“Words of Wisdom”
by Keith Leach, September 2024

Proverbs 22:1 A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favor is better than silver or gold.

The idea of wisdom and seeking wisdom are popular topics in the Bible. Proverbs is a book written with the wisdom of the ages and is indeed stocked with sayings and ideas that should guide us all to a more meaningful, happy and successful time on earth. However, we can see this truth only if we begin to see how true “success” is measured with the same measuring stick that God uses.

The Biblical understanding of wisdom is about growing closer to God and leading a genuine life in close communication with God. Our lives should be filled with loving God, by trying to practice what God has commanded. Do we listen and wait for God’s response? Do we trust God’s directions and not just do what seems best to us? God’s instructions to us say that we should love God with all our heart, mind, body and soul and our neighbors as ourselves.
Thus, the question we should be asking ourselves daily is, “Am I working to obtain a closeness with God by practicing the things that God has asked me to do?” If you are like me, the answer to that question is, “Not as much as I should be.”

However, we cannot let ourselves be stuck on our own failings, either perceived or real. We should try diligently to always strive for the ideal that Jesus taught his disciples. Yet, in failure, we are moving closer to God. As we accept and acknowledge our shortcomings and continue to try, we are indeed becoming wiser. Too often, I hear people saying one of two things about their relationship with God: 1) I will never meet God’s expectations, so why try; 2) I am so bad God can never love me.

We all must remember that, “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” God understands the impossibility of humans being perfect. If we are to become a Godly, wise person, we must look at the world with a wisdom that comes from God. We are to strive to grow closer by listening to the wisdom of the ages, thus, by loving God.