Wise Up!

The book of Proverbs is written by Solomon and some others. By now, you should know that the main theme of Proverbs is Wisdom. The first 9 chapters of Proverbs talk about the need for Wisdom. Why Wisdom? What happens if you choose to reject wisdom? Very often, wisdom is personified as a woman crying out to God's people to receive her.

Proverbs 1: 5 says, "Let the wise listen and add to their learning, and let the discerning get guidance." while in 1:22 implores, "How long will you simple ones love your simple ways? How long will mockers delight in mockery and fools hate knowledge?"

I used to think that wisdom was something that is good to have. Not everyone is wise. But somehow, if you are really blessed, and you have lots of experience and you are matured in your ways, you are considered wise. It struck me that wisdom is not just something good to have, but something that God wants ALL of us to have. In fact Proverbs tells us that if you reject wisdom, we will end up being overwhelmed by distress and trouble! Now that is really something to think about isn't it? While we often chase after the qualities of God like love, joy, humility, etc. How many of us actually make it a point to be filled with wisdom?

What exactly is wisdom then? Why does the author of Proverbs tell us that "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of all wisdom?" I like the way J.I. Packer in his book, "Knowing God" put it.

"In scripture, wisdom is a moral as well as an intellectual quality, more than mere intelligence or knowledge, just as it is more than mere cleverness and cunning. For us to be truly wise, in the Bible sense, our intelligence and cleverness must be harnessed to the right end. Wisdom is the power to see, and the inclination to choose, the best and highest goal, together with the surest means of attaining it.

Wisdom is in fact, the practical side of moral goodness. As such, it is found in its fullness only in God."

If true wisdom in its fullness comes from God, then our inspiration for such wisdom should be God himself. It is no wonder that are to have the fear of God! What does the fear of God have to do with wisdom? Well, much. Having the fear of the Lord can be translated as 'being totally preoccupied with what God thinks of us." It is not the kind of fear that causes intimidation, but one that drives us to seek His approval and His approval only.

O God, more wisdom for me please!

To Rise Under Severe Tension

Our willingness to trust God is put to the test in difficult situations, not in easy ones. Did I just say something obvious? Not almost. God reminds us for the need to trust Him precisely because we struggle to do so in those areas.

I used to think that it is easiest to trust God in our times of desperation. I realised that people in desperation don't really trust God. They just need a quick solution to their problem. Trust is an intentional choice. A choice to say, "Yes, I will do it your way even though I really feel like doing it my way now cos I know my way will make me feel better and I really just need to feel better."

Trust is keeping the commandments of God in your heart and living and staying true to a life that will please God rather than your self or others, understanding that God is the ultimate justifier and judge of our lives. Even in the small things.

Yesterday, I was tempted to skip my presentation in school. I felt very lousy about the work I had done so far even though I knew that was the best I could do. I did not want to go through the whole process of standing before a crit panel and being "torn to shreds" by them. The thought of putting myself in that situation was just too unnerving. I had already typed an sms to my tutor to tell him that I had bad gastric and needed to see a doctor. Obviously it was a half-truth but I dreaded the crit presentation that much.

I thought long and hard about it and in a moment of seeming desperation, was going to press the 'send' button. Then I was reminded of what God has been teaching me. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding." Was I acknowledging God in this matter if I were to take the easy way out? The answer is obvious!

I took a deep breath and prepared my stuff. If God is a God who says will carry me through and I believed in such a God, then I need to let my actions speak for it. Thank God, the presentation did not go far south like I thought it would. I was certainly not "torn to shreds" as I imagined. In fact, I thought there were quite some constructive suggestions. Though I was still pretty negative about the whole experience yesterday, on hindsight today, I see it was the hand of God that brought me through. I now understand why Solomon said to acknowledge Him in all your ways and He will make your paths straight.

To borrow a quote,

"Be a (Godly) man. Do the right thing!"

About Trusting the Lord

Trust in the Lord to carry you through.

I'm going to jump to Proverbs 3 for a while as I've been meditating on this verse for a while. Provers 3:5-6 should be a very familiar verse to many of you. This is one of the verses that I grew up with, having memorised it as early as Primary school.

However, as I read it once again and let it sink into me, I realise that trusting God does not come as naturally as I expected. Proverbs 3:5-6 says, "Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight."

Trust in the Lord, not with one part of your heart, but with all of it. Not only in things that have to do with ministry, but in every area of your life.

I'm going through a really stressful period of my life right now. It is not a stress that I like or I want and it is causing me much anxiety and pain (in the stomach). As I meditate on the words, "Trust in the Lord", I find that while my mind tells me to do so, my heart does not dare commit. As I reflect more, I discover the root of it - I seek the approval of man more than I seek the approval of God. I find myself unable to trust God because I fear the outcome of doing so. An outcome that might make me look bad or lousy before man. I find that the stress comes from wanting to meet up to the expectation of the world. And I fear that by letting God take control, I might lose my worth before man. I realise too that deep inside, I have a faulty view of God. I fear that God will not come to my rescue. I fear the I will be left to my own means.

