Hi there,

To look at the fish proverb through a slightly 
different perspective, the man who gives another 
a fish, teaches him dependence.  The man who is 
fed a fish never grows to maturity, while that 
man who learns to fish for himself becomes a mature Christian.  Make sense?

Wuv tuh yuh all,

purple Mari, who btw loves to fish



At 09:36 AM 7/8/2007, you wrote:
>I'm sure you've heard the phrase…
>
>"Give a man a fish and feed him for a day…
>Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime".
>
>What would you call that phrase? A fishing tip? 
>Lesson?  A lesson on giving perhaps. Or maybe a 
>lesson on how teaching is better than giving or 
>how giving is lesser a gift than teaching? 
>Reading it at face value perhaps all the above, 
>but reading it with understanding, it is called 
>wisdom. Translated in today's language we might 
>call it just being smart, using common sense, 
>being practical minded, thinking ahead, and time 
>management or saving time. There is no such 
>thing as saving time, it passes through our 
>existence like an invisible road we travel on 
>and it is impossible to save it. We can make 
>better use of it, but we can not save it, speed 
>it up or slow it down. Wisdom is the chief 
>manager of our time and when reading God's 
>proverb below we find it is much more than a 
>time management tool. It is a way to gain favor 
>with God, with men, with  our spouses, with our 
>children and with our business acquaintances, it 
>is a way for us to find financial sustenance in 
>life here on Earth, it is a tool given us and it 
>is a tool that is implored as well as instructed 
>to be used. It is the answer to our problems we 
>encounter here on Earth; it was and is one of 
>God's oldest friends. Wisdom is always truth and 
>never lies or deceives, it will never lead you 
>astray from God's will for your life or your 
>situation. It calls out everywhere we go, 
>standing in each of our situations, nearly 
>jumping up and down pointing to itself with 
>eagerness trying to pull our focus off the 
>dilemma that has got our attention. In any 
>situation we encounter in life on Earth, and I 
>mean any situation, wisdom is there to help you, 
>simply look for it. It is a gift, a tool, a 
>shield and a weapon, a friend, a life jacket, a 
>rope, a ladder, and plenty more aliases but it 
>will always be known as wisdom and it will 
>always be there for you. If you are in need of 
>help, of course pray, seek God for peace and 
>direction but also know that he has written his 
>spiritual Word of wisdom for you to seek counsel 
>that will confirm and support what you've heard 
>from God. If what you've heard from God does not 
>match His Word, you have not heard from God but 
>the enemy, the angel of light trying to deceive 
>you. God tells us in His Word that we are  His 
>sheep and the sheep know the voice of the 
>shepherd. We know the voice when we open our 
>ears and listen on a regular basis and His voice 
>has been written for us as well. Dangerous is 
>the time when we feel we can hear from him 
>without the confirmation of His Word. Even a 
>Parrot has the innate ability to mimic and 
>imitate what he hears to a point you will reach 
>for a phone thinking it has rung, open a door to 
>let a dog in that is not waiting to come in but 
>standing there looking at you from the couch, 
>and so should we be aware of the enemy imitating 
>the voice of God. Even the elect will be 
>deceived in the latter days. His Word does not 
>change, and as Jesus said not one dot or dash 
>will be rendered obsolete until he returns. I 
>think we can rely on His Word as a guide and 
>anchor to what our spiritual ears hear.   He 
>thought wisdom for us to consider today so 
>important that he dedicated an entire book to it 
>with a host of information that is applicable 
>today just as it was thousands of years ago. 
>That in itself is an amazing thing. But as 
>should always be the case, do not take my or any 
>other man's word for it, read for yourself how 
>wisdom is here to serve and help you today.
>
>The Commendation of Wisdom
>
>         Does not wisdom call, And understanding 
> lift up her voice? On top of the heights beside 
> the way, Where the paths meet, she takes her 
> stand; Beside the gates, at the opening to the 
> city, At the entrance of the doors, she cries 
> out: "To you, O men, I call, And my voice is to 
> the sons of men."O naive ones, understand 
> prudence; And, O fools, understand 
> wisdom."Listen, for I will speak noble things; 
> And the opening of my lips will reveal right 
> things. "For my mouth will utter truth; And 
> wickedness is an abomination to my lips."All 
> the utterances of my mouth are in 
> righteousness; There is nothing crooked or 
> perverted in them. "They are all 
> straightforward to him who understands, And 
> right to those who find knowledge."Take my 
> instruction and not silver, And knowledge 
> rather than choicest gold. "For wisdom is 
> better than jewels; And all desirable things 
> cannot compare with her."I, wisdom, dwell with 
> prudence, And I find knowledge and discretion. 
> "The fear of the LORD is to hate evil; Pride 
> and arrogance and the evil way And the 
> perverted mouth, I hate."Counsel is mine and 
> sound wisdom; I am understanding, power is 
> mine. "By me kings reign, And rulers decree 
> justice. "By me princes rule, and nobles, All 
> who judge rightly. "I love those who love me; 
> And those who diligently seek me will find me. 
> "Riches and honor are with me, Enduring wealth 
> and righteousness. "My fruit is better than 
> gold, even pure gold, And my yield better than 
> choicest silver. "I walk in the way of 
> righteousness, In the midst of the paths of 
> justice, To endow those who love me with 
> wealth, That I may fill their treasuries. "The 
> LORD possessed me at the beginning of His way, 
> Before His works of old. "From everlasting I 
> was established, From the beginning, from the 
> earliest times of the earth. "When there were 
> no depths I was brought forth, When there were 
> no springs abounding with water. "Before the 
> mountains were settled, Before the hills I was 
> brought forth; While He had not yet made the 
> earth and the fields, Nor the first dust of the 
> world. "When He established the heavens, I was 
> there, When He inscribed a circle on the face 
> of the deep, When He made firm the skies above, 
> When the springs of the deep became fixed, When 
> He set for the sea its boundary So that the 
> water would not transgress His command, When He 
> marked out the foundations of the earth; Then I 
> was beside Him, as a master workman; And I was 
> daily His delight, Rejoicing always before 
> Him,          Rejoicing in the world, His 
> earth, And having my delight in the sons of 
> men. "Now therefore, O sons, listen to me, For 
> blessed are they who keep my ways. "Heed 
> instruction and be wise, And do not neglect 
> it.  "Blessed is the man who listens to me, 
> Watching daily at my gates, Waiting at my 
> doorposts. "For he who finds me finds life And 
> obtains favor from the LORD. "But he who sins 
> against me injures himself; All those who hate me love death."