Read: Proverbs 17
Better is a dry morsel with quiet than a house full of feasting with strife. (v. 1)
If a dry crust is better than strife, then strife must taste pretty awful. A family meal erupts into disagreement between two people. The delicious food becomes tasteless. Your appetite disappears, and the argument hangs over the table like a dark cloud ready to burst forth its destructive winds.
Or imagine this. You’re having a great time out for the evening on a date or with your spouse. Then a minor disagreement becomes a major angry conflict. Goodbye peace and quiet. Indeed, strife tastes awful. How do you keep it off the table of your relationships?
God has some strife-preventing advice for you: “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others” (Philippians 2:3-4).
Looking to others’ interests is an appetizing morsel. Often strife occurs because you or someone else pridefully insists on “my way.” Neither side was willing to say, “I’m sorry,” or “You could be right.” Certainly no one said, “I’m wrong.” Of course, the greatest example of humility is the Lord Jesus Christ. “And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Philippians 2:8). —Bob James
As you pray, ask God to help you enjoy the delicious flavor of humility.
About the Author
Reverend Bob James heads the non-profit organization One With God, which he formed to teach pastors and feed orphans across the globe. He produces daily Bible lessons, study books and commentaries to disciple pastors and church leaders.
