Friday, January 1, 2010

Happy New Year! . . . and Proverbs 1

Happy New Year!!

Well, it's 2010. It doesn't feel like a new year, but I woke up excited for the goals and what is to come this year.

I love the power of Twitter! I woke up and read Proverbs 1 with Cross Point Church. I heard about it through @pwilson and, though I don't go there, I've decided to join! I love corporate worship activities. And I'm happy to be able to do it. If you're interested in keeping up with everyone's thoughts on Twitter, go here!

But, to my reflection on Proverbs 1! . . . (and I look forward to the different things that God reveals to different people!)

Proverbs opens up with a little introduction about what we'll find by reading, that it's for gaining understanding, the fear of the Lord, and wisdom (basically). The next section is encouragement to embrace wisdom, to not be foolish.

The next section is what intrigued me. Here, (v. 20-33) wisdom is personified and a warning is made to not reject her. She cries out in the streets, dissatisfied that she has been rejected. In their distress, they will call to her and she will be nowhere to be found.

I was interested because isn't that just the way we are! We reject wisdom, we reject what the Lord has to say about our lives, and in our distress, we cry out for that same wisdom that we have rejected. It was made clear to me that, while the folly is problematic, ignoring wisdom in the first place is an issue, that's not the big issue here.

One fundamental thing missing is repentance. Seeking wisdom without repentance is futile. Asking for wisdom is a great thing! I support it; it's written here in the Bible for US, to improve our lives. But, we cannot truly accept the wisdom given to us if we have not repented. Our hearts must be in a place that is ready to receive it.

Okay, maybe that's not explicitly stated, right? Maybe it's implied, I don't know. But I didn't see it. It is good to seek wisdom, yes! It is not useful to seek wisdom without repentance though. Repentance is usually the step that's left out. We think that we're okay simply because we've taken someone's advice or because we've attempted to apply someone's wisdom. Repentance is a turn from the ways that we are wrong, not simply taking steps to amend what's been wrong or broken.

So, hopefully we can all learn a lesson from this story. We must not try to simply gain wisdom; we must turn from our folly. I am looking forward to the rest of Proverbs because I think it will give us some wisdom on how we can do that.

Again, HAPPY NEW YEAR! And 2010, oh yeah...BRING IT ON!