Tag: wisdom

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A Silly Question

Daily Reading

Proverbs 24-26

Daily Thought

A silly question has been asked, “Can God create a rock so big he cannot lift it?” The answer? Yes, and then he would pick it up. A nonsense response to a nonsense question, but nonsense plus nonsense equals nonsense. Where is the wisdom?

Enter Proverbs, the book of wisdom, “Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest you be like him yourself. Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes” (Proverbs 26:4-5). This sounds like two proverbs that do not get along with each other. Which is it? Do I respond or ignore the fool?

Jesus was approached by a group of Sadducees, religious leaders “who say that there is no resurrection” (Matthew 22:23). Fools. They riddle Jesus, “A guy marries a girl, but he dies, so his brother marries her, but he dies, and so on, seven times. Then she dies. After they are raised from the dead, which of the seven brothers is her husband?” A silly question Jesus does not answer according to their folly, “You are wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God. For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven” (Matthew 22:29-30). Then Jesus answers the question they did not ask, their true folly. “As for the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was said to you by God: ‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not God of the dead, but of the living” (Matthew 22:31-32).

Never allow the fool to set the terms of a conversation. Wisdom sets the agenda, “and when the crowd heard it, they were astonished at his teaching” (Matthew 22:33).

Daily Prayer

My Righteous God, You passionately defend Your Name, because Your Name is good. You come with peace, but also with a sword. You fight for what is right because You care for the poor, the weak, the humble, and the broken. I fight for what is wrong because I care for myself.

Teach me to be passionate about the right things. You have not asked me to be timid, but to be courageous, yet gentle.  You gave me a Spirit of power and love and discipline. Give me also the wisdom to do what is right, to keep from sinning when I am properly angry, and to love and promote peace whenever possible.

Amen

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That’s Just Stupid

Daily Reading

Proverbs 19-21

Daily Thought

Proverbs speaks highly of this thing called the fear of the Lord, “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline” (Proverbs 1:7). It persists throughout the book and is always a good thing, “the fear of the Lord leads to life, and whoever has it rests satisfied” (Proverbs 19:23). Fear seems oddly out of place when we think of our God, full of love and grace and goodness. Why would we be told to fear? Good question, but try turning it around. Picture the guy standing tall and boasting, “I don’t fear God.” Well, that’s just stupid.

I remember December 1973, when Dad entrusted me with the keys to his brown 1963 Ford Galaxie. I loved that car! I was young, 16, and did not have a proper appreciation of two tons of steel and power and speed. And I drove like it. Now jump forward to July 2004, as I hand Abby, my first child, the keys to the family Suburban. As I put them in her hand, I feel the size, the weight, the speed, and the power. I understand, more than ever before, how fear can be a good thing. I hope she has some–it is where wisdom blossoms.

Peter had answered rightly, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God,” and Jesus responded, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 16:16-19).

The church has the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ. Our Father hands us the keys to his Kingdom. Consider the size and the weight and the power in our possession. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.

Daily Prayer

Great and awesome God, Almighty and Everlasting, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. That You even think about me is amazing, that You have saved me, adopted me into Your family, that I share in the inheritance of Your riches, that Your Holy Spirit has taken residence in me, that I am a child of God, welcomed to Your presence, forever a citizen of Your Kingdom. Wow. Thank You. I worship You. Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty.

May my life reflect Your glory.

Amen

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Turn On the Light

Daily Reading

Proverbs 7-9

Daily Thought

When you speak sin aloud, when you describe it accurately, the glamour fades. We prefer the secrecy of darkness; wisdom turns on the light. She knows what is going on, “For at the window of my house I have looked out through my lattice, and I have seen among the simple, I have perceived among the youths, a young man lacking sense” (Proverbs 7:6-7). She knows what you are up to, why you are where you should not be, “passing along the street near her corner, taking the road to her house” (v 8), and when you should not be, “in the twilight, in the evening, at the time of night and darkness” (v 9). She knows the tempting way of the wicked, “I have spread my couch with coverings, colored linens from Egyptian linen; I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. For my husband is not at home” (vv 16-17, 19). And she knows you, “All at once he follows her, as an ox goes to the slaughter” (v 22). 

She called you an ox. Wisdom does not flatter like that other woman, “the adulteress with her smooth words” (Proverbs 7:5).

Daily Prayer

My God, Creator of all, Author of good, Wise Judge, Loving Savior, I live this life for an audience of One. You are the crowd, it is Your applause I long to hear, “Well done good and faithful servant.” May my life be a reflection of Your grace and goodness. May I at all times be concerned for Your reputation, not my own. If I say I love You with all my heart and soul, mind and strength, may my words be backed up by my life.

Amen

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Lady Wisdom

Daily Reading

Proverbs 4-6

Daily Thought

In God’s eyes, and therefore in reality, there are only two ways to live, two paths, one leading to life, the other to death. In Proverbs, the two paths are traveled by two women, each to her own way. One is Wisdom, and she is a lady; “Keep hold of instruction; do not let go; guard her, for she is your life” (Psalm 4:13). The other, not a lady, is “the evil woman, the smooth tongue of the adulteress. Her feet go down to death” (Proverbs 6:24; 5:5). It is we who seek shades of grey between, who want to keep a woman in each hand, but God says choose.