Look at vs 5 and 6 again, this verses do not just talk about how to live right. They speak about a God who is so great and so mighty that we will never fully comprehend or understand His ways. They speak about a God who is mighty to save. A God who is so powerful that nothing is beyond Him. That is why we can trust Him and Him only. Do you find your ways or the ways of the world contradicting with the ways of God? Yet, the Bible tells us, "Don't doubt Him. Trust Him. Do not depend on your own reading of the situation, do not think that there is no hope, do not fear what is to come. Trust in the ways of God! God knew it would be difficult to do so because we are so prone to doing things our way. Yet, God's only condition is to acknowledge Him in everything, and He will make things right.

Lord, renew my mind so that I will know how to trust you and to acknowledge you in all I do!

Wisdom and Discipline

I am reading Proverbs this period of time and I find it exceptionally intriguing and relevant as I am learning to manage stress in my school work and to trust in the Lord.

Proverbs 1
Prologue: Purpose and Theme
1 The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel:

2 for attaining wisdom and discipline;
for understanding words of insight;

3 for acquiring a disciplined and prudent life,
doing what is right and just and fair;

4 for giving prudence to the simple,
knowledge and discretion to the young-

5 let the wise listen and add to their learning,
and let the discerning get guidance-

6 for understanding proverbs and parables,
the sayings and riddles of the wise.

7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge,
but fools despise wisdom and discipline.

As I read through Proverbs 1, I observed that almost always, the word wisdom is mentioned together with discipline. Solomon seemed to know instinctively that one came with the other! True wisdom comes with discipline. A life of discipline makes you wise! As we read on, we realise that Solomon gives us a hint how to make the right choices with our people - a disciplined and prudent life!

Now, if you think back to what Solomon did as a living, you begin to understand that his words are truely precious! As a King, Solomon probably had to manage many things - his citizens, policies, welfare of the people, international relations, even war! It was important for him to do what was right, just and fair. And the secret to this? Acquiring a disciplined and prudent life.

What then is wisdom? I thought my pastor put it very rightly when he said it is the "art of living." I believe that is what Solomon was talking about when said in verse 3, "doing what is right, just and fair". That is what wisdom is! Doing what is right, just and fair before the Lord!

So what about discipline? How should I live a life of discipline? I believe it starts with creating intentional time to spend with the Lord. And this extends not just to spiritual disciplines but to all areas of my life. Am I living my life intentionally for God? I used to think so. But I realised discipline is something that I am weak at. It is not just something good to have. It is crucial in living my life right before the Lord. I will be looking into the various areas of my life to see how discipline can be instilled. I used to think it was a bad word, this discipline. I hated it. Now I believe it is part of becoming more Chirst-like. Amen

Your people are at best, what you are.

Being a spiritual mentor in all of the Christian sense is something we should never take for granted. Do not expect your people to be growing and living in victory if your life is not right before the Lord. Very often, it is easy to cruise on complacency in your own walk with God since by virtue of the fact that you are a leader, you already know more than your people. Do not be fooled though by this temporary sense of self-reliance in discipling your people. Shallowness can only breed shallowness. A life of sin will only breed a life of sin.

That is a scary though isn't it? That who we are, our people will become. But that is a given since discipling involves pouring out of our lives into the lives of others. If you only have superficiality and selfishness to pour out, that is what is going to go into the lives of your members. Now, I'm sure you are thinking, "Ok lah, I'm still ok. I don't think I am that selfish or superficial." Well I urge you to reflect upon this again. Are you consistent in your walk with God? Do you spend time regularly in prayer and worship? Is your life a testimony of obedience and love before God?

I say this not suggesting that we become religious and ritualistic in our "practice of Christianity". Rather, we need to realise that we are but stewards of God's people. Meaning, we take care of them on HIS terms, not ours. When we get into a lifestyle of self-dependence and self-reliance in our discipling, we have become ineffective in our discipleship. This is a crucial yet often unvalued principle of discipleship. To quote my pastor, "Take care of the depth of your relationship with God, and He will take care of the breadth of your ministry."

I myself often find my mind going into "self-reliant" mode, whereby I see myself teaching and discipling by relying on my past experiences and expertise rather than on supernatural and spiritual inspiration of the Holy Spirit. I discovered it is very easy to do so, especially in times of busyness and stress where I conveniently "chuck God into a corner of my cupboard" so that I can "take Him out again" when I am freer. How foolish of me! How deceived I have become!

I have decided to post my daily devotions on this blog too. It is my way of creating a structure to ensure my time with God and also a way of helping myself be more intentional in my reflection and meditation on the word of God. And I know it will help me become a better disciple-maker. May you be blessed and inspired as you read them.