The Inheritance of the Heart

Listen, my sons, to a father’s instruction; pay attention and gain understanding. I give you sound learning, so do not forsake my teaching … Hold on to instruction, do not let it go; guard it well, for it is your life. Do not set foot on the path of the wicked or walk in the way of evildoers. Avoid it, do not travel on it; turn from it and go on your way. For they cannot rest until they do evil; they are robbed of sleep till they make someone stumble. They eat the bread of wickedness and drink the wine of violence. Proverbs 4:1-2, 13-17

Elias’s voice was already a fragile whisper, but his words carried the weight of a lifetime. From his bed, surrounded by the smell of medicine and old age, he held the hand of his son, Rodrigo, and pointed to his grandson, Luan, a fifteen-year-old teenager who was looking at his phone in the corner of the room.

“Rodrigo,” Elias whispered. “The world out there… it’s the same as always. The traps just change color. Make him understand. The wisdom I gave you… pass it on to him. It is the only inheritance that matters.”

Rodrigo swallowed hard. He remembered his father saying these same things to him years ago. Back then, the words had seemed abstract. Today, he understood every syllable. He was the middle link, the man who had received the inheritance and fought not to lose it.

The problem was Luan. A good kid, but one who was being seduced by the “paths of the wicked” in their twenty-first-century version. Evil did not invite him to rob a traveler, as in the proverb. It invited him to something more subtle.

At school, popularity belonged to Valentim’s group, young people who found power in humiliation. Their “bread of wickedness” was cyberbullying. They could not sleep if they did not do evil: they created cruel memes, spread rumors in WhatsApp groups, and filmed humiliating pranks to post online. Luan, desperate to be accepted, began to laugh along, to share, to become an accomplice.

“It’s just a joke, Dad. Everyone does it,” he would say to Rodrigo when confronted.

Rodrigo tried to use his grandfather’s words. “Son, when you love wisdom, she will guard you. Do not walk with them. That path seems fun, but its end is bitterness.”

To Luan, that was a lecture. A speech disconnected from his reality.

A week after Elias’s death, Rodrigo found Luan in his room, elated.

“Dad, look at this! Valentim invited me to hang out with them! They’re going to let me in the group!”

Rodrigo’s heart went cold. He knew what that meant. Valentim had given Luan a “test”: he was to be responsible for filming the next “prank.” The target was Samuel, a shy, studious boy.

That night, Rodrigo could not sleep. He felt powerless. Shouting would not work. Forbidding him would only increase his rebellion. He prayed to God, asking for the wisdom his father had spoken of so often.

The next morning, instead of giving another lecture, Rodrigo called Luan to his furniture restoration workshop. He took out an old wooden chest, the first piece of furniture his father, Elias, had taught him to make.

“Your grandfather gave me this when I was your age,” Rodrigo said, running his hand over the worn wood. “He said my inheritance was inside it.”

Luan rolled his eyes, expecting a speech. But Rodrigo just opened the chest. Inside, there was nothing of value. Just old letters, yellowed photos, and a small Bible with a frayed leather cover.

Rodrigo picked up a letter.

“I had my Valentim, too,” he said, surprising his son. “His name was Ricardo. He invited me to join a scheme to steal car parts from the warehouse where I worked. It was the easy way. I almost went.”

He paused, looking at Luan’s attentive face.

“But the night before, your grandfather sat me down here, in this very workshop. He didn’t yell. He told me how his own father almost lost everything because of dishonesty. He told me about the shame, about the pain. He gave me the wisdom he himself had received. He made me choose.”

Rodrigo picked up the small Bible.

“He told me: ‘Wisdom is the principal thing, Rodrigo. With all your getting, get understanding.’ I chose to listen. Ricardo was arrested a month later. I stayed here, with my hands dirty with grease, but with a clean soul.”

He looked into his son’s eyes. “Luan, what you are going to do to Samuel… it is not a joke. It is the same path as Ricardo’s. It is the bread of wickedness. You are choosing which table you will eat from.”

Rodrigo closed the chest.

