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Wisdom Comes with Age?

An owl animal with glasses is reading a book in the woods for an education or school concept.

Today’s reading: 1 Kings 11; Philippians 2; Ezekiel 41; Psalms 92–93

Remember last Saturday when we studied 1 Kings 3? Young Solomon had just taken over the throne from his father David. God offered to grant Solomon whatever he wished, and Solomon asked for wisdom. God gave him wisdom, riches, honor, and promised he would be the greatest King ever. What a fairytale story!

Behold, I give you a wise and discerning mind, so that none like you has been before you and none like you shall arise after you. I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that no other king shall compare with you, all your days (1 Kings 3:11-13).

Unfortunately, today’s scripture in 1 Kings 11 brought me crashing back to reality. Is this really the same Solomon? You know the old saying – wisdom comes with age? Well apparently not in this case. God granted Solomon a wise and discerning mind as a twelve-year-old boy, but over the next forty years or so, he didn’t always make wise choices. By the time we get to 1 Kings 11, we find God angry with Solomon because he had turned away and was following after other gods.

And the Lord was angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods. But he did not keep what the Lord commanded. Therefore the Lord said to Solomon, “Since this has been your practice and you have not kept my covenant and my statutes that I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom from you and will give it to your servant (1 Kings 11:9-11).

In both 1 Kings 3 and 1 Kings 9, God told Solomon that if he kept his commandments and walked in the way of the Lord the rest of his days, God would continue to bless him. This sounds pretty straightforward. Why didn’t he just do it? While the Bible doesn’t provide a full account of Solomon’s choices, the root cause of Solomon’s struggle is pretty clear. In fact, the problem was not unique to Solomon, God’s people throughout history struggled with it. We struggle with it today. The problem is sin. Sin ruined, and continues to ruin, God’s perfect plan. It separates us from God.

But we are not without hope. Fortunately Jesus made a way for us to be reconciled with God. Let’s review God’s plan of salvation:

God’s invitation is open to all – Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest (Matthew 11:28).

We all need it – for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 6:23).

We can’t earn it – For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Jesus paid the price for us – For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16).

While I don’t have a lot in common with King Solomon, we are alike in one way – I haven’t always made wise choices. I’m getting ready to celebrate my birthday next week. When I reflect over the last 40+ years of my life, I’m definitely not as wise as I’d like to be. I still do some pretty dumb things. I’m so thankful God’s grace that is greater than all my sin. Thank you Jesus for making a way for me.

What’s your purpose?

We were all made unique and we were all made for a special purpose. Today’s reading had a few examples where “purpose” stood out:

It was God who set King Solomon on the throne of Israel, and he did this so that Solomon would execute justice and righteousness. “Blessed be the Lord your God, who has delighted in you and set you on the throne of Israel! Because the Lord loved Israel forever, he has made you king, that you may execute justice and righteousness.” (1 Kings 10:9)
Our purposes given by God and he will bring our good work to completion: “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” (Philippians 1:6)
Paul refers to himself as being “put here for the defense of the gospel”. (Philippians 1:16b). Paul knew his purpose very well, and in knowing that he gave everything he had in order to serve that purpose.
Paul is encouraging the believers to live accordingly: “Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ” (Philippians 1:27a)

As an exercise, I thought about these questions to challenge my line of thinking and behavior. Will you join me in considering these as well?

What is my purpose and what am I doing to achieve it?
What would others say my purpose is?
Am I using my unique gifts and talents, and my time more for the benefit of me or to serve others and God’s kingdom? Would the people who know me best say the same about me?
How can I help others find and achieve their purpose?
Who do I know who is firmly rooted in their purpose, and what can I learn from this person?

In closing for today I wanted to share a beautiful, succinct prayer with each word carefully chosen. It is a powerful example of encouragement, love, and wisdom. Is there a more worthy purpose than what Paul articulates below? What a glorious example of God’s living, breathing word!

And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God. (Philippians 1:9-11)

What if this was everyone’s prayer at the start of each day? What a different world this would be.

