Day 122, Year 1

Wisdom Dwells with Prudence

“I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, and I find knowledge and discretion.” (Proverbs 8:12 NASB)

God grants wisdom to the vast majority of people, but only a few are able to receive and accumulate wisdom, because the rest lack “prudence.” Today’s word, “prudence” in Hebrew verse is ‘ormah, which could have either positive or negative connotations. While it could mean “subtlety, or shrewdness,” its negative meaning includes “craftiness, or wilily.” The Chinese Union Version translation carries the meaning of “flexible and sensitive.”

To hold fast to God’s wisdom, our minds need to be flexible and adaptable rather than rigid and stubborn. This is because the wisdom and discretion that come from God often feel unfamiliar or strange, making it difficult for us to accept, understand, and even prone to reject them all. Therefore, we need to first adjust our mentality to receive God’s wisdom. Instead of only seeking familiarity and preferring to stay in our comfort zones, we need to cultivate a spirit of knowing, trying new things, and stepping out of all comfort zones, which are prerequisites to embracingGod’s wisdom. In life, we could cultivate a spirit of aliveness, openness, and flexibility by taking a different route home, trying new healthy food or drink we rarely consume, reading books that feel unfamiliar but may be beneficial, etc. Getting used to accepting new and good things could help us open up to God’s wisdom.

In a Chinese interpretation, one essential element of “prudence” is flexibility. Depending on their underlying intentions, people’s flexibility could lead to either good or evil outcomes. Wicked flexibility could lead people to act without restraints, even resorting to lying and committing crimes to pursue short-term benefits and pleasures. Thus, it was mentioned yesterday that God’s discretion might constrain His people, thereby protecting us. However, His constraints do not make us rigid or stubborn. Rather, His work makes us flexible, as the absence of evil destruction preserves our liveliness. God’s flexibility connects our hearts, hands, and mouths, as well as our thoughts and God’s wisdom. Of course, there is a great difference between human thoughts and God’s thoughts, but God’s wisdom could bridge the gap between the two. In the world, a small portion of knowledge and wisdom could strengthen our connection with God’s ones. We need to make significant adjustments so as to become His vessels of wisdom and thus share His spiritual blessings around us.

Reflection questions:

1) Is there a great difference between your thoughts and God’s wisdom? If so, what habits would you need to make in order to learn more of His wisdom?

2) Which quality do you currently need to strengthen the most—your openness to God’s wisdom or positive flexibility? What concrete actions do you need to take?