Praying for Wisdom

Are you wise? Note I didn’t say, clever, or intelligent, or smart - but rather ‘wise.’ It has been my experience that there are many educated fools in the world - people who are smart, but who lack wisdom! I make no case for being uneducated, or anti-intellectual. But those are subjects of another message. This morning, I want to talk about prayer again - specifically - praying for wisdom.

So what is wisdom? Some kids were asked that question – .

Rocky, who was 9, said, “Wisdom is wearing a hat when you’re feeding seagulls.”

Kelly, age 10, said, “Never be too full for dessert.”

Heather, a teenager, said, “When your Dad is mad and asks you, ‘Do I look stupid?’ -Don’t answer him.”

- quoted by Pastor Brian Bill

There’s probably not a person over the age of 40 in this room who wouldn’t like a few ‘do overs’ in life now that they are a little older and a lot wiser! Some of the choices we made when we were young and less wise are simply regrettable; some are tragic, many are costly. You know I’m right!

∙ I’ve many who have been doing a job they hate for 25 years because they chose a career just for the money.

∙ I’ve conversed with too many people to count who married the prettiest girl or the best looking guy and lived to regret not choosing a partner for reasons more related to wisdom!

∙ There are those who wasted the first half of life in a haze of alcohol or drugs - ‘nough said.

∙ Most tragic, are those who are doing the same things over and over again, who wonder,

“Why is my life so messed up? Why do I seem to have the same experiences, again and again?”

-only to go out and make the same choices again!

Proverbs 1:7; 2:1-6, 9-12; 3:13-15 is about wisdom.

Let me summarize that –

- True wisdom is found in a right relationship with God!

- Wisdom is gained only by those who are willing to search for it.

- The wise know the difference between right and wrong and make the best choice, not the easy one.

- Wisdom produces a life that is blessed by God!

In 1 Kings 3, there is a record of a well-known prayer for wisdom. I’d invite you to turn there with me this morning. (Pew Bible page 523).

I Kings 3:1-15

Go back to v. 5 - God asked - “What would you like me to give you? Ask for anything!”

How would you answer that question?

Most of us probably wouldn’t admit it out loud, but in our hearts we are convinced that a $million would go a long way to solve our problems or make us happy. So I’m sure that more than a few people would say, ‘Lord, increase my income.’

Some would ask for health, particularly those who have lived with sickness and/or suffering in their own life, or in their family circle.

Some would ask for fame! Ours is curious society where celebrity is coveted, and where many are famous simply for being famous, not because they really do anything all that worthwhile for the general improvement of the nation. I’m thinking of people like Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan. They are just pretty faces that decorate magazines, young women who haven’t done a thing of note, and yet, millions of people envy their empty lives!

Solomon prays for wisdom! Would that we would pray the same!

We learn something from Solomon as he prefaces his prayer.

He is willing to admit his weakness, his need.

In vv. 7-8 the king says that he is like a little child. He isn’t saying that out of some pathetic need for attention, nor because he is seeking sympathy. He has caught a glimpse of the challenges of being king and evaluated his own resources. The gap is wide and he is a man in need!

The Bible asks, "Do you see a man wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him." (Proverbs 26:12, NIV)

James says, "If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him." (James 1:5, NIV)

Those who would be wise know enough to ask for wisdom, abandon the pretenses that hide their insecurities, and seek God! Did not Jesus Himself say that unless we were willing to become like little children, we would never enter the Kingdom of Heaven?

Want wisdom from God? First thing is to acknowledge your need!

Solomon understands that wisdom is expressed in discerning the difference between right and wrong.

This king wasn’t interested in having wisdom so he could display his intellectual prowess. He wanted to understand, to have insight, so that he could serve God and His people in the best way. We all need that kind of insight and discernment.

Believer, do you have discernment?

Do you know the difference between true godliness and a pretend religiosity?

Do you know the way that God wants you to live and are you able to see the ultimate wisdom in saying

‘no’ to your own desires so you can say ‘yes’ to God’s purposes?

Before us there are so many options. It is one of the great blessings that we enjoy in this time in history, in this society! We can choose our occupation, where we live, where we go to school, the church we want to attend, who will offer us medical care. We have, despite our protests to the contrary, amazing amounts of income that allows us to exercise near royal discretion in the way that we conduct our lives.

God will ask you and me to be accountable to Him for these great blessings! We will stand before our Lord in eternity and He will ask why, what, where, when, and how of us! He won’t be scammed. He won’t be confounded by double-talk or clever excuses. He will go straight to the heart of the matter -

“What did you do with the resources and opportunities that I provided for you?

Did you use it all for your own pleasure, or

did you take the path of wisdom and invest in the Kingdom of heaven?”

Does that make you afraid? Good! That awesome fear is the start of wisdom! It sends us to our knees where we begin to ask, like Solomon, for a insight –

-for a discerning heart that knows the difference between what’s right and what’s wrong -

- that we know how to choose that which will honor God and to reject what is just a waste of time -

- that we’re clear about how our lives can have real, lasting meaning instead of being lived to fill our bellies and satisfy our appetites.

