Wisdom – Day One
by Deb Weakly
“Take your time. Think it through. Find the will of God.” -Life motto of Henry Parsons Crowell, founder of Quaker Oats
1. Call your prayer partner for your 10-minute prayer call. If you are having trouble connecting, keep trying!
Done:______
2. It’s time to meet with your Jesus! Take a moment to make a cup of something hot and delicious, light a candle, and go to where you meet with God. Pause and consider who God is. He is “the maker of the heavens and the earth”, the mighty one, for whom “the mountains melt like wax at His presence”, and the God who has chosen to make His home in your heart. What an amazing mystery! Praise be to the God who is unsearchable and yet personal all at the same time. He is always near to you and wants to have a relationship with you, and loves you more than you could ever imagine. Ask this personal God to speak to you as you read His word.
3. Read James 1:2-7 and write verse 5 in your journal. For rich, deep study, read the whole chapter.
The older I get, the more I see that there is a shortage of Christians who keep the faith and finish well. Some Christians become bitter and sour as they age. They seem to have lost their faith and joy in the Lord. I want to grow old loving God and trusting Him until my very last breath.
My husband’s great-uncle, John Bass, is a wonderful man of God who was the former CEO of the Christian Booksellers Association. After stepping down from this position, he spent a very large chunk of his later years with The Crowell Trust, a foundation started by the Quaker Oats Company that supports missionary work.
A little while ago, Uncle John fell and broke his hip. My husband and I went to see him in the hospital, and I noticed how frail and weak his 89-year-old body looked. Even though he was in pain, he was still his usual self, in cheerful spirits. He was singing the Lord’s praises, how great God is to him, and how well He has taken care of him.
I absolutely love John’s sweet faith in God and constant trust in His care.
Several years ago when John lost his precious bride, Betty, to pancreatic cancer, I was concerned for him and said, “Oh John, I am so very sorry. I am so sad and my heart hurts for you.” Uncle John’s response to me showed his beautiful, sweet trust in his Jesus: “But Deb, I have the Lord!” What a beautiful, faith-filled statement.
Yes, John has the Lord, and I admire his beautiful heart and amazing faith.
His faith-filled life truly has been incredible and impacting to many, many leaders in the Christian arena. John spent most of his life traveling around the world meeting and encouraging people to stay in faith and to lead their people well. Even in his old age, many of them still seek to meet with John regularly even at his retirement home. They fly and drive in from all over the world just to see John and listen to his wisdom and advice for their ministries.
Once, I asked him what has been the biggest contributor to his amazing life in the Lord.
He said, “For the last 30 years, I have prayed and asked God for 3 things daily, wisdom, knowledge, and compassion.”
I started praying and asking God for these 3 things about 10 years ago and it has made a huge difference in my life! I know my life and family have benefited from me asking God daily for His wisdom, knowledge and compassion. There have been many situations in my life where the wisdom that I possessed could only have come from God. God has been so faithful to answer this prayer, and my life is a testimony to His generosity in how He has answered!
How about you? Are you ready to be blessed and walk in wisdom? Start today and pray this prayer, “Most gracious Heavenly Father, I ask you today for your
wisdom, knowledge and compassion. Help me to live wisely and to obey your Word. I love you, God! In Jesus name, Amen.”
4. Questions to ponder:
- Who are the people you consider wise in your life?
- How is their wisdom lived out in words? -In actions? -In attitudes?
5. Faith Filled Idea # 1-Today, write these 3 words wisdom, knowledge and compassion on 3 sticky notes and place one at your kitchen sink, one on your bathroom mirror and one in your car.
Let them serve as reminders for you to pray and ask God for wisdom, knowledge and compassion every day. Done:______
Wisdom – Day Two
by Mari Jo Mast
“For our benefit God made him to be wisdom itself…”
1. It’s a brand new day to spend time with Jesus! He is longing to meet with you, to give you wisdom so you can be successful in everything you do! Pray for God to give you wisdom to help you understand today’s study and apply it to your life.
2. Grab your Bibles and read 1 Corinthians 1:18-31. If you have extra time, read chapter 2 as well! Write verse 30 in your journal.
“Wisdom is a beautiful thing to desire.”
As a believer, the quest for wisdom must begin in the Scriptures. It is where the foundation is laid for all Truth. According to the Bible, wisdom is really quite simple, yet it is profound!
In 1 Corinthians 1:30 (NLT), it says that Jesus IS Wisdom.
“For our benefit God made him to be wisdom itself…”
If Jesus is wisdom itself, that means the life He lived here on earth was wise in every way. Here is where we can learn- wisdom is not this illusive concept that we can’t ever get a hold of, it is a tangible reality lived out by the Son of God. We can observe His life to understand it!
To explain a little further, let’s begin with Jesus in the Gospels. Most of us are familiar with his writings and teachings. As we remember the stories and parables, they begin to unfold and we realize Jesus is not your ordinary guy. I mean, He is kind to his enemies and doesn’t retaliate. He heals the poor and sick and speaks words of life to his disciples. He loves little children when they are despised, and forgives those who spit in his face, genuinely loving them! He asks His Father to forgive the very ones who torture and kill him and says not to hold it to their account. There are many more examples, but more importantly, He lives everything he teaches.
Who lives like this?
I wonder. Have we ever realized or thought about it that this is God’s kind of Wisdom lived out for us to see and live? Though it looks completely foolish to an unsaved world, Jesus was our model to teach us how to live as believers.
But, how can we as mere humans live like that?
The Bible says in John 1:14 (NIV) that Jesus IS The Word!
