Several times in Proverbs 13, the writer speaks of the importance and value of good instruction and its source. It reminded me this morning of my maternal grandfather. He was not well-educated in a school sort of way, but he was very wise. I learned early that he was a man that I should listen to and that many others did. One of the things he told me that I remember best was to always 'consider the source'. In a true evaluation of someone's words and their potential value to you, it is always wise to consider who they are, what they have been through, and what they may have learned from their experiences. If someone's words are just 'theory' and not the fruit of experience, they should be weighted differently. The Proverb writer here tells us that we should value instruction from our fathers. This makes sense because our fathers have likely been where we are and truly love us and want us to succeed. The Proverb writer also helps us see the value of instruction other places in this chapter, but the culmination is verse 20, "He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm." By and large we don't become better than the company we keep, which I think includes the books we read and the other ways we expose ourselves to peoples thoughts and ideas. Do we 'consider the source' and protect our minds so that we can grow wise?
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