Searching in All the Right Places

                One thing we all have in common is a desire to be reasonably intelligent and able to make good decisions.  As believers we seek this needed wisdom from God.  “His every word is a treasure of knowledge and understanding.”  Prov 9:10   James chapter three explains the difference between true and false wisdom.  The true wisdom we seek is not how much knowledge we have but how we daily live our life.  In other words, wisdom is not the possession of knowledge but the proper application in the struggles of life.  This passage challenges our faith, asking us to examine the kind of wisdom we actually possess.

                Humility makes all the difference in whether we fight against our troubles or whether we receive God’s help to cope and stand strong through life’s storms.  “If a man is wise and understanding, he will demonstrate it by his good conduct coupled with the humble spirit that comes from wisdom.  Therefore, all who are truly wise will have the hallmark of genuine humility.”  William MacDonald   “God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.”  James 4:6   So we find that the man who is truly wise is genuinely humble.  This is a person who does not put on airs.  He doesn’t take his mindset from the world.  He understands the spirit is of greater importance than the body.  His life demonstrates both moral and spiritual cleanness.  He is peaceable and will not seek to justify himself.  He is gentle and tenderhearted.  He is easy to reason with, willing to see the other person’s point of view.  He is always ready to forgive those who have wronged him.  And most of all he seeks wisdom from Christ the true foundation of wisdom.  “For the reverence and fear of God are basic to all wisdom, knowing God results in every other kind of understanding.”  Prov 9:10

                Genuine humility will set the heart at ease.  Instead of contending we trust in God’s ability and power to make things right.  “Humility is perfect quietness of heart.  It is to be at rest when nobody praises me and when I am blamed or despised.  It is to have a blessed home in the Lord, where I can go in and shut the door and kneel to my Father in secret, and am at peace as in the deep sea of calmness when all around and above is trouble.”  Andrew Murray   Oh, how men try to educate themselves, striving for wisdom.  Friends, may we not overlook the obvious answer to human intelligence.  “How can make be wise?   The only way to begin is by reverence for God.”  Ps 111:10   In a world that is progressively rejecting God may we seek true wisdom.