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1 The proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel:
2 To know wisdom and instruction,
to understand words of insight,
3 to receive instruction in wise dealing,
in righteousness, justice, and equity;
4 to give prudence to the simple,
knowledge and discretion to the youth—
5 Let the wise hear and increase in learning,
and the one who understands obtain guidance,
6 to understand a proverb and a saying,
the words of the wise and their riddles.
7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge;
fools despise wisdom and instruction.
At some point in our lives, we’ve looked through a kaleidoscope. It’s a very simple toy, and engaging enough to keep us busy, especially when we were younger. With just a few simple colored chips, we can feel awe at the beauty of simplicity. We can imagine these simple, colored chips as bits and pieces of our lives, and as we live, texture and color change to form a new reality. Wisdom is much the same, but it’s a reflection of God, not us.
God wants so bad for us to gain wisdom, he makes it easy to have. It begins with reflecting on God. Solomon calls this the fear the Lord. This ‘fear’ is a sense of awe, respect, wonder, perhaps even fascination! This is the first and necessary part to become wise. But, this is just the beginning. Without moving onto the second part, the journey is incomplete. It’s like starting off in Littleton on a journey to Paris, France but stopping as you approach I-25. You’ve had the initial rush of starting the journey, but you came nowhere near to completing it! We’ve all met people who fit into this category. They might have plenty of knowledge stored up but when it comes to making use of it in everyday life, they’re lost. But it doesn’t have to be this way!
James provides us the next, sometimes overlooked, part of the journey. Once we’re captured in the awe that God inspires, the intense respect and wonder, we begin down the pathway of knowledge. In James 1:5-8, the rest is plainly written: “Ask God for wisdom.” Our generous God will give it! When we ask in faith – confident in God’s marvelous character – wisdom becomes the wonderful gift God extends toward us with open hand. We, then, have the choice to believe in wisdom’s goodness, to believe in God’s purpose, and to walk in it even when the pathway seems uncertain. But, if we choose doubt, we’ll certainly walk away empty. Today, ask God for the wisdom you desire to receive and ask him for greater faith to believe his ways are best.
5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God,
who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.
But let him ask in faith, with no doubting,
for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.
7 For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord;
8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
– James 1:5-8
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By Rich Obrecht
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