Seek God and seek wisdom

By Dean Collins

Part two of passages from Proverbs that I have stared at and prayed about recently.

“Hear, my son, and be wise, and direct your heart in the way.” (19)
”My son, give me your heart, and let your eyes observe my ways.” (26)

My wife and I are blessed to have 8 grandchildren ranging from 2 -14 years of age. While we certainly believe that they are the cutest, the smartest, the most clever, and on and on, we are fully aware that they are not perfect. And while you and I might disagree on whose grandchildren are the smartest and best looking, I can assure you that, as wonderful as your grandchildren are, they are not perfect either.

When I worked as a marriage and family therapist several years ago, I would often remind my clients that as much as they might wish otherwise, their spouse and their children were, in fact, sinners. We all are. The beautiful thing about God’s redemptive plan is that all of us have access to forgiveness for our sins and can be restored to a rich and full connection with our Creator and Savior.

Back to our grandchildren. When we observe less-than-ideal behavior from one of the grandchildren, my wife reminds me: “They are just doing their job.” What she is expressing is that as children go through different stages, they are testing the limits and boundaries of their understanding and their space relative to their age. A two-year-old who says “no” isn’t being bad; they are simply working on what they have control of as well as where their control ends. We want our children and grandchildren to grow into independence where they take full responsibility for their lives.

As I consider scripture, I often think about this principle relative to our relationship with God and with his creation. The truth is that we are called to take responsibility for ourselves and, at the same time, to depend on God.

In Galatians chapter 6, Paul reminds us that we are to evaluate our actions. We are not responsible for what another person does. We each have responsibility for our own behavior and our work. We have to do our job.

Right after the writer of Hebrews describes the word of God as living and active, revealing our thoughts and intentions, we read that ultimately, we must give an account for our own behavior.

Proverbs is filled with passages that guide us to seek God and seek wisdom before we make our choices. When we follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit and of scripture, we are learning to trust God with all our heart so that he can direct our paths. Verse 26 says that when we give our hearts to God, what follows is that our eyes will observe his ways.

In God’s great love, he came to earth in the person of Christ so that we could see examples of God’s love in action. The gospels are filled with the teachings of Jesus and the actions of Jesus. In John 5, Jesus said that he does “only what he sees the Father doing.” As I consider Proverbs 23:26, it seems that when we surrender our hearts to our Heavenly Father, we then develop the capacity to see and observe the ways of God.

Those who saw Jesus, observed Jesus in real time. They could see the eye contact he made, the dirt on his feet as he walked by the seashore or through the streets of Jerusalem. When we surrender to Jesus, we are reconciled to God. We are also given the Holy Spirit who gives us new capacity to know God’s wisdom, to observe God’s ways, and to obey God’s ways.

As followers of Jesus, we are to be rooted and built up in Christ. Mature believers not only take responsibility for themselves but also learn to depend on God as their source of wisdom. We who follow Jesus also show our neighbors and the world the love of Christ. As we observe God’s ways, we show them to others through our obedience to Christ who has forgiven us and transformed us through the renewal of our minds and hearts.

Father, today we desire to hear from you. We ask that you direct our hearts in our decisions and actions today. We desire to see and observe your life through scripture and through the guidance of your Holy Spirit. May our words and actions reflect your kingdom in every way today. In Jesus name, Amen.

Your Time with God’s Word
Proverbs 23:19, 26; Galatians 6:4-5; Hebrews 4:12-13; John 5:19; John 15:4-5 ESV

Photo by Jessica Lewis 🦋 thepaintedsquare: https://www.pexels.com/photo/black-mug-with-proverb-from-holy-bible-4200827/
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