If you’re under age 25 - listen to me right now. Don’t wait until you’re 45 and in mid-life to begin to think about seeking God’s wisdom. Too many of us in this room have done just that - with the result being a heart full of regrets, of ‘what-if’s’ and ‘if only’s!’ Not long ago, I talked with a good man, who is about my age. He hasn’t lived a terrible life, or wicked life. He just let himself get busy, too busy for God. For 20 years he worked hard at raising a family, paying the bills, and only now – regrets the lack of true wisdom that led him to miss out on the best God had for his life for all those years.

Get about doing God’s work today. You will never regret giving yourself to God! Start now – and you will have your whole life to invest in things that really matter.

Know this: It’s never too early, never too late - to start new.

Consider Moses. Remember him? He wasted the first half of his life. He was the prince of Egypt despite being born a slave. He was pulled from the basket on the Nile and raised in the palace. And in the few glimpses we have of him, we see a strong-willed, arrogant man whose temper ultimately causes him to commit murder and become a fugitive. It was a long way from Pharaoh’s palace to the back side of the desert where he was tending a few miserable sheep! Then he met God at the burning bush and wised up! At age 80, he took up the challenge of leading his people to freedom, to become a new nation, to become God’s people in the world.

Moses, the man of God, prayed a wisdom prayer.

Take a look - Psalm 90: 12-17

“Teach us to number our days aright.” Isn’t that an interesting request?

How many of you know the principle of entropy? The theory is that unless energy is pumped into a system, it will deteriorate! Simple example - if you throw a ball, it will leave your hand traveling along an arc, at a certain speed. But from the moment it leaves your hand, the energy you put into that ball decays and it travels slower. As it does, gravity overtakes it and it falls toward the ground! We recognize that principle in the world even if we don’t know the name! It’s just common sense.

Yet, many of us make a foolish assumption that somehow our lives will get better if we just hope for that to be true.

Anybody live in a house that cleans itself?

Anybody have a lawn and/or garden that weeds itself?

At some level we know that we have to pump energy into life - we have to apply ourselves doing work - to gain a positive result.

That is what Moses prayed for in his wisdom prayer.

“Lord, help me to know the right way to put my life in order.

Teach me the skills that I need to fulfil Your plans and purpose in my life.”

And God will. This is the wonderful truth about the Holy Spirit and the Believer. When we receive Christ as Lord, the Spirit of God comes to make us alive again to God’s Presence. He restores the broken connection that kept us from knowing and doing God’s will. As we walk with the Lord, He invites us to be filled with the Spirit, that is, to let the Holy Spirit come into us with a transforming experience of WISDOM! Paul prayed for the Church - a prayer that I pray on my own behalf and for you - He said, I am "asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding." (Ephesians 1:17, NLT)

Believer, if you’re confounded by life’s choices, if you cannot seem to find a way to overcome that habit, if you’re stuck in patterns that are self-defeating – PRAY for wisdom! It’s a God-pleasing prayer. When Solomon asked God for wisdom, not for wealth or power, He was pleased. The Bible says, {1 Kings 3:12-13} that God promised - “I will give you what you asked for! I will give you a wise and understanding mind such as no one else has ever had or ever will have! And I will also give you what you did not ask for—riches and honor! No other king in all the world will be compared to you for the rest of your life!”

The truth is that true Wisdom lays a foundation for prosperity, joy, stability, and honor in a person’s life.

Yes, it is true.

∙ A person, full of the wisdom of God, won’t break up his marriage with an affair.

∙ A person, full of the wisdom of God, won’t spend his time in pursuits of temporary happiness,

spending money and time on things without real value.

He’ll manage all his resources for the glory of God and thus, find satisfaction in what he has.

∙ A person, full of God’s wisdom, won’t be taken in by every wind of false doctrine, every Christian scammer who offers easy answers, simple solutions, and quick fixes. He won’t chase some transient high at this revival or that conference. He will realize that the joy of the Lord can be found RIGHT HERE, in a place of faithful and fruitful service.

James is so practical about wisdom – because wisdom is practical! Listen to what the Word says –

James 3:13-18

If you are wise and understand God’s ways, live a life of steady goodness so that only good deeds will pour forth. And if you don’t brag about the good you do, then you will be truly wise! But if you are bitterly jealous and there is selfish ambition in your hearts, don’t brag about being wise.

That is the worst kind of lie. For jealousy and selfishness are not God’s kind of wisdom. Such things are earthly, unspiritual, and motivated by the Devil. For wherever there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and every kind of evil.

But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and good deeds. It shows no partiality and is always sincere. And those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of goodness.

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In your prayer life - borrow from Solomon and pray ...

LORD, fill my mind and heart with true wisdom.

Like Moses, pray...

Teach me, LORD, how to order my life to fulfill your plans.

-And expect an answer for his promise is

Ask God for wisdom, He gives it generously to those who ask!

Amen