Daily Devotion: Proverbs 22:1-2

Proverbs 22:1-2    "A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and gold.  (2)  The rich and poor meet together: the LORD is the maker of them all."

There are two dates on a tombstone: the date of birth and the date of death. Those are both very important dates, but there is something even more important on that stone. That important matter is the dash between those two dates, for that dash represents the life of that individual.  Solomon speaks of our dash in today's verses. 

Our father used to tell us, "Don't forget who you are." In other words, behave with dignity and do not bring shame on your name.  "A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches." A person can be a billionaire, but that does not matter if his life does not show honor and dignity. On the other hand, another person may have very little, but he makes a difference in the lives of others because his life is one that is upright.

 The rich and the poor meet together. Where do we meet? We all come into this world and leave this world in the same manner. Job expressed it in this manner, "Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither." (Job 1:21) We all enter the world with nothing and we will not take anything with us when we die. But what we leave behind is very important. God tells us through Solomon that a good name is the very best inheritance that we could ever leave our children.  It is true - whether rich or poor, the dash makes the difference.