good morning, or whatever it is to you right now.
i forgot to post a blog on wed after the women's meeting, lisa spoke on fighting with wisdom.
wisdom is not a function of education, because we can gather all kinds of knowledge and information but not have wisdom. the education system does not prepare us for living and relationships. it would seem the "smarter" we get as a culture the worse our relationships get. she asks the question - do we wonder around in shame because we've lost our way, or have we willfully chosen foolish paths? we leave the path of wisdom and find we are "too smart" to find our way back again.
we must get back child-like simplicity and purity. wisdom is not difficult, it is easy. wisdom is the intimate embrace of truth. when we immerse our self in God's word we find that it will speak to our hearts. when we are in dealing with the daily issues of life that wisdom will come to our memory and we will know the best way to handle things. the word of God is alive and sharp, it divides to the very basic human instinct and shows light into our motives - giving us the edge to choose what we should do.
in proverbs wisdom is personified as feminine. we tend to go to our sister for counsel and advice. if there was no sister we go to one that is close like a sister. even men often go to their sisters for counsel.
there is also the sister of folly. she seems to be seductive and cunning. the image of the world shows that she is powerful, has it all together, has everyone she wants at her beck and call, and she gets what she wants by any means available. when we become like this "powerful" woman we conform to her image. whatever she seems to us we take on and try to be, but it leads to death and destruction not real fulfillment. the world view actually strips the woman of her power. this is why we must become like the image of the UNSEEN God. His character is love, patience, kindness, is not jealous, doesn't boast, is not arrogant, is not rude, is not irritable, does not keep track of wrongs, is not happy when injustice is done, is happy with the truth, never stops believing, never stops hoping, never gives up. His love never ends. this is the way to fight, using wisdom.
the difference between wise and foolish - a wise woman knows when to hold on and when to let go. she will lay hold to the promises of God, regardless of the way things seem. she lets go of bitterness, anger, resentment, abuse and violation - even lets go of good things (they are the past and she is ever looking to the present and future).
THE ENEMY DOES NOT COME TO STEAL WHAT YOU DO NOT HAVE. most people give up right away and the enemy is able to take all the good that God has given. a foolish woman will let go of the things she needs to lay hold of and hold onto the things she needs to let go of.
to choose wisdom it takes an exchange in our spirit. we must release offenses, bitterness, unforgiveness, - whatever - quickly and not go back to it. (the dead cat story comes to mind here. i take liberties - a couple had a sick, gnarled, broken cat that died. they decided it was time to bury it and leave it behind them, not going back to it and mourning the loss of the pet. yet they left the tail sticking out of the ground. one day the wife though about the cat, her sweet pet, and went out to dig it up. she showed it to her husband, who was simply mystified. there was the cat, half rotted and stinking - her petting it. he just could not figure out why the wife was bringing it back to him. so finally she decided to bury it again and leave it there, but she left the tail sticking up out of the ground. the husband came along again later and saw the tail, this brought to his memory so many thoughts. so he dug it up and took it to his wife who was gardening. she was absorbed in the beauty of her garden and was mystified at her husband bringing the cat to her. it was even worse than when she had dug it up. almost unrecognizable as a cat. and the smell was just awful. the husband mooned over it a while and then they both decided it was time to bury it again. this time tho they decided to bury the entire cat and forget about it completely. our hurts and misunderstandings in our relationships are like the cat. sick and gnarled. every time we revisit that "cat" and dig it up, taking it to our loved ones it just leaves mess and stink in the air. to truly let go of the hurt and misunderstanding we MUST bury the entire mess and leave it there. it does no one good to visit it and bring it up again.... i took liberties with the story, but it gets the point across....) the faster we let go of something, the less chance it has to leave a mark on us. when we exchange frustration for a release (releasing it) God can release what is in His hand and we get the healing and blessing for it.
lisa pointed out several women in the Bible who took their fears and faults and turned them into strength and goodness from God by using wisdom.
eve - yes eve, the one labeled as responsible for bringing a fallen nature to the earth. she had a right to be discouraged by her past if anyone did. she however laid hold of the promise that her seed would stomp the enemy. she assumed it would be her first born, he actually killed the second born son. i might have given up after that..... some how she realizes that through her "seed" meaning children God would take the authority over the enemy. she exchanged death for the hope of redemption.
sarah (as in abraham and sarah) chose to leave everything behind that was comfortable so she could travel with her husband to look for something more. there were years of discouragement due to her barrenness. she hoped to giver her husband a legacy through a son. (it was a promise to her husband by God - that their children would out number the sands.) she even offered her maid to abraham so that a son could be born to him. (boy i would have a hard time with that one. i know there are culture differences, but really - another woman????) God's promises would be fulfilled through her. sarah exchanged fear for faith.
