August 5th

Wise-Up

But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God-and righteousness and sanctification and redemption-that, as it is written, He who glories, let him glory in the LORD.' 1 Corinthians 1:30-31

Here is the key to making the right decision every time a big one comes up. Are you ready? The key is wisdom, and it is so important that the book of Proverbs tells us that God needed it in creating the world. Certainly, if God needs wisdom, then we need it, too.

Here are four characteristics of godly wisdom to help you activate it in your life:

First, godly wisdom honors God in all that it lives for. This is where godly wisdom starts. We are fooling ourselves if we think we are wise, yet have no honor for God in our hearts. He has to be our first love, our first thought, our first motivation, so that in everything we do, we seek to honor Him and do His will.

Second, it takes sin seriously. The truly wise person will move themselves out of the sin of the world, placing it on the cross, and begin living by faith in Jesus Christ. We need to honor the sacrifice of Christ on our behalf, who came as the wisdom of God to set us free from sin. Wisdom and sin do not mix.

Third, wisdom rejects the futile thinking of the world that life is about us and recognizes that life is about God. Life is not about what I want, whether it's wrong or not, whether it hurts anybody or not, whether God is brokenhearted about it or not. Wisdom rejects these lies and lives to honor God's heart.

Fourth, godly wisdom reminds us that God is for us and not against us. It reminds us that we are not fighting some losing battle and somehow in the end the world is going to win. You might think I'm crazy, but I truly believe that this could be the Church's greatest hour on earth. In the greatest darkness, God's light shines all the brighter.

These four characteristics of wisdom will help you learn wisdom for your own life. Pursue these things, seek them, and you will find God through them. You will grow in wisdom, and your life will grow stronger in God.

Then, no matter what you face, you will have a foundation for all your decisions, a foundation of true godly wisdom.

Prayer Father God,

Thank You for showing me characteristics of wisdom so that I can become truly wise! Please help me as I pursue wisdom, and teach me. Let me be filled with wisdom so that I may honor You in everything I do.

Amen