My son, be attentive to my wisdom; incline your ear to my understanding, that you may keep discretion, and your lips may guard knowledge. For the lips of a forbidden woman drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil, but in the end she is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword. — Proverbs 5:1-4

This is not an attempt by Solomon to demonize all women. It's one father warning his son of the dangers of two sinful people. He wants his son to know that both men and women have desires. Desires that are sometimes extremely strong. So much so that when a man stops regulating his desires, they will act in a way they shouldn't. And while God gave men and women these desires, he wants them to be satisfied the right way — the best way. Not by something or someone who is forbidden.

Thus a man can't let his desires run wild. He has to give discretion to every sweet and savory presentation. Not just the allure of the person presenting it, but the lure of the desires within himself. Because if a man cannot regulate his desires, two things happen. First, he will discover the bitter, sharp, and deadly end of these desires. And second, he will miss out on the best satisfaction for his desires because he chose the unsavory ones.

So father's, I know some of you out there get all worked up about having the "talk" with your kids. But the talk that Solomon has here is far more strategic. It's a talk about the desires within a man and a woman. I believe this is a far more important topic because wrong actions result from unregulated desires. Desires which have run wild. To prove this point, recall one of the most significant challenges that Jesus presented to men. It wasn't exclusively focused on action but the desires that led to the action. Here is what Jesus said:

You have heard that it was said, "You shall not commit adultery." But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart. — Matthew 5:27-28.

ASK THIS: What desires do you need to regulate?

DO THIS: Take action to regulate them before they become an issue!

PRAY THIS: God, show me the desires I need to regulate. And my your Spirit give me the power to regulate them when they need direction the most.

PLAY THIS: You Are My Desire — Josh Baldwin.

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