1 Kings 10; Philippians 1; Ezekiel 40; Psalm 91

Daily Grind

Business People Commuting Rush Hour Concept

1 Kings 9; Ephesians 6; Ezekiel 39; Psalm 90

What does your relationship with work look like? Do you love going to the office every day, or do you arrive moaning and complaining about the daily grind? If you don’t know, listen carefully to the words in your thoughts and prayers. Your attitude about work comes out through them. When we are focused on our surroundings and situations, we besiege God with questions about why we are here. Rather than listen for answers, we pester God for intervention, assuming that His blessing will fully eradicate our problems. God doesn’t work that way for me. In fact, when I focus and concentrate on my problems, cursing my work, I am generally spiraling downward.

How do we avoid this spiral? According to Ephesians 6:7 (ESV) we are to, “render service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man.” In short, stop looking to work for what it will gain you. Instead, start thinking about work as an opportunity to serve and praise God. To be honest, I have to be careful not to dismiss those answers as simplistic and trite. Instead, if I stop and look carefully, my heart reveals that I really do want to serve and praise God through my work. To do so, I must first replace the adverse effects of discouragement with life and energy, which require that we adopt new behaviors. Let’s start today with the shape of our prayer. Instead of asking God to resolve specific problems at the office, ask Him to fix your inner world. Specifically, ask Him:

Reveal to me where you are working today
Reveal to me how my words and actions at work are affecting others
Reveal to me how my words and actions are affecting my psyche
When you show me these things, Father, will you also present me with alternatives that will bring you glory?

Remember, God is not asking us to endure our days. He created us so that we can embrace them, joyfully. It is only possible when He is the center and subject of our work.

Marriage and Family Advice

Ephesians 5 is rich with advice on relationships. At the center of all relationships are the marriage and the family. God established them in the beginning for good reason and in good and perfect design. I have heard them referred to as ‘just another place to walk your Christian faith’ and in the same breath ‘thee most important and challenging place to do so,’ which gives them the familiar simple but challenging label. Praise God for His Word that reveals the truth and guides us! Here is the simple recipe for a blessed family:

And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God. – Ephesians 5:18-21

So that is it, a simple four point checklist. There is a lot out there written on how to have a successful marriage and family. Let us quite all the noise for a moment and remember God’s recipe. Here’s a four point checklist that we use in our family. It is labeled the real issues to remind us that God’s word is the authority in our lives and our relationships. These are instructions on what each family member has in Christ.

The real issues of blessed family:

Spirit filled; under the obedience of God’s Word
Singing hearts of joy; speaking in psalms/spiritual songs to one another
Saying thanks; ever thankful, ever grateful
Submitting our will to the others’; going last, putting others first

The image I used for this post is a heart that Jamie made to remind us of these real issues of a blessed family. It is placed on our fridge right next to handle, a little in the way but never out of place.

Today’s reading: 1 Kings 8; Ephesians 5; Ezekiel 38; Psalm 89

Extra Credit: free ~11 hour study resource marriage, parenting, and family: The Fulfilled Family

Grow Up

Today’s Reading: 1 Kings 7; Ephesians 4; Ezekiel 37; Psalms 87–88

Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love. Ephesians 4:15-16

In both a “loving” and “non-loving” manner I have heard the phrase “grow up” on many occasions. I’m sure I deserved them all and if I had a quarter for each time I was told this my student loans would have been paid off by now. To those who shared these spontaneous heartfelt words with me I understand now and in most cases I’m sure you were right. I had a lot of “growing up” to do in Christ. Prayerfully, I continue this journey to put on a new self, created in a likeness of Him. Ephesians 4:24

Paul’s letter to the Ephesians and to us is to strengthen and encourage all believers. Ephesians 4:1 urges us to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which we have been called. Ephesians 4:4-6 There is only one body and one Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God, and Father of all.