One woman is enticing and easy, “for the lips of a forbidden woman drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil” (Proverbs 5:3). The pleasures are immediate, the dangers delayed, the temptation terrible. “Do not let her capture you with her eyelashes” (Proverbs 6:25). In contrast, the lady Wisdom must be pursued. You must want her and work for her; she doesn’t come easy. Proverbs 4:7 makes me laugh, “The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom”–like Steve Martin explaining how to become a millionaire, “First, get a million dollars.” It means, simply, to become wise you must want to become wise. You must choose to become wise, choose one woman over the other, because you must choose a path, and each woman has her own path. You must be willing to let go of that pleasingly available Wicked Woman of the moment and set your sights down the road.

Daily Prayer

God, forgive me the desires of the moment, of the immediate, of the attractive, of the available. Strengthen and deepen my desires, to love what is eternal and good, what never loses her beauty, what bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things, what never ends.

Give me wisdom, Heavenly Father. I seek it and I will work for it. I will dig deep in Your Word and let it dig deep in me. I love the path of wisdom, the path of life, the path that leads to Your Kingdom forever.

Amen

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Common Sense

Daily Reading

Proverbs 1-3

Daily Thought

For a few years as a youth pastor, I took a youth choir on tour, and one stop was a California Youth Authority facility in Ione. By facility, I mean prison, and the teenagers there had committed the most violent crimes, arson, rape, even murder. At the end of a performance, the inmates were given an opportunity to speak to us, and the first rose and said, simply, “Listen to your mother.” Apparently he had not. What he said was a proverb, not unlike what we find in the first chapter of the biblical proverbs,

“Hear, my son, your father’s instruction,
and forsake not your mother’s teaching” (Proverbs 1:8).

Proverbs are just that, simple slices of wisdom, often a couple lines long, poetic and easy to remember, and that’s the point. It is the simple, seemingly obvious things in life we neglect to our detriment. The book of Proverbs was written to make common common sense, “to know wisdom and instruction, to understand words of insight, to receive instruction in wise dealing, in righteousness, justice, and equity; to give prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the youth” (Proverbs 1:2-4).

Proverbs present a choice, a choice with consequences, “the wise will inherit honor, but fools get disgrace” (Proverbs 3:35). Results are not automatic; if you don’t listen to your mom, it does not mean you will end up in prison. But you have upped the odds.

Daily Prayer

My God, Creator of all, I’m going to ask for what Solomon asked for: wisdom. Teach me Your ways. I will stay on the path You put in front of me, I will follow You. As I do, God, may I know You better, may I understand You and the world You created, may I see more clearly the difference between right and wrong, and may my will be strengthened to choose rightly.

God, You have let me stand close to You. I trust You completely with everything, and deep down inside I know it would be foolishness to do anything but that. I know You hold all of life, all of what is good in Your hand. May I choose well, choose life, choose You. Simple choices matter; may I choose wisely.

Amen

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The Greater Fool

Daily Reading

Job 24-28

Daily Thought

Job challenges his friends, “Where shall wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding?” (Job 28:12). Certainly not among you three is at least half an answer. The friends have knowledge, but knowledge is not wisdom, and often the more a fool knows, the greater a fool he is. Knowledge is indiscriminate, wild and promiscuous, flirting with whomever it fancies, always the pursuer; but Wisdom is its own reward.

“Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom,” Job answers his own question, “and to turn away from evil is understanding” (Job 28:28). But (as Job points out) the wicked “live, reach old age, and grow mighty in power” (Job 21:7); and they seem to get away with it (Job 24). Why then turn from evil? 

Because for the wicked to live long and grow mighty is only to increase evil. But, in suffering, Job has found wisdom, the place of understanding. Stripped of all he has, he has discovered all he needs.

I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength. ~Philippians 4:12-13

Daily Prayer

To the only wise God, our Savior, be glory, majesty, dominion, and power, both now and forever, may I live a life devoted to and delighting in You. Everything else is a gift, and You are the giver of all that is good and worthwhile. I will seek You because You are God and You are true and You are good. It’s the wise thing to do.

I want to know You more to know You better. I see the wonder of Your ways in the world. You created the heavens and oceans, the gardens and grandeur, and all that breathes. There is this marvelous world, beyond our corruption, looking forward to redemption and restoration, freed from evil, filled with wisdom, for Your glory and our pleasure throughout eternity. Beyond my dreams, what more could I hope for?

Amen

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Wishes

Daily Reading

1Kings 3-5

Daily Thought

My oldest was 4-years old when Disney’s Aladdin premiered in the theaters. I asked her what she’d ask for if a genie appeared offering her “three wishes, to be exact. And ixnay on the wishing for more wishes.” Not a problem for my 4-year old. Abby said, “I’d wish for three more genies.” Abby was clever.