“The inheritance is there. The wisdom your grandfather gave me, I now give to you. The choice is yours.”

That day at school, Luan saw Valentim and his group surrounding Samuel in the courtyard. The phone in his pocket felt like it weighed a ton. He saw the fear in Samuel’s eyes and the cruel amusement in Valentim’s. And he remembered the chest. The inheritance.

He did not join the circle. Instead, he walked in the opposite direction, went to a teacher, and said:

“Sir, they’re messing with Samuel. I think he needs help.”

That night, Luan found his father in the workshop. He did not say anything, just picked up a piece of sandpaper and began to help restore an old chair. The silence between them was not one of tension, but of understanding. Luan had been tested. And, in the moment of decision, he had chosen. He had embraced wisdom, and the inheritance of his heart had guarded him.

(Made with AI)

This story is part of my book Everyday Wisdom

https://books2read.com/u/3knogL

Christ

One day, we walked spread.

Each one followed its way.

There was no help or company.

Following alone; it was a sad destiny.

 

Even being disunited, many had hope.

Waiting for something new and renewed.

The faith kept them firm and safe.

For a new alliance, they were waiting,

That One who would come from the Lord.

 

At the right time, He came,

Many people recognized and loved Him.

But others just despised Him.

They did not believe in his wonders and signals,

And they even tried to catch Him in many traps.

 

But what strength does the man have against the Lord?

What can do against the Lord a man full of sins?

They could not do anything to stop Him.

Jesus walked, healed, taught, and rescued.

The faith of his disciples was increased.

 

 

Among those who believe, one failed.

For a bit of money, his Lord, he delivered.

The Just One, the Son of Man was oppressed!

Like one innocent sheep, to the slaughter, He was led.

He received a terrible and painful punishment there.

 

Over Him, there was no condemnation.

His judges did not find any guilt in his accusations.

But “wise people” did not accept,

They led him to be crucified.

 

On that cross were paid the sins,

My, yours, and of all of us.

With extreme sacrifice, the debt was paid.

The souls of poor sinners were saved.

After the pain and suffering, He has expired.

At that moment, something great happened.

The earth shook, and the curtain of the temple was torn,

In all places had restlessness,

The sky had darkened.

For that one who died, there was much weeping.

 

After three days, God rescued Him.

By the angels, the stone was rolled,

The only and beloved son, God, resurrected.

For his people, He showed himself, and He was acknowledged,

Then, the faithful people saw the power of God.

The victory over death, Jesus got.

This poem is part of the book Christian Poetry Volume I.

See the book:

https://books2read.com/u/mg5w0z

God is Good

The Lord God is ready to forgive,

One needs to repent and call upon Him to live.

He forgives because He is the wonderful God,

The only Living God, strong and powerful.

For Him to forgive, repentance is needed,

The person will change their life and enter a new time.

No longer matter their past live,

It will start the best time of their life.

This poem is part of the book Christian Poetry Volume VII.

See the book:

https://books2read.com/u/38l5Oa

The Inheritance of Honor

Do not envy the violent or choose any of their ways … The Lord’s curse is on the house of the wicked, but he blesses the home of the righteous … The wise inherit honor, out fools get only shame. Proverbs 3:31, 33, 35

In the neighborhood where they grew up, Bruno was the “violent man” everyone envied. Not in the sense of physical violence, but in the aggressiveness with which he took what he wanted from life. He was the king of “schemes,” of shady deals, of intimidation. He despised the humble and mocked those who, like his childhood friend, Lucas, still believed in “working hard and being honest.”

“Lucas, you’re a joke,” Bruno would say, showing off his new car, acquired with money of dubious origin. “While you sweat to earn peanuts, I make the same in one night. That God of yours isn’t helping you much, is he?”

Lucas, who worked as a carpenter in a small workshop, felt the sting of envy. It was hard not to covet Bruno’s life. The designer clothes, the parties, the apparent ease with which everything came to him. But Lucas clung to the “secret” that his father, a simple and just man, had taught him: the peace of a clear conscience and the quiet trust that God honors the sincere.