God has chosen us to be his representative on Earth. He wants us to live worthy of the name “Christian” meaning Christ’s one. For me, I know there has been plenty of times I fell and fall short of doing this. But, the phrase “grow up” in the the sense of speaking the truth in love is what I needed. In all my situations, faith based words didn’t always follow the word “Grow up David” but, I realize now their frustration with me. We can all make mistakes and need a little “truth in love” from others. In striving to be more mature Christians we need to also speak truth in love with others. This doesn’t come easy. Some people are good at telling the truth and some are good at being loving but can we do both. Speak the truth in loving manner.

Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up…. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as Christ forgave you. Ephesians 4:29-32

Dear God, Thank you for our unity into your family. We pray that as examples of Christ we model truth and love to others. That we put away our evil desires and submit to your perfect will. help us to always continue to grow up to be more like you. Amen

Song for start of day. Resurrecting

Rooted in His Love

Today’s Readings: 1 Kings 6, Ephesians 3, Ezekiel 36, Psalm 86

Today we find Paul again in Ephesians 3 writing from prison. I did some reading about Paul’s experience and learned that he was under house arrest in Rome while he awaited trial. In the very first verse he describes himself as “a prisoner for Christ.” He goes on to say that he is a prisoner on behalf of the Gentiles. This short phrase is so easy to skip over but I think it is really significant. What does it mean to us to be prisoners for Christ? To me, that means putting Jesus before all other things. That means dying to myself in order to put him first as he put me first on the cross. Paul goes on to explain to the Ephesians that they should not lose heart over his suffering. He says,

“To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles, the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things.” (Ephesians 3:8-9)

What would it look like if I committed to bringing light to everyone and shared the plan! Even though he was under arrest, Paul maintained his faith that God was in control of everything. When I think of this in context of my life today, it gives me such comfort to know that God is in control. Then I think about the possibility of sharing that message with others. I know, sometimes we feel hesitant, we don’t know if it’s the right time or place to share the hope and promise of Jesus. Paul shows us through example that we too can gain strength by sharing the message in our times of weakness.

Paul goes on in Chapter 3 to pray for spiritual strength. I love this moment and these words. It reminds me that each of us are named, each of us are absolutely cherished in His heart.

“For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith-that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and the length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ….” (Ephesians 3:14-19)

Did you read that? Did you take it in? Rooted and grounded in love! How many times this week can we repeat that sacred text to ourselves in times of worry or anger or fear. We are truly rooted and grounded in God’s love. So rooted that we may have strength to comprehend his love for us. Paul wants us to see that God’s love for us is multidimensional. It isn’t just at church, not just at home in our Bible or our daily devotional. God’s love for us fills all the spaces. Paul calls us as Christians to go to Him. He reminds us that God truly wants to hear from us.

Today’s message is so simple but to me it is so foundational. We can do better than survive each day. We can thrive in the knowledge of his love for us. We are rooted in Him; nothing can separate us from our grounding in Christ Jesus.

God, thank you for your words, help us to find our strength, to comprehend your all-encompassing love for us. Amen!

Our Inheritance

What I am saying is that as long as an heir is underage, he is no different from a slave, although he owns the whole estate. The heir is subject to guardians and trustees until the time set by his father. So also, when we were underage, we were in slavery under the elemental spiritual forces of the world. But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba , Father.” So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir.
-Galatians 4:1-7

What does it mean to be God’s heir?

Was it true I was no longer bound by the law, or enslaved by sin? Somehow, I was set free from legalism and death, so I could become everything I was meant to be. Not only to demonstrate the fruit of the spirit but to thoroughly enjoy it.

Now I was growing in faith, learning to trust God in all things. And when I did, peace and joy became increasingly evident.

Finally I was really learning to love people; not only those closest, but those whom I encountered out in the world everyday.

Glorifying God instead of Me was a new idea, one that started to really make sense when I surrendered my will to God’s.

By actually experiencing “amazing grace” I now understood it better than I ever could have before. Being considered by God to be His child was certainly undeserved but something I was very thankful for.

I came to see that my purpose was to live a life that pointed to Christ. As I followed in his footsteps, in His mercy and by His grace, I was set free to be God’s instrument, empowered to grow God’s kingdom. Christ was forming in me and my life was changing in ways I never expected, in the surprising opportunities that I couldn’t have previously imagined.

