together with Soul Care
Happy Tuesday, {{first_name| everyone}}!
If you missed yesterday’s introduction to Proverbs, you can read it here.
Today, we start unpacking the wisdom of Proverbs 18:10.
In today’s email…
🤯 Reading Proverbs for newbies
🥊 I was beating myself up for nothing
📊 Trivia to see if you’re reading closely..
MEMORIZE 🧠
The ____ __ the Lord is a ______ ______;
the righteous man runs into it ____ __ ____.
Proverbs 18:10
CONTEXT 📕
Today, let’s zoom out and see where this verse lives and why that matters (especially if you’re newer to following Jesus).
Proverbs is not written SOLELY to people who already have everything figured out. It’s also written to learners. To beginners. To people who want wisdom but don’t yet know how to live it out.
In fact, Proverbs opens with an invitation to the inexperienced, the simple, and the young in faith (Proverbs 1:4). This book assumes that most of us are still learning where to place our trust.
Chapter 18 is deeply honest about human instincts.
It talks about how quick we are to trust our own opinions, our own words, and our own understanding. It warns us about pride that feels strong but collapses under pressure.
Again and again, the chapter contrasts false security with real refuge.
Right before our memory verse, we’re reminded how easily words can wound, how isolation can feel protective but actually harms us, and how self-reliance can quietly turn into self-deception.
Then comes Proverbs 18:10.
The name of the Lord is a strong tower;
the righteous man runs into it and is safe.
In the ancient world, a tower was about protection and survival.
When danger came, you didn’t debate or delay, you ran. Towers were thick-walled, elevated, and defendable. They were places you went when you knew you couldn’t protect yourself.
That’s the image Scripture gives us for God.
Note: Anytime you see the Bible mention “the name of the LORD,” it’s not just talking about “what you call someone.”
God’s name represents who He is — His character, His faithfulness, His strength, His mercy.
Our culture today has elevated independence (not needing anyone else) as one of the highest ideals. To depend on others is to be needy and weak.
But as followers of Jesus, we have access to a strong tower we can run to.
And fortunately for us, our strength doesn’t come from ourselves.
It comes from the infinite God we depend on.
The question becomes: Do you run to the tower when things get hard?
TOGETHER WITH SOULCARE
How is my soul actually doing right now?
We’re almost two months into 2026. Have you taken a moment to pause and assess how your soul is doing?
If not, our friends at Soul Care created a free Soul Health Assessment to help you do just that. Here’s how it works:
Take the assessment: Answer a series of anonymous questions to assess how your soul is doing in a few core areas of life
Get your results: You’ll receive simple next steps you can take today to move towards greater health
Sometimes we can be faithful with reading Scripture, but still feel quietly tired inside. Soul care isn’t about doing more. It’s about understanding what’s happening beneath the surface and responding with wisdom.
Click below to get a pulse on your soul’s health today.
APPLY AND RESPOND 🏃♂
When I first started following Jesus, I thought faith meant having the answers.
I thought trusting God meant feeling confident, calm, and spiritually “put together.” What I didn’t realize was that faith actually begins when you admit you don’t know how to protect yourself anymore.
I remember sitting on the couch in my pastor’s office one day after school beating myself up that I knew SO LITTLE about the Jesus I had only known for about a month at that time.
Luckily, Proverbs 18:10 got a hold of me.
Righteousness isn’t about having spiritual strength, it’s about knowing where to run when you don’t.
If you’re new to faith (or even if you’ve been a Christian for some time), you may still be learning how to pray. You may not know much Scripture. You may feel exposed, vulnerable, or unsteady.
But none of that disqualifies you. So I want to give you the same prompts from yesterday to help solidify their impact:
Read Proverbs 18:10 out loud, slowly, two times.
Speak God’s name out loud: “God (Yahweh), You are my refuge.”
When stress appears today (it will in some form), pause and whisper His name before doing anything else.
You don’t need to be strong. You just need to know Who to run to.
🙏 Pray
Father, thank You that You are a place of safety for people like me who are still learning, still growing, still unsure. Thank You that I don’t have to protect myself or pretend to be strong. Teach me to run to You, not just when I’m desperate, but as my daily instinct. Shape my heart to trust who You are. Amen.
TRIVIA 📊
Click one of the answers below. Let’s see how you do…
In Proverbs 18:10, what image is used to describe the name of the Lord?
ANSWER KEY ✅
The name of the Lord is a strong tower;
the righteous man runs into it and is safe.
Proverbs 18:10
Best,
The Malachi Daily team 🙏
Today’s Contributors
Payton is a husband and father in Vero Beach, FL. He serves as the Email Marketing Manager at Faith Driven Entrepreneur and helps Christians master storytelling through his newsletter, Christian Story Lab.
Kieran is a husband and father living in NJ. In addition to Malachi Daily, he writes a personal newsletter about the intersection of faith, fatherhood and entrepreneurship.
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Imagine you’re reading your physical Bible and come across something you don’t fully understand. And you have questions like:
What does it mean to “cast lots,” and why did people do it?
What is Jesus trying to teach us in this parable?
What was David going through when he wrote this Psalm?
Imagine you could:
Take a picture of what you’re reading in your physical Bible with your phone
Type or speak the question you have
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It would be like having a personal Bible study coach with you 24/7…
Would you want something like that?
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