The tongue of the righteous is as choice silver,
the heart of the wicked is worth little.

Proverbs 10:20

In years gone by, the big department stores in Ohio were; J C Penny’s, Macy’s, Higbee’s and May Co. and Halle’s. I know, that was in the dark ages! Anyway, these stores were usually 4-6 stories high and the higher up you went in the elevator the more money you knew you would have to spend. But the ambiance of the top floor was stunning, the array of choices was exquisite, the quality top notch and the customer service impeccable. You knew what you purchased on the sixth floor was a lifetime purchase. 

Then there was the Bargain Basement! This portion of the store was appropriately named as it was, indeed, in the basement of the store with its cement white washed walls, Formica floors and cold temperatures. And it did have bargains; hundreds of them! Wall to wall merchandise just waiting to be snatched up. All you needed was a lot of time and a ton of patience to wade through the haphazard displays and defective merchandise. Also, it was essential to keep a warry eye out to locate the lone sales clerk assigned to service a 4000 sq ft space. And, finally, you had to employ plenty of defensive moves to fight off other bargain seekers, especially during clearance sales!  Sometimes, not often, you would find something actually worth buying, or so you thought. 

One time, I found a bedspread that had an original sticker of $129.00 (very expensive back in the 80s) marked down to $12.95! It didn’t quite coordinate with our current bedroom scheme, but it was better than what we currently used. I bought it knowing full well I couldn’t return it and I couldn’t really examine it all wrapped and tapped up. When I got home and, with much effort, finally unwrapped the item, I was relieved to see that it was in really good shape, except…Oh that horrible except! There was a six-inch tear in one of the seams and I could see that if I didn’t fix this, the whole bedspread would, in time be ruined. 

Well, I am was not and still am not, a seamstress by any definition. But, I did my best, made the bed up in such a way that the fixed tear was in a discreet location and we got several years of use out of that bedspread. Other tears showed up. Edges frayed. Colors faded.

Still, not bad for $12.95. But, it wasn’t a lifetime’s worth of use.

So, Elaine…what’s your point? Just this! Do I want to be the one that speaks choice silver that will give my hearers a lifetime of goodness and grace and mercy? Or do I want to be the one that my heart, my inner being, persuades with half-truths, gossip and malice giving my hearers bargain or ‘band-aid’ advice that may seem wonderful at first, but in the end is harmful and even destructive?

And, on the flip side, where do I get my advice and who do I listen to? On the top floor of God’s Word and His godly ambassadors in my life? Or do I stay in the basement of the world’s wisdom and their bargain deals that entice for the moment, but devastate over time?

God’s choice silver provides life and life everlasting on the top floor! The world’s bargain basement offers thousands of tantalizing deals that are temporal and life draining. 

My Choice…I can thrive or just keep using bargain basement advice and simply survive.