Day 97, Year 1 Wisdom Gives People Hope
“So shall the knowledge of wisdom be to your soul; If you have found it, there is a prospect, and your hope will not be cut off.” (Proverbs 24:14 NKJV)
“Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.'” (James 4:15 NKJV)
The phrase “so shall … be to your soul” in the first verse of today refers to the previous verse that states “eat honey which is sweet to your taste.” Wisdom nourishes people’s hearts and spirits, and gives people hope for the future. Opposite to the wise, there are the fools or the simple-minded people. But this does not mean they cannot think or devise complex schemes to do evil. This “simple” alludes to their short-sightedness, focus on short-term benefits, and lack of long-term planning toward eternity.
Some foolish people are only nostalgic, or always remember the good old days, because those intoxicated by the past are only squandering their present time and wasting their lives. But, the hope of wise believers is in God’s promised future. Meanwhile, we should be grateful to Him for things that happened in the past. Apart from that, by summarizing past experiences, reflecting on the reasons for our mistakes, and learning lessons from them, we can improve ourselves and wisely embrace a better future. Often, short-term plans for the future are necessary. But more importantly, we need to offer our plans in prayers, as the second verse of today suggests, asking for the Lord’s guidance to “do this or that” according to His will. In prayers, we entrust our choices for the future to Jesus, then let His will and plan be done in us. He will definitely guide us and reveal His guidance in our prayers.
Divine wisdom brings hope to believers, which is essential for those who choose God’s life. The hope in a better future will drive us to seek and follow His wisdom, and as a result, we will have the prospect. So, no matter how dire our current situations are, believing that Jesus will grant us a better tomorrow will motivate us to seek and obey His wisdom. Hence, if your outlook on life is relatively pessimistic or negative, commit these perceptions or impressions to Jesus and ask Him to change your view.
Finally, before they are able to receive wisdom, some people need to change their thinking habits or mindsets first. All the obstacles that hinder people from receiving God’s wisdom need to be removed beforehand. As mentioned earlier, if you have yet to distance yourself from evil deeds and are unwilling to accept the correction from wisdom, you need to address promptly the underlying problematic attitudes and thoughts with God’s help. This process might motivate you to demolish some false or irrational beliefs and thinking patterns, and even change some of your emotional responses. After all these, you will indeed have a blessed prospect.
Reflection questions:
1) Do you believe the Lord Jesus will grant you a better future? If you do, how would you need to adjust your attitude toward life?
2) What obvious obstacle(s) hinder you from receiving God’s wisdom? How would you rely on the Lord’s help to tackle it