Your 50 Favorite Proverbs: #41 When Less Is More
What do you want more of in your life? And what do you want less of?
If we wrote it all down, we’d probably need a ton of paper.
God needs just fourteen words. Eight in Hebrew. Four, if we leave out all the little bits.
Of course, I never leave anything out. Not when God reveals himself in each letter, word, and phrase. Not when they all add up to this resounding, astounding truth: he knows us, he loves us, and he wants what is best for us.
Here’s the thing: sometimes, best means less.
Better a little with the fear of the Lord
than great wealth with turmoil. Proverbs 15:16
Better a little…
Uh-oh. “Better to live with less” (VOICE) is not what our culture teaches us. In fact, “better to have little” (NLT) is the very opposite of what comes blaring out of our television sets or scrolling across our computer screens.
Instead, we hear, “Life is better with more. More money to buy more things to look more attractive to have more status to gain more attention to make more money to buy more things…”
This cycle isn’t just vicious, beloved. It’s dangerous. It’s deadly.
It’s everything the Lord doesn’t want for us.
He knows that riches, possessions, good looks, privilege, and fame are fleeting at best, and worthless in light of eternity.
So, he urges us to lead “a simple life” (MSG), free from striving after more, more, more. He assures us “it is better to be poor” (ERV) than to choke on the riches of this world.
The truth? What I’m writing here and what I’m living now aren’t remotely in sync.
The truth? I love more. My home, my body, and my calendar are living proof.
Even now, as my fingers move across the keyboard, God is pressing on my heart. His words are loving, but they are not subtle.
It’s not enough for you to read my Word.
When are you going to live my Word?
I desperately want to say, “Now, God.” But what comes out is, “How, God? How do I—how do all of us—stop wanting more?”
His answer is swift and sure: “How wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ” (Ephesians 3:18). That’s more, all right. It covers everything.
His love is more than enough.
His grace is more than sufficient.
His mercy is more than we deserve.
His power is more than we can imagine.
His loving-kindness makes a change of heart and a change of how possible.
The Hebrew word translated here as better means “beautiful, pleasant agreeable.” God has something better for us, something beautiful, something more. Our little becomes much as we see him high and lifted up.
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…with the fear of the Lord…
When we’re scared, we run, we hide, we look the other way.
That’s not what God wants.
He wants us to run toward him, to fix our eyes on him, to be overwhelmed by his beauty. To whisper in amazement, “Who is like you—majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, working wonders?” (Exodus 15:11). To worship him with our lives and honor him with our obedience.
When we experience a “reverent, worshipful fear of the Lord” (AMP), when we “respect” (ERV) his Word and “honor the Eternal” (VOICE), it’s easier to sort out our selfish wants from our genuine needs. Our more from our less.
“Let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe” (Hebrews 12:28). He is more than worthy of our praise. He is more than due our adoration.
God deserves to be first. Above things. Above people. Above all.
…than great wealth…
So, is money on your “What I Want More Of” list? God understands. We need a certain amount of fundage just to feed, clothe, and shelter those we love. Proverbs 15:16 says, “better to have a little” (GW), not “better to have nothing.”
It’s great wealth he is cautioning us about—living “a rich life” (MSG) and counting on our “treasure” (AMP) to make us happy. The Lord knows better. We know better.
The same televisions that urge us to buy more, more, more also show us news stories of the rich and famous who are utterly miserable. Wealth can solve a few day-to-day problems, but it’s a poor salve for heartache or disappointment.
“Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done
and what I had toiled to achieve,
everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind;
nothing was gained under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 2:11).
Yes, we’ve been there.
The inheritance money that turned siblings into enemies.
The full bank account that couldn’t make up for an empty life.
The new job with better pay that ended up costing far too much.
…with turmoil.
Call it “inner turmoil” (NLT) or “tumult” (YLT) or just plain “trouble” (ASV), no one wants it. A big house, a fine ride, and a closet full of designer clothes are no prize when they’re “coupled with worry” (CJB) and produce “a ton of headaches” (MSG).
We usually think we’ll be the exception. If a fortune came my way, I’d know how to spend it wisely. Then the money appears, and our best intentions go right out the window.
Help, Lord.
He’s helping. Right here, in this verse. Giving us a heads-up, sparing us discovering that when we chase after riches we’ll have to “carry the burdens that come with them” (VOICE). Showing us the truth: “It’s better to obey the Lord than to be very rich and terribly confused” (CEV).
We’re listening, Lord. Truly, we are.
We’ve chased after the wrong things long enough.
We know what it means to feel “unfillable” (WYC).
We’d rather be filled with awestruck wonder.
We’d rather be filled with you.
Better a little with the fear of the Lord
than great wealth with turmoil. Proverbs 15:16
Now it’s your turn
What do you want more of in your life?
And what do you want less of?
Kindly respond via Post a Comment below. I’m continuing to pray through your many tender comments from last week’s study. It means so much when you share what’s on your heart.
For those who are memorizing each verse (so proud of you), or who like posting them where you can see them, here’s your Printable of Proverbs 15:16 (bless you for your patience as it downloads). The dozen verses we’ve studied so far also await you on Pinterest.
Sending warm thoughts your way this Wednesday.
Your sister, Liz
@LizCurtisHiggs #50Proverbs
P.S. Thanks for celebrating the release of Mercy Like Sunlight with me this week!