God said to Solomon, “Ask what I shall give you” (1Kings 3:5). It is the same offer without conditions. What would you ask for? God anticipated a request for long life or wealth or for some tortuous death of a particularly awful enemy, but no; “Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, that I may discern between good and evil” (1Kings 3:9). Solomon asked for wisdom. Solomon was already wise.

Two women approached Solomon, each having given birth, but one child died, and whose the live child belonged to was in dispute. Solomon pulled a sword and threatened to divide the child, half to each mother. The false mother thought that fair, but the true gave her son away, if only to keep him whole. “And so the king knew the true mother, and all Israel heard of the judgment that the king had rendered, and they stood in awe of the king, because they perceived that the wisdom of God was in him to do justice”

Do you think the wisdom of Solomon obvious? Who would dare take a sword to their child. It is common sense, but there are few things less common than common sense. The debt we take as a family or a nation, who pays the price? We take a sword to our children. What ought to be delightful words, “You are expecting,” threaten our independence and we take a sword to our children, literally. There is more, but you get the idea. The children suffer our sins and we need the wisdom of God to do justice.

Daily Prayer

Righteous God, You are just and good. You promise wisdom if I ask for it, but You warn me to ask with a pure and faithful heart. God, may I love You with all my heart, with all my strength, with all my mind. No division. May I seek You and You alone.

May I have the heart of Your Son, Jesus, who considered others better than Himself. Better than Himself! He is God. Your Son. Yet He washed the feet of His followers. Father, break into my heart. Teach me the humility of Christ. Let my love for You be displayed in my care and compassion for others. Give me wisdom to serve.

Amen

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No Matter What

Daily Reading

1Samuel 9-12

Daily Thought

Saul looked the part of king. Israel’s Charlton Heston, a rich kid, a tall, handsome young man. “There was not a man among the people of Israel more handsome than he. From his shoulders upward he was taller than any of the people” (1Samuel 9:2). He was the right man for the job, because the people were looking for a king “like all the nations” (1Samuel 8:5). Saul was a king after man’s heart.

It is not on the outside what makes the man, however, and though Saul looked the part, he proved a coward. The signs were evident early, had the people looked. “Behold, he has hidden himself among the baggage” (1Samuel 10:22). Courage is not the absence of fear, so Saul might be excused for cowering at the start. We, too, hide ourselves among the baggage. We have our excuses. “I’m really not sure I can do that”; but God responds, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2Corinthians 12:9). We point out others more qualified. “On the contrary,” says God, “the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable” (1Corinthians 12:22). We have this other obligation at the moment, but when it’s over, call me. A disciple tried that one, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” His dad wasn’t dead; he just wanted to wait until he was. Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead” (Matthew 8:21-22). “Sports! Band! The job! The vacation in Italy! Homework! Laundry! Life!” We hide in the baggage. “Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them” (Matthew 13:7-8).

Courage is not the absence of fear; it is answering the call, responding despite our fear, doing the right thing no matter what, and Saul never rose to the task. Saul could stand tall, taller than any in Israel; but he didn’t.

Daily Prayer

What a wonderful Creator. I look around at the world, the skies and the land, filled with marvelous works of Your hand. I cannot help but stop and marvel. This is the world You made for me.

Then I read from Your Word, “Let us make man in our own image, male and female. Let them rule over land and sea and air.” God, I pray that I rule well the kingdom you put in front of me. I pray that I courageously and boldly display Your wisdom in all I say and do.

God, I am willing and I need Your help.

Amen

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God Knows Best

Daily Reading

Numbers 8-10

Daily Thought

My son approached me with what seemed to be a reasonable request. “May I go to the movies tonight with my friends?” Which movie? Which friends? I asked the right questions. “Son, it seems like everything is okay.”

He started to walk away triumphantly. “But son, you know there is no ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ until your mom says ‘Yes’ or ‘No.’” 

He knew. My wife knows better. She knows if there is homework due. She knows how he’s behaved during the day. She knows his friends. I’ve learned, I dare not say ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ before checking with the one who knows best.

The Israelites were observing the Passover on the anniversary of their deliverance from Egypt. Some who were unclean (they had touched a dead body) still wanted to participate. They asked Moses if it was okay. It seemed a reasonable request.

And Moses said to them, “Wait, that I may hear what the LORD will command concerning you” (Numbers 9:8). 

Moses knew, check with the One who knows best.

Blessed is the one who listens to me,
watching daily at my gates,
waiting beside my door.
~Proverbs 8:34

Daily Prayer

Father God, You are wise, You are loving, You are good. What a blessing it is to bring my requests to You. I know that You will work all things to the good of those who love You and are called according to Your purpose. I want Your wisdom, God, and it is there for the asking. But I forget to ask. 

My love for You is shown by my obedience. My trust is displayed in my actions. May I be one who, all day long, seeks Your Word and Your ways, follows Your path, and walks in Your wisdom. May I be one who talks to You. And listens. 

Amen