Now I thank God every day. And in my faith and gratitude I hoped the time would come when I thanked Him every moment of every day. Thank you God for everything!

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
-Ephesians 2:10

1 Kings 4–5; Ephesians 2; Ezekiel 35; Psalm 85

Three Wishes

TOP- 150. Bible Verses about Wisdom. King Solomon was greater in riches and wisdom than all the other kings of the earth.

Today’s reading: 1 Kings 3; Ephesians 1; Ezekiel 34; Psalms 83–84

In 1955, Frank Sinatra released a song called If I Had Three Wishes. It was on the back of the Capital Records single Learnin’ the Blues (Remember the 45 RPM records that had a hit song on the front and a horrible song they couldn’t even give away on the back?). Learnin’ the Blues went on to be a hit song in the U.S., Great Britain and Australia, but If I had Three Wishes was a dud. It never even hit the charts.

Oh, if I had three wishes, my first would be for you. And if you became my love, I’d return the other two.

With those lyrics, it is obvious why this wasn’t a hit song. It is the wrong answer to the three wishes question – if a genie grants you three wishes, the trick to getting everything you want is to ALWAYS wish for more wishes. Duh!

Today’s scripture in 1 Kings 3 is not about a genie in a bottle granting three wishes. It is, however, about God offering to grant King Solomon the desire of his heart. God says to Solomon, “Ask me for whatever you want and I’ll give it to you” (1 Kings 3:5, International Standard Version). The Bible doesn’t say exactly how old Solomon was in 1 Kings when he assumed the throne from his father David, but theologians estimate he was about twelve years old. He was very young and inexperienced. Accordingly, Solomon’s response to God’s offer was a request for wisdom – an understanding mind and the ability to discern good from evil. He understood his shortcomings and wanted to be better. His wish was bathed in humility and displayed maturity beyond his years. Now look at God’s response. He granted Solomon’s request, but also gave him more than he’d asked – Solomon received wisdom, greatness, riches and honor.

It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this. And God said to him, “Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches or the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, behold, I now do according to your word. Behold, I give you a wise and discerning mind, so that none like you has been before you and none like you shall arise after you. I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that no other king shall compare with you, all your days. And if you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days” (1 Kings 3:10-14, English Standard Version).

I have a twelve year old son. If God gave Freddy Armstrong the option to ask for whatever he wanted, I’m guessing he wouldn’t ask for wisdom. He might ask for wealth and popularity, or maybe for a fancy sports car and a bunch of video games. What would you ask for? Would you ask for wisdom like Solomon? I probably would, of course, because I learned from Solomon’s experience. He asked for wisdom, and received wisdom, greatness, riches and honor. If I asked for wisdom, there is a chance God is going to give me all those things too, right? Wrong. Here is the problem – my wishes are not bathed in humility, rather they reveal the true selfish desires of my heart. God knows my heart, he sees through to my impure motives.

People may be pure in their own eyes, but the LORD examines their motives (Proverbs 16:2, New Living Translation).

Yes, I need to learn from Solomon’s experience. Not figure out how to manipulate God to satisfy my selfishness, but to figure out how to transform my desires into reverence for and obedience to God. Here is what Solomon did:

He started with a sacrifice to God (1 Kings 3:4).
Next, he acknowledged God’s faithfulness and steadfast love (1 Kings 3:6).
Finally, he confessed his need for God (1 Kings 3:7-8).

Solomon’s heart was focused on God, not on himself. This is the right answer to the three wishes question:

Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you your heart’s desires (Psalm 37:4, New Living Translation).

Priorities

One of the major topics in the Harris household is talking about our schedule and priorities. There are always several things to choose from with regard to how we spend our time. We can invest in ourselves; school, exercise, spiritual training, music/arts, or enjoying various media forms such as reading, movies, television, and surfing the internet. We have those things that cause us to interact with others and each other such as socializing, meeting the needs of others, and family time. Then there are the commitments that need to happen to support our daily living; generating an income, maintaining the home, paying bills, and ensuring the budget is in order. If we don’t know our priorities, then everything is priority, which results in nothing being the priority.

