Knowledge is where you receive information gathered from different sources. Wisdom is the synthesis of the knowledge and experience to create a meaningful understanding.
I have been fortunate and blessed to have many mentors in my life, and one of the most influential mentors I have currently is my aunt. On the 31st of October she will reach a new chapter in her life, she will be 80 years young. She has had a life full of experiences. She is my mother’s older sibling. She was born right at the beginning of World War II. She experienced segregation and integration on a very intimate level. As she grew up to adult she worked in the school system. Her career in the school system spans over approximately six decades.
She is a person who has shown me how to work hard and diligently for the future. She started her school career as a cafeteria worker. She pursued her dreams and aspirations by attending night school to complete her Bachelor and Masters degree. She became a teacher, then a counselor, and then an administrator. For the last 20 years post-retirement she has still been in the classroom teaching technology to kindergarten through second graders. She has so much life experiences that I hope to attain half of that information in a knowledge in my lifetime.
When searching for a subject for my “Writer’s choice” my first thought was to call my aunt and ask her what are her words of wisdom that she would give to me to share in this blog. As we spoke she tells me about life; about marriage; about children; and about health. As we speak I ask her, “ What are some of your favorite verses or scriptures?” Her first response is John 14:1-3
Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God[a]; believe also in me. 2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.
As we speak the Holy Spirit starts to speak to her and she gives me some very amazing nuggets of wisdom starting with Luke and also Genesis. She mentions Luke 6:27-36 where Jesus is telling the crowd to love your enemies as yourself
27 “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29 If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. 30 Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. 31 Do to others as you would have them do to you.
32 “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. 35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
Genesis 45: 1- 3 (The Full chapter relays the fullness of the story)
Then Joseph could no longer control himself before all his attendants, and he cried out, “Have everyone leave my presence!” So there was no one with Joseph when he made himself known to his brothers. 2 And he wept so loudly that the Egyptians heard him, and Pharaoh’s household heard about it.
3 Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still living?” But his brothers were not able to answer him, because they were terrified at his presence.
In Genesis 45, this is the ultimate reveal of Joseph to his brothers. In this particular situation Joseph meets his brothers after several years been estranged from them because they sold him into slavery to never be seen again. In this particular scene Joseph could have done one of two things: he could have completely banish them and set them off in isolation or he could show love to his enemies, which are his brothers, he chooses the latter.
In this particular section we can see how Love is through the Holy Spirit in both Luke and Genesis. It’s amazing how my aunt was able to bring these two sections together in such manner with flawless effort.
It is easy for us to love our friends our neighbors our family. But it is almost impossible to love individuals that want to do harm to us in the flesh. But we have been given this amazing gift to be able to lookout outside of our flesh and allow the Spirit to love unconditionally through Christ. This same love can be seen between David and Saul. (Refer to Samuel I & II)
In this conversation that we had my aunt also gave us some additional nuggets of wisdom: Even though you are asked to love others, you can choose the proximity in which you can love them. You can love without making yourself completely vulnerable to the other person. She referenced my grandmother: “Some people you have to feed with a long handle spoon”. This is translated to mean: “In order to love some people, you have to love some individuals at a distance at the same time protecting yourselves”. You can not be dissuaded from giving your love to them because of fear. God is Love and Love conquers fear. May you be be blessed this week.