“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us…”
Because Jesus is Wisdom AND He is The Word, He alone is everything we need to live wisely. If we have believed in Jesus, made him Lord of our life and asked for His spirit, we are already wise and full of the Word in our spirit man, the part of us that becomes saved when we are born again. This is an amazing truth. The Bible says in Hebrews that he writes his laws on our hearts (our very being) when we become born again. (Hebrews 8:10) God has fully equipped us through Jesus who is The LIVING WORD and WISDOM itself, IN US! That is astounding!
To make it clear, though, our physical mind and flesh still need to be sanctified and renewed daily to surrender to the lordship of Jesus (this wisdom) in us. This is why we have the written Word to remind us what the eyes of Jesus see, what his ears hear and what his voice sounds like, until we begin to see and hear like him in our own heart. Then HE is the one who gives us the POWER to live like he did! God didn’t just give us the knowledge of how to live right, he actually equips us by giving us the Spirit of Jesus himself!
Being in the presence of Jesus, brings wisdom. Let’s draw on and give Wisdom and The Word the freedom to reign in our everyday lives. We will become more and more wise like Jesus as we do that!
This morning I awoke with these words on my heart: “Wisdom is a beautiful thing to desire.” And then it dawned on me. Because when we desire wisdom, we are desiring Jesus himself!
Below is a link to a wonderful song from Kari Jobe/Cody Carnes that invites the presence of the Holy Spirit to come and breath on us. As you listen, let Him wash over you, bringing fresh wisdom and perspective to your day. We are so loved and blessed by God.
Preview YouTube video Kari Jobe – Holy Spirit (Live) ft. Cody Carnes
3. Questions to ponder: Write the answers to these questions in your journal.
– Pray and ask God is there an area in your life in which you are letting the wisdom of this world guide you? How can you give that area to God today?
-What’s one example of Christ’s wisdom you will decide do differently for the rest of the week? (crazy forgiveness to the unforgivable, love to enemies, etc…)
4. Faith-Filled Idea:
-Be serious about praying and asking God for wisdom each day. Also, ask Him for wise friends and wise counsel who will pray with you. Actively pursuing wise, godly friends in our lives helps us to keep our focus on God. Do you have a wise friend that you can go to with questions or concerns? Praying with a wise friend can bring clarity and answers to any questions we may have. If not, I urge you to pray for God to reveal this person to you.
Wisdom – Day Three
“Prayer is the difference between the best you can do and the best God can do.” Mark Batterson.
1. Grab your Bible and journal and find a quiet, comfy place to sit. Take a moment to relax, clear your thoughts, and focus on what God has for you. Pray that He speaks to you by showing you how to apply His word to your life today.
2. Read Proverbs 3:1-8, and write Proverbs 3:5-6 in your journal.
Praying For God’s Wisdom
When my first child started kindergarten, I imagined it to be a great experience for everyone. I looked forward to no more preschool tuition, a fun-filled day of friends and art projects for my kindergartener, and uninterrupted naps for her baby sister. Reality turned out to be far different from the scenario that had played out in my head. I had always considered her high-energy personality fun and quirky, but suddenly I was pressured to seek diagnosis and treatment for ADHD. Completely blindsided and unprepared, I checked out every library book on ADHD I could find.
Instead of finding answers, I became confused and terrified. None of the solutions I came across felt right for her. I clearly remember collapsing on my daughter’s bed after a difficult day that had left us both overwhelmed and defeated. We said our usual bedtime prayers, except that out of utter desperation I asked God for wisdom – wisdom to simply deal with life.
Proverbs 3:5-6 teaches us to “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight.” I had exhausted all my wisdom and resources. I humbly placed my circumstances in God’s hands, and as a result, He led my family on a path that changed our lives. I eventually discovered that for some kids ADHD is a symptom of food allergies or intolerances, and that turned out to be her underlying issue.
Over the next few years, we revamped our family’s diet. After much research, diligence, and discipline, we saw great improvements in my daughter’s health and behavior. Now six years later, if I told someone my daughter has ADHD, they’d think I’m crazy. God answered my prayer in more ways than I could have imagined.
James 1:5 tells us, “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault.” It took me so long to be vulnerable with God, lean on Him, and trust Him because I viewed God as distant and unapproachable.
His promises seemed to apply to perfect godly people instead of me, a sinner with a questionable past and plenty of flaws. I learned that God doesn’t view me that way. Just as a mom sees her stubborn, quick-tempered, and selfish two-year-old as a precious treasure whose character will improve in time, God looks beyond our flaws to seeHis beloved children with great potential. God loves us and wants to help us all.
God does not promise that any of us will have a perfect life, but He does promise to help us work out our own circumstances if we seek Him. “[For] we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him…” (Romans 8:28). Go ahead and seek God’s wisdom and goodness; it is readily available to all. According to Proverbs 8, it is shouting to anyone who will listen. Just pray and listen, my friends.
3. Questions to ponder:
1. What are your current struggles? Are you relying on your own understanding or on God’s wisdom?
2. How can you seek wisdom to overcome these challenges?
4. Faith-Filled Idea:
This is not the “prosperity gospel.” It is cause and effect. You will reap good results by following sound advice from wise and trustworthy sources. God, the Bible, King Solomon, (the author of Proverbs 3) are all wise and trustworthy sources. God is our loving Father who offers guidance through scripture to aid in our well-being. Proverbs 3 not only tells us how to live, but it also provides a list of God’s promises that directly correlate with His instructions.
Draw a line down the middle of your journal page to separate it into two columns. Label the left column “instructions” and the right column “results.” Read through Proverbs 3. Write the commands in the left column (“instructions”) and the consequences of following those commands in the right column (“results”), one or two verses at a time. It is long, so don’t feel like you have to write them all. You can write out the whole chapter, just do the first few, or pick the verses that speak to you. You do you!
Ask God for His guidance in applying these scriptures to your life.