Daily Devotion

 With Pastor Ancel Presnell

“BUILDING A LIFE THAT STANDS”

Proverbs 24:3–4 “Through wisdom is an house builded; and by understanding it is established: and by knowledge shall the chambers be filled with all precious and pleasant riches.”

Let’s examine these essentials for building a home, because spiritual homes are made up of individual lives within that home. Wisdom is the first material needed for a home to be spiritually built. Earlier, Proverbs 9:10 tells us, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.” If we are going to build our lives individually and our homes collectively in a biblically sound way, we must begin with wisdom, and that wisdom begins with a godly fear of the Lord. If we do not care what His Word says about life, then we are not exercising godly fear toward Him. To put it simply, failing to do so is to be unwise.

Once wisdom is pursued through a godly fear of the Lord and His instruction, we must then put understanding into practice. Understanding is taking what God has said and comprehending why it works. This takes us back to the beginning of knowledge. If we are going to have wisdom, we must first honor and trust the Lord and His infinite wisdom. We will never truly comprehend it if we are not willing to practice it by trusting Him at His Word.

Third comes knowledge. Knowledge is gained through experience, and experience only comes by implementing the truths God has given us in His Word. Knowledge grows out of wisdom, and understanding is strengthened as we see these truths working together time and time again.

“Knowledge informs but doesn’t transform. Understanding without action is not complete. It takes knowing what is right, why it is right, and doing what is right.” (Jenkins, 2026)

Another way to see how these three work together is when someone insults you. Knowledge remembers that Scripture teaches patience and forgiveness. Understanding realizes that responding in anger will only make the situation worse. Wisdom chooses the calm response and walks away. This shows us that knowledge, understanding, and wisdom are different, but they belong together. We need all three if we are going to build our homes the way God intends. (Jenkins, 2026)