Pay careful attention to your own work, for then you will get the satisfaction of a job well done, and you won’t need to compare yourself to anyone else. (Galatians 6:4 NLT)

Upon reading this verse, the phrase “satisfaction of a job well done” spoke to me first. Like my peer Jennifer Armstrong, I’m a list person. Nothing like a good list then knocking it down. Satisfaction!

Then the next part of the verse spoke a little louder: you won’t need to compare yourself to anyone else. Turning the sentence around, I take it to mean that if we don’t pay attention to our own work, we won’t have job satisfaction, and in doing this, we will measure ourselves by what others are doing. We’re not talking about the “good” focus on others here; I believe this is referring to things that turn to jealousy and unhealthy competition. God made each of us for a unique purpose; the more we seek and act on this purpose, the closer we can come to reaching our potential. The key here is what voice we are listening to: that of our own desires or that of the spirit because no matter the apparent result, we reap what we sow. What we put in is what we get out. Seeking after our own earthly desires yields corruption, seeking the will of the Spirit reaps eternal life.

“For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. (Galatians 6:8)

My main thought on this today is: What voice am I listening to? The guidance of The Spirit, my own desire for pleasure, or my desire to please others. Sometimes on the outside we may be attempting to please others, but on the inside we’re doing it to make ourselves feel good. Three pointers that I try to live and lead by to help “say no to the good things so we can say yes to the great things”:

It is okay to say no. God gave us freewill. We’re responsible for our choices.
Knowing my priorities helps me to say no.
Sharing my priorities with friends and family helps them understand why I am saying no.

In closing, here’s a great reminder as to what God sees as priority, and I say amen to that.

What counts is whether we have been transformed into a new creation. ¹⁶May God’s peace and mercy be upon all who live by this principle; they are the new people of God. (Galatians 6:15b-16 NLT)

1 Kings 2; Galatians 6; Ezekiel 33; Psalms 81–82

Trusted Advisors

Photo of man with depression talking with counselor

1 Kings 1; Galatians 5; Ezekiel 32; Psalm 80

I have many good friends. Even so, there are only a few that I also call trusted advisors. One of these trusted advisors recently noticed my life accelerating into high gear. He sent me a simple email asking, “Are you ready for me to begin meeting with you regularly to ask good questions, think outside the box & keep you oriented towards Jesus, your wife, and kiddos?” When first read it, I wasn’t thrilled with the implications. Today, however, I have a new perspective. It comes from watching the Prophet Nathan. His relationship with David was not simply friendship, he was a trusted advisor. What are the characteristics of a trusted advisor?

Trusted advisors encourage us to lean into our dreams and vision

In 2 Sam 7:3 Nathan encourages David to run with his dream of building a Temple for God. He says, “Go, do all that is in your heart, for the Lord is with you.”

Trusted advisors help us align our activities with God’s will

In 2 Samuel 7:8-17, Nathan discerns the full will of God. Once he understands that David is not the one to build his Temple, he immediately relays the information accurately and rigorously to David. His willingness to speak truthfully to David fosters alignment with God’s will, so that God can receive full glory

Trusted advisors hold us accountable

In 2 Samuel 12:1-31, Nathan learned that David caused Uriah’s death. Cunningly, he led David to self-discover the truth of his actions. The result was David’s complete surrender to God, which paved the way for reconciliation.

Trusted advisors wake us up from our malaise

In 1 Kings 1:22-27, Nathan illustrates to an elderly King David the effects of his failure to name a successor. This wake-up-call causes David to reaffirm his commitment to Solomon. Realizing the indiscretion, David stepped up, announcing, “as I swore to you by the Lord, the God of Israel, saying, ‘Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit on my throne in my place,’ even so will I do this day.”

God has blessed me with several “Nathan’s.” My guess is that you can name them in your life too. Maybe it’s time to reconnect with them. When we do, like King David, we are better able to focus our activities so that God receives all the glory.