Wisdom: Grounded in Truth

wisdom is a precious thing.  who does want to be more intelligent?  clearly the wisdom of this world has a limit.  even more obvious to the believer is that heavenly wisdom is superior.  however, i believe that their is a disconnect between what heavenly wisdom really is.

this occured to me when i read the proverbs of Solomon.  when david was training him to be king, he had a variety of ways that he could teach him.  remember, david spent prolonged periods in the presence and glory of the lord.  he minister to him as a king and a priest.  he revolutionized worship and brought forth some of the most clear revelations of the true heart of god in the old testament.

however, when it came time to teach solomon how to rule, the proverbs reveal a clue to how david went about it.  david gave solomon clear, tangible instructions.  why is this important to note?  at times, we move from being spiritual to being spooky and call it wisdom or hearing god.  INCORRECT. david could have taught solomon about the glory, fasting, miracles…and no doubt he did.  but the thing the david clearly hammered down the most is wisdom.  proverbs is laced with what it takes to be a successful ruler.  clearly prayer and surrender to god are obvious keys.  but if we miss the tangible stuff, we’ll ultimately fail.

i love miracles.  i love having and intrepreting dreams.  i love it when i can perceive that angles have walked into the room.  but there is still very basic wisdom that we need to be able to follow.

here’s the proof:  “I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things?” John 3:12

in this passage, jesus was talking to nicodemus about the kingdom of heaven.  the basic principles of how the kingdom of god are revealed by nature.  Seed time and harvest.  Seasons.  Wind blowing.  These principles are natural examples of how God’s world works.  Still, there are things and principles in the kingdom of God that have nothing on earth as an example.  jesus clearly tells nicodemus that if you don’t understand the basics, you won’t catch the higher level stuff.

that doesn’t exclude the spiritual.  WE NEED IT!  jesus’ model prayer said “your will be done, on earth is it is in heaven.”  you know the phrase, “so heavenly minded that you’re no earthly good”?  i understand the context; but i’m know inclined to assign that to being spooky.  biblically speaking it’s impossible to be too heavenly minded.  when we allow heaven to have it’s way through our lives, we become what the earth is crying for (but that’s another note altogether).  we become the gate through which needs are met and lives are restored.

look at sowing and reaping.  that’s a natural law.  when you plant needs you get a crop after it grows.  that’s a natural process that also represents a kingdom reality.  however, the law of blessing (getting the results from someone else even though you didn’t do the work) can’t be seen in sowing and reaping.  you don’t get a huge crop in your yard because the farmer down the way did a lot of work.  but if you don’t understand sowing and reaping, you’ll never understand blessing.

father, open our eyes to how your kingdom works so that we can reap the benefits of it.

Guess Who’s Back?

This poem is slightly personal for me, I guess…have fun!

Guess who’s back?

imagination’s power got me back in the sack

Entertaining delusions of grandeur in the hopes of maintaining sanity

but the reality is the images keep haunting me

Plaguing me

Begging for more

While the deepest part of me cries out in agony

Guess who’s back?

imagination’s power got me back in the sack

My eyes have their fill

The better part of of me gets ill

Sick off the scenery

Gotta let go

Gotta let go of this filth

Gotta deal with the real issues

But instead i misuse myself

As if it will help

Guess who’s back?

imagination’s power got me back in the sack

Search, load, and wait

Mentally fornicate

while the Master baits my heart

Offering peace like a dove

You’ll get through the problems with love

Guess who’s back?

imagination’s power got me back in the sack

And I’m waiting for the Son to come up…

Revelatory Ramblings…

• some recent events in my life have served for me to refocus myself on god.  the situation wasn’t His idea, but i’m glad that it caused me to see what’s really important:  Him.
• i sincerely think that i have the best parents in the world.  in a situation that can be very draining and stressful, my mother told me to stand strong in the lord.  she really encouraged me.  i was expecting to be disowned…but that’s b/c there’s some issues that i have to work out.
• i’ve been reading the book “The Way of the Wild at Heart.”  MAN!  this book has been my answer for so many things!  it talks about the process of manhood and how god fills in the gaps when the men in our lives don’t or can’t help us.  i have a Father!  i’m a beloved son!
• so…in my bible reading, i’ve discovered two cool things.  The first thing is this:  getting stuff doesn’t make you blessed.  it’s the blessing that empowers you to get stuff.  if you look at the trend in scripture, God would bless someone, and then they were told what the blessing was for.  Adam and Eve were blessed, and then they were told to rule.  Abram was blessed, and then He was told that he would be a father of nations.  Holy Spirit fell on Jesus, and then He announced that He would set the captive free.  Blessing is empowerment from God.  I believe in blessing that He actually releases His own ability into our lives!
• the other side to the bless thing is this:  you’re blessing is according to your level of favor, and you increase in favor by being like god.  Adam and Eve were blessed b/c they were in the image and likeness of God.  Abram had faith of God, so He was blessed.  as believers we all start with a certain amount of favor because we’re God’s children.  however, our character and growth determine how that favor increases.  God loves everyone, but everyone doesn’t have the same level of favor.  a parent wouldn’t (shouldn’t) give the irresponsible child the car keys, regardless of how much they are loved.  blessing is enablement.  enablement is dangerous in the hands of someone that doesn’t have the character to maintain it.  that’s why the bible says in James chapter one that a double-minded man can’t receive anything from God, b/c he’s unstable and the blessing can’t rest on Him!!

okay…my rambling is over.