HEART OF WISDOM
"Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom." A psalm of Moses (90:12)
I turned another year old today. But I really stopped celebrating birthdays after 16. I wanted to stay there forever. Sometimes I think I am. Anyway, it's a time where I'm reminded of how precious life is (not that I forget on ordinary days): to know and be known by the Maker of the Universe; to love and be loved by an incredible woman; to belong to an awesome family; and to dwell in the sweetest country. Such is my lot.
What does it mean to be Papua New Guinean? We were deliberately placed here by God. He didn't randomly chuck us here. Or throw us into the air and see where we'd land on Earth. He deliberately decided I'd be Papua New Guinean. He could've made me Jewish so I'd be real smart. Or German so I'd be real tough. Or African so I could run marathons. Or Jamaican so I could run fast. He made me here, before I was even conceived. Before the foundations of the Earth, He decided to make me PNGean.
I didn't ask Him for this. I couldn't walk up to His drawing table and make corrections to His earlier designs of me. It was all on Him. In that infinite wisdom of His, He decided this. He must have had a plan. Surely better plans than I could ever have. And so here I am. Here we are. I’ve been a Papua New Guinean for 10,227 days. I'm learning to number my days. Maybe so I can gain a heart of wisdom. Just like Moses said.
Speaking of Wisdom, maybe this a good time to tell of 2 of my life verses: (1) "If any of you lacks wisdom let him ask of God who gives liberally and without reproach." [James 1:5]. (2) "So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?" ~ Solomon [1 Kings 3:9]
We don't seem to seriously seek wisdom these days. We think a modern information-age education is synonymous with wisdom. Far from it. Solomon's wisdom was a direct result of his prayer. It was God who gave him wisdom, increased his powers of observation and guided his learning. As a result he could recognized reality correctly and make calls that have stood true and profound through the ages.Here's my definition of wisdom: wisdom is the true understanding of truth and reality, for the accurate utility of knowledge, to the perpetual and eternal benefit of man, for the ultimate glory of God.
Foolishness is therefore knowledge un-girded by truth, not perpetually beneficial to man, and un-glorifying to God. And our knowledge is wreaked with those 3 negative characteristics. My definition of truth is "reality translated into information." If information does not accurately correspond to reality, it is not truth.
We need truth. But to discern truth one must have wisdom. Why is truth vital? Because without it we don't have an accurate grasp on reality. We haven't yet recognized the problems to even begin addressing them. If we are honest enough we'd realize that we're far from correctly discerning reality. We do not have truth. We're groping for answers and pathways but we don't know where or what the obstacles are. Nor do we know where we're going. We're blind. But we don't know it, because we have not seen the light. We don't know if there should be a difference.
We mistake digress for progress. Up for down. Childishness for manliness. Weakness for strength. Good for bad. Lies for truth. We celebrate vices and scoff virtues. Darkness for light. Revenge for justice. Insanity for freedom.
Today we're surrounded by leaders who think they know enough to not need wisdom. And so we have a nation that has every indication of a lost and degenerating society. And yet we glorify ourselves in our foolishness.
If we would only humbly ask God for wisdom we could probably figure out how to run our country better. My prayer is that these life verses will become cornerstones of the daily prayers of young people of PNG. That more would be constantly asking God for a heart of wisdom and the ability to distinguish between right and wrong. That they'd seek after His Word and read into books to gain a correct understanding of reality.
We would do well to seek wisdom above all things. Like precious and rare rubies. Like treasures stashed in some secret place, requiring vigilant seeking, and asking and knocking.
A nation of wise people per our Vision 2050 is an impossible dream if our youths are not interested in gaining a heart of wisdom.
Heavenise day!
Ganjiki
"Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom." A psalm of Moses (90:12)
I turned another year old today. But I really stopped celebrating birthdays after 16. I wanted to stay there forever. Sometimes I think I am. Anyway, it's a time where I'm reminded of how precious life is (not that I forget on ordinary days): to know and be known by the Maker of the Universe; to love and be loved by an incredible woman; to belong to an awesome family; and to dwell in the sweetest country. Such is my lot.
What does it mean to be Papua New Guinean? We were deliberately placed here by God. He didn't randomly chuck us here. Or throw us into the air and see where we'd land on Earth. He deliberately decided I'd be Papua New Guinean. He could've made me Jewish so I'd be real smart. Or German so I'd be real tough. Or African so I could run marathons. Or Jamaican so I could run fast. He made me here, before I was even conceived. Before the foundations of the Earth, He decided to make me PNGean.
I didn't ask Him for this. I couldn't walk up to His drawing table and make corrections to His earlier designs of me. It was all on Him. In that infinite wisdom of His, He decided this. He must have had a plan. Surely better plans than I could ever have. And so here I am. Here we are. I’ve been a Papua New Guinean for 10,227 days. I'm learning to number my days. Maybe so I can gain a heart of wisdom. Just like Moses said.
Speaking of Wisdom, maybe this a good time to tell of 2 of my life verses: (1) "If any of you lacks wisdom let him ask of God who gives liberally and without reproach." [James 1:5]. (2) "So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?" ~ Solomon [1 Kings 3:9]
We don't seem to seriously seek wisdom these days. We think a modern information-age education is synonymous with wisdom. Far from it. Solomon's wisdom was a direct result of his prayer. It was God who gave him wisdom, increased his powers of observation and guided his learning. As a result he could recognized reality correctly and make calls that have stood true and profound through the ages.Here's my definition of wisdom: wisdom is the true understanding of truth and reality, for the accurate utility of knowledge, to the perpetual and eternal benefit of man, for the ultimate glory of God.
Foolishness is therefore knowledge un-girded by truth, not perpetually beneficial to man, and un-glorifying to God. And our knowledge is wreaked with those 3 negative characteristics. My definition of truth is "reality translated into information." If information does not accurately correspond to reality, it is not truth.
We need truth. But to discern truth one must have wisdom. Why is truth vital? Because without it we don't have an accurate grasp on reality. We haven't yet recognized the problems to even begin addressing them. If we are honest enough we'd realize that we're far from correctly discerning reality. We do not have truth. We're groping for answers and pathways but we don't know where or what the obstacles are. Nor do we know where we're going. We're blind. But we don't know it, because we have not seen the light. We don't know if there should be a difference.
We mistake digress for progress. Up for down. Childishness for manliness. Weakness for strength. Good for bad. Lies for truth. We celebrate vices and scoff virtues. Darkness for light. Revenge for justice. Insanity for freedom.
Today we're surrounded by leaders who think they know enough to not need wisdom. And so we have a nation that has every indication of a lost and degenerating society. And yet we glorify ourselves in our foolishness.
If we would only humbly ask God for wisdom we could probably figure out how to run our country better. My prayer is that these life verses will become cornerstones of the daily prayers of young people of PNG. That more would be constantly asking God for a heart of wisdom and the ability to distinguish between right and wrong. That they'd seek after His Word and read into books to gain a correct understanding of reality.
We would do well to seek wisdom above all things. Like precious and rare rubies. Like treasures stashed in some secret place, requiring vigilant seeking, and asking and knocking.
A nation of wise people per our Vision 2050 is an impossible dream if our youths are not interested in gaining a heart of wisdom.
Heavenise day!
Ganjiki
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