The “blessing” in Lucas’s house was subtle, almost invisible to the world. It was the smell of homemade bread that his wife, Ana, baked. It was the way the sunlight streamed through the living room window, illuminating the wooden furniture he had made himself. It was the laughter of his children, who were growing up in a home where honesty was not an option, but the very air they breathed.

The “curse” in Bruno’s house was equally subtle, but corrosive. Despite the luxurious facade, the place was cold, silent. The arguments with his girlfriend were constant. His “partners” were dangerous men whom he feared and despised in equal measure. He did not sleep well, startled by every siren he heard on the street. The house of the wicked was a palace haunted by mistrust.

Time, the great revealer of all things, began to show the truth.

Lucas, with his reputation as an honest and detail-oriented craftsman, began to receive commissions from important clients. His small workshop grew. He became known not for his wealth, but for his honor. People did not just buy his furniture; they sought his counsel. He became a pillar in his community, a man whose word carried weight.

Bruno’s fall was as swift as his rise. One of his “schemes” went wrong. Betrayed by one of his own partners, he lost everything. The car was taken; the house was emptied. The man who mocked everyone became the target of mockery. Shame was his only companion.

One morning, Lucas was opening his workshop, now much larger and better equipped, when he saw a shrunken figure across the street. It was Bruno. Thin, haggard, wearing worn-out clothes.

Lucas crossed the street. There was no triumph in his eyes, only an old compassion. “Bruno?” he called.

Bruno looked up, expecting the scorn he himself had dished out for so long.

“Come to laugh at me, Lucas? The ‘righteous’ man won.”

“I didn’t win anything,” Lucas said, sitting beside him on the curb. “I just… built my house on different ground than you did.” He paused. “I’m looking for a helper in the workshop. The work is hard, and the pay is honest.”

Bruno stared at him, incredulous. Grace, which he had always considered a weakness, was being offered to him in his moment of greatest humiliation.

That day, as he learned to sand down a piece of rough wood under Lucas’s patient guidance, Bruno began to understand. The wise do not inherit money or power. They inherit honor. And the shame he felt was not the end of his story, but perhaps, just perhaps, the beginning of his journey toward a new path, where the blessing was not in the facade of the house, but in the foundation of the heart.

(Made with AI)

This story is part of my book Everyday Wisdom

https://books2read.com/u/3knogL

Lost Truth

Where are the believers like the Bereans?

Where are those who test what they are preaching?

Where are those who read the Word of the Lord?

Where are those who only accept the commandments of God?

Theological Christians are disappearing,

And the true church is dying.

The church that cared about the Lord,

Is being replaced by human beings’ thoughts.

The Bible is no longer taken into consideration,

The word of the brother “full of anointing” is the new direction.

The words of the prophets have been “adjusted”,

Prophecies and teachings are being despised. 

The discrediting of the Word is the fault of blind followers,

People who do not read and only believe their pastors.

They are false “wise men” blinded by their own doctrine,

None of them have the true Word of life.

The true Word is the cross of Christ, grace, and salvation,

The wonderful grace of God leads us to reconciliation.

The true Word is true and sincere repentance,

Walking in the fear of God and always being decent.

The true Word is to listen and analyze everything,

Investigating whether we can trust in some teaching.

Only then will we be acting correctly,

Testing if every sermon teaches rightly.

This poem is part of the book Christian Poetry Volume VII.

See the book:

https://books2read.com/u/38l5Oa

Living the Future and the Present

We follow our lives very sure about what will happen,

Believing that we can do everything, we make many plans.

We live dreaming about our future will bring us many good things,

We stay thinking about the realization of our dreams.

 

Sometimes, to live in the future is the unique thing we desire,

We are sure that will be better than our present lives.

We stay so concentrated on that, and we stop living the now,

We leave everything for later; we stay repressed and never is the hour.

 

But it comes a moment when we wake up to life,

Something happens, and we notice we must live fine.

We understand there is no assurance about what will come,

We are subjected to many things, and we can control none.

