“Faith Promises”

I believe all have this in common: that we want to be happy. We do not all agree on what brings the greatest happiness, but we do all long to have it. Of course, this does not mean that there is no discipline or no self-denial.

"If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it" Mark 8:34, 35.

But it is clear from Jesus' words that self-denial is a means to saving our lives. This means simply that we must stop seeking our happiness in one way and start seeking it in another. Therefore, what sets Christians off from the world is not that we have given up on the universal quest for happiness, but that we now seek our happiness from a different source and in different ways. My point is that we should "get wisdom." We should bend all our efforts to become wiser tomorrow than we are today. And I speak this, to all. "Happy is the man who finds wisdom and the man who gets understanding." Proverbs 24:13-14 my questions to you are, why is it so important and what is the implication of wisdom in a servant’s life?

My thoughts on this goes back to 1973 my first year as a freshman football player at Iowa State University. My coach Earle Bruce use to always start football camp with a Poem, “The Pig”. At the time, I always thought what a stupid hokey story by coach, by the time I was a 5^th year senior, that wisdom of a story started to resonate to me and in a sense, I asked myself, “was that biblical? For me, it related to Proverbs 4:8, which says, "Prize her highly and she will exalt you; she will honor you for your embrace." These are not cheap words. To prize something and to embrace someone of integrity. Wisdom must be valuable for us. We must be willing to sell all in order to buy or trust it: "Seek it like silver, and search for it as for hidden treasure"Proverbs 2:4. Listen to the words as you read:

“The Pig”

It was an evening in November,

As I very well remember,

I was strolling down the street in drunken pride,

But my knees were all a-flutter,

And I landed in the gutter

And a pig came up and lay down by my side.

Yes, I lay there in the gutter

Thinking thoughts, I could not utter,

When a colleen passing by did softly say

‘You can tell a man who boozes

By the company he chooses’—

And the pig got up and slowly walked away.

"My son, pay attention to my wisdom; Lend your ear to my understanding. That you may preserve discretion, and your lips may keep knowledge. For the lips of an immoral woman drip honey, and her mouth is smoother than oil; Remove your way far from her, and do not go near the door of her house, lest you give your honor to others, and your years to the cruel one."  Proverbs 5:1-3 & 8-9



It doesn't take a Christian leader very long to realize that it's easier to give good advice than to follow it. Solomon proves the point. He tells us repeatedly and with great conviction that only fools fall into adultery. Solomon knew very well the spiritual issues at stake in marriage, for he declares, "The ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord, and He ponders all his paths" (Proverbs 5:21). 



And yet, somehow, this same Christian leader failed to heed God's explicit warning against kings taking many wives (Deuteronomy 17:17). Solomon blatantly disobeyed this command and married seven hundred women. The result? "His wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the Lord his God" (1 Kings 11:4). 

Wise leaders not only give good advice; they heed it. How different the fortunes of Israel might have turned out had Solomon acted on the wisdom he so forcefully expressed to others!

Consider these five biblical instructions for wisdom that I have learned over the years, but do not think that you can fully understand them simply on your own. These words are meant to sequence you into The Way of Knowledge (Biblical steps), not to define The Way of Knowledge. "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction."

Proverbs 1:7

·      First, desire wisdom with all your might.

·      Second, since wisdom is found in the Word of God, we must apply ourselves in study and meditation to know the Word and do it, With others.

·      The third thing we should do to get wisdom is pray.

·      Fourth, think of the shortness of this life and the infinite length of the next.

·      Fifth, there is one last, absolutely essential thing to do if you would "get wisdom": you must come to Jesus. He said to the people of his day, "The queen of the south will arise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold something greater than Solomon is here Matthew 12:42

Make this journey my friend, not simply trying to understand it. But a journey of a Faith Promise to yourself for life! which is directed by the help of the Holy Spirit. Making this journey is a path of learning pure Truth. As your Wisdom grows, as you gain this new foundation of Faith, this new ability and this new experience in life, Knowledge will emerge within you. And you will be able to receive it, to follow it and to express it with love to those people for whom it is intended; your 100-foot circle, according to your nature and design that God has planned for you. Remember this greater purpose that you are learning is to serve like Jesus, the art of being in a life of daily Action; with a great purpose and the great mission of the Good News.

God Bless You and This Ministry!