what needs to get done.  Pathetic... but that's where I'm at.

Then I read Proverbs 29:1, which says, "A man who remains stiff-necked after many rebukes will suddenly be destroyed -- without remedy."  Immediately, I'm challenged to consider my situation and ask myself, "Am I being stiff-necked here in any way?"  I'm taking in all this wisdom day after day -- stuff that is truly life-giving, encouraging, and satisfying... but also truly challenging, confrontational, and unsettling.  But am I really digesting it?  Am I really processing it?  Am I really responding to the rebuke of the Proverbs?  Or am I just doing the bare minimum to find a little nugget of truth, write my obligatory 500 words about it, and then just get on with my day without internalizing the material in any meaningful way?!?  In essence:  am I remaining stiff-necked after many rebukes?

I think it's good for me to be afraid to answer these questions.  This verse is both reassuring and chilling.  It's reassuring to remember that God is deeply concerned about justice -- looking at people's hearts and making sure that no one will get away with anything (despite whatever contemporary appearances might seem to indicate).  But it's also challenging to remember that my momentary well-being is not necessarily a sign of my righteousness.  I need to continually renew myself, keeping a soft heart towards God.  I need to be flexible and willing to change, even when it's uncomfortable.  I need to listen to whatever rebukes God might send my way... Or else the consequences could be quite severe and quite permanent.

A greedy man stirs up dissension, but he who trusts in the LORD will prosper (Proverbs 28:25).

There is a significant theme of civic responsibility running throughout the 28th chapter of the Proverbs.  It talks about law, lawlessness, government, authority, obedience, disobedience, and citizenship (see v. 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 12, 15, 16, 17, 21, 24, 25, and 28).  The Proverbs grant the fact that no one like a corrupt of evil authority over them (see v. 12, 15, and 28 especially) -- even so, the primary message of Proverbs 28 (and of the rest of the Bible, too) is that we must respect the authority that has been placed over us.

I never know exactly where the line is supposed to be drawn in a constitutional republic -- where the people are supposed to rule by means of representative democracy, but where lines of authority must be nonetheless established.  Certainly, there is a place for advocacy, at least to some extent.  Worshipping God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength (i.e. Mark 12:30) ought to include worshipping God and trying to accomplish His purposes through our citizenship.  It's a natural extension of holistic worship to use our voice in the system to enact change when necessary.  Still, I wonder if we can sometimes take our privileges too far and end up fomenting rebellion instead of fulfilling our civic responsibilities.  I can at least speak for myself.  I like to cast myself in the role of "freedom fighter" -- standing up against tyranny and injustice, seeking to achieve some higher purpose -- but the truth of the matter is that I'm often more motivated by my own personal preferences and self-interests than anything else.  I'm concerned about the people who get elected into public office, not so much because of the ways that the policies they enact will affect society-at-large or because of posterity -- but more because I'm worried that their policies might impact my preferred way of living.  I'm concerned about the use of the money garnered from my taxes, not so much because of the social good or evil that's being furthered by those funds -- but more because I sure wish I had some more money to do things that I like to do.  If I'm being completely honest with myself, probably 80-90 percent of my issues with government are personal, not principled.

Because of this dynamic, I need to be careful about what I do with my democratic "right to dissent."  If I'm operating out of greed and selfish ambition, I'm not really "loving my neighbor" (i.e. considering the fact that a democracy should be constantly seeking to achieve the greatest good for the greatest percentage of the population) nor am I respecting the authority that has been placed in my life.  I'm not really living up to my civic responsibility, as outlined in Proverbs chapter 28.  And, perhaps most significantly, I'm not trusting God to take care of me.  In effect, I'm creating an idol out of public policy.

But if I can trust the LORD in every circumstance -- even in situations where I feel like the government is acting unfairly toward me and my interests -- then the Bible says that I can prosper, regardless of the outside influences.  Even if I were to find myself under the thumb of the world's most repressive regime, trusting in God would be more important than solving the governmental problems.  Whenever I can serve God and entrust Him with my anxieties, my quality of life goes up.  Conversely, whenever I try to seek my own good, I only end up creating dissatisfaction, distrust, disobedience, and dissension.  And a world full of dissension isn't really good for any of us.