Live, learn, be free

Finding Wisdom

I read a story once about an factory assembly line breaking down.  The factory manager called in a consultant to help remedy the situation. After looking and searching the line the consultant pulled out a hammer and tapped an area of the line and it began to work again.  The factory manager was thrilled and thanked the consultant for his help. 

The factory manager received a bill for $10,000 from the consultant.  The manager was upset and requested and itemized bill from the consultant.  The second bill stated $5 for tapping the hammer/$9,995 for knowing where to tap.

Wisdom is knowing where to tap.  There are times in our lives where we need help and we know where to tap but there are other times when we need help and it requires finding someone who knows where to tap.  We would be fools to think we will always know where to tap the hammer.

The book of Proverbs in the Bible is filled with advice for finding wisdom.  God should be our ultimate source of wisdom.  God has also put people in our lives that will walk with us and tap the hammer for us when we don't know where to tap.

When you need to seek wisdom ask God first.  Proverbs 17:24 says, "a discerning man keeps wisdom in view, but a fool's eyes wander to the ends of the earth."  Lets be people who keep wisdom in view and not let our eyes wander. 

Proverbs 31 Woman, Truth or Fiction

We have all read about her and scoffed and the ridiculousness of her actions.  I could never do all that, we exclaim.  Who could possibly do all that?  Low self esteem is the number one problem among Christian women today. 

We all want to know, "who am I"?  God not only made us but He created us.  God has the power to change our minds.  I think if we are going to accept anything God has to say, we need to believe that we are a child of God. 

I think as we read the beginning of this chapter we find out this is an oracle taught to the king by his mother.  Many scholars believe this was a compilation of what many women were doing for their families.  We admire this Proverbs 31 woman but at the same time we dislike her.  We feel hopeless and helpless.

The kings mother was teaching him to respect what mothers and wives do for their families.  It is important for us to understand that God does not expect us to copy this woman.  We can not exhibit all these attributes at once. 

I think the important part that God wants for us all is what lies in her heart.  She gives of herself to others because she is "a woman who fears the Lord".  God longs for us to just yield our attitudes and actions  whether we are sitting at the city gates or home with our families. 

I think rather than spending our time trying to copy the actions of this woman we need to copy her heart.  Verses 25-26 tell us, "she is clothed in strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come.  She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue."

May these words give you peace and hope that you do not have to live up to something impossible.  God just wants you to do what you are doing, loving your family and caring for them inside and out.  It gave me such freedom to know I did not have to live up to the impossible but I could love God and my family and do what God wants for me.