 

We cannot wait for a future that we do not know if it is coming,

We must live today and do the best we can to enjoy everything.

Today and now are the only moments we are sure to live,

Tomorrow can be late; the next second can be our last breath.

This poem is part of the book Life Through the Words.

See the book:

https://books2read.com/u/bQpQ7d

The Neighbor in 302

Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to act. Do not say to your neighbor, “Come back tomorrow and I’ll give it to you”— when you already have it with you. Do not plot harm against your neighbor, who lives trustfully near you. Do not accuse anyone for no reason— when they have done you no harm. Proverbs 3:27-30

In the “House of Flowers” condominium, Ricardo, the resident of 401, was a man of fences. His door was always locked, his expression always closed off, and his philosophy was simple: “Every man for himself.” He was the personification of the principle: ask me for nothing.

His downstairs neighbor, Davi, in 302, was the opposite. His door was often open, from which the smell of coffee and the sound of his children’s laughter would escape. Davi lived with a sense of community that Ricardo found naive and dangerous.

The difference between them was visible in the little things.

One afternoon, Mrs. Elvira, an elderly widow from the second floor, knocked on Ricardo’s door.

“My son,” she said, her voice trembling, “my gas canister ran out in the middle of making lunch. Could you lend me your spare? The gas delivery man is going to take a while.”

Ricardo, who had an extra canister in his service area, felt the inconvenience.

“Oh, Mrs. Elvira… isn’t the delivery man already on his way? Just have a little patience,” he said, closing the door gently but firmly. He had the solution, but he withheld it.

Dejected, Mrs. Elvira went down one floor and knocked on Davi’s door. Upon hearing the story, Davi did not hesitate.

“Of course, Mrs. Elvira! Wait just a minute.” He grabbed his spare canister, went up with her, and installed it, refusing any payment. He had the ability to do good, and he did it. Immediately.

Weeks later, Ricardo began planning a renovation in his apartment. His neighbor in 402, a young musician named Léo, lived in the adjacent apartment. Ricardo knew the work would make a terrible noise, but instead of talking to Léo to arrange the best times, he devised mischief.

“I’ll start the demolition on Saturday at eight in the morning. It is my right,” he thought, anticipating the confrontation. He did not seek peace, but veiled conflict.

Meanwhile, Davi was facing a similar problem. The tree on his balcony had grown, and its branches were encroaching on the window of his neighbor in 301. Instead of waiting for a complaint, he went to his neighbor’s door.

“Friend, I saw that my branches are getting in your way. I’m going to call someone to prune them this weekend. Is there a time that works best for you?”

The neighbor, surprised by the kindness, smiled.

“Not at all, Davi. Don’t worry about it. But since you brought it up, Saturday afternoon would be great.”

There was no fight, no needless strife, only respect.

The silent climax of the two neighbors’ lives came during a crisis. A severe hailstorm hit the city, breaking windows and damaging roofs. Ricardo’s car, parked on the street, had its windshield shattered. Desperate, he called his insurance, only to hear that the demand was enormous and that a tow truck would take hours, perhaps days.

As he looked forlornly at his car, he saw Davi approaching with a thick plastic tarp in his hands.

“Ricardo, I saw what happened,” Davi said, without any tone of accusation. “This won’t solve it, but at least it will protect the car’s interior from the rain until help arrives.”

Ricardo was speechless. He, who never offered anything, who planned harm against his neighbors, who withheld solutions, was now receiving help from the man he considered a fool.

“I… I don’t know how to thank you, Davi,” he stammered.

Davi smiled, a genuine smile. “There’s no need. We’re neighbors. We help each other.”

And with that simple sentence, he did not just cover Ricardo’s car; he covered his shame and taught him, without a single word of preaching, about the power of generosity, faithfulness, and peace. That day, Ricardo began to understand that true security was not in locking doors, but in knowing that, in a storm, there would be someone willing to open theirs for you.

(Made with AI)

This story is part of my book Everyday Wisdom

https://books2read.com/u/3knogL