wisdom is not a function of education, because we can gather all kinds of knowledge and information but not have wisdom. the education system does not prepare us for living and relationships. it would seem the "smarter" we get as a culture the worse our relationships get. she asks the question - do we wonder around in shame because we've lost our way, or have we willfully chosen foolish paths? we leave the path of wisdom and find we are "too smart" to find our way back again.
we must get back child-like simplicity and purity. wisdom is not difficult, it is easy. wisdom is the intimate embrace of truth. when we immerse our self in God's word we find that it will speak to our hearts. when we are in dealing with the daily issues of life that wisdom will come to our memory and we will know the best way to handle things. the word of God is alive and sharp, it divides to the very basic human instinct and shows light into our motives - giving us the edge to choose what we should do.
in proverbs wisdom is personified as feminine. we tend to go to our sister for counsel and advice. if there was no sister we go to one that is close like a sister. even men often go to their sisters for counsel.
there is also the sister of folly. she seems to be seductive and cunning. the image of the world shows that she is powerful, has it all together, has everyone she wants at her beck and call, and she gets what she wants by any means available. when we become like this "powerful" woman we conform to her image. whatever she seems to us we take on and try to be, but it leads to death and destruction not real fulfillment. the world view actually strips the woman of her power. this is why we must become like the image of the UNSEEN God. His character is love, patience, kindness, is not jealous, doesn't boast, is not arrogant, is not rude, is not irritable, does not keep track of wrongs, is not happy when injustice is done, is happy with the truth, never stops believing, never stops hoping, never gives up. His love never ends. this is the way to fight, using wisdom.
the difference between wise and foolish - a wise woman knows when to hold on and when to let go. she will lay hold to the promises of God, regardless of the way things seem. she lets go of bitterness, anger, resentment, abuse and violation - even lets go of good things (they are the past and she is ever looking to the present and future).
THE ENEMY DOES NOT COME TO STEAL WHAT YOU DO NOT HAVE. most people give up right away and the enemy is able to take all the good that God has given. a foolish woman will let go of the things she needs to lay hold of and hold onto the things she needs to let go of.
to choose wisdom it takes an exchange in our spirit. we must release offenses, bitterness, unforgiveness, - whatever - quickly and not go back to it. (the dead cat story comes to mind here. i take liberties - a couple had a sick, gnarled, broken cat that died. they decided it was time to bury it and leave it behind them, not going back to it and mourning the loss of the pet. yet they left the tail sticking out of the ground. one day the wife though about the cat, her sweet pet, and went out to dig it up. she showed it to her husband, who was simply mystified. there was the cat, half rotted and stinking - her petting it. he just could not figure out why the wife was bringing it back to him. so finally she decided to bury it again and leave it there, but she left the tail sticking up out of the ground. the husband came along again later and saw the tail, this brought to his memory so many thoughts. so he dug it up and took it to his wife who was gardening. she was absorbed in the beauty of her garden and was mystified at her husband bringing the cat to her. it was even worse than when she had dug it up. almost unrecognizable as a cat. and the smell was just awful. the husband mooned over it a while and then they both decided it was time to bury it again. this time tho they decided to bury the entire cat and forget about it completely. our hurts and misunderstandings in our relationships are like the cat. sick and gnarled. every time we revisit that "cat" and dig it up, taking it to our loved ones it just leaves mess and stink in the air. to truly let go of the hurt and misunderstanding we MUST bury the entire mess and leave it there. it does no one good to visit it and bring it up again.... i took liberties with the story, but it gets the point across....) the faster we let go of something, the less chance it has to leave a mark on us. when we exchange frustration for a release (releasing it) God can release what is in His hand and we get the healing and blessing for it.
lisa pointed out several women in the Bible who took their fears and faults and turned them into strength and goodness from God by using wisdom.
eve - yes eve, the one labeled as responsible for bringing a fallen nature to the earth. she had a right to be discouraged by her past if anyone did. she however laid hold of the promise that her seed would stomp the enemy. she assumed it would be her first born, he actually killed the second born son. i might have given up after that..... some how she realizes that through her "seed" meaning children God would take the authority over the enemy. she exchanged death for the hope of redemption.
sarah (as in abraham and sarah) chose to leave everything behind that was comfortable so she could travel with her husband to look for something more. there were years of discouragement due to her barrenness. she hoped to giver her husband a legacy through a son. (it was a promise to her husband by God - that their children would out number the sands.) she even offered her maid to abraham so that a son could be born to him. (boy i would have a hard time with that one. i know there are culture differences, but really - another woman????) God's promises would be fulfilled through her. sarah exchanged fear for faith.
deborah noticed things were not like they should be. she exchanged the dynamic of just siting and judging to action.
rahab was a harlot. she hid israelite spies and covered their escape. she exchanged fear of judgment and death for the fear of the Lord.
ruth and naomi - both exchanged death and disappointment for hope and promise. ruth exchanged the love of herself to care for her mother-in-law and then God brought her the love of her life. naomi exchanged grief and loss for adoption and legacy.
hannah was barren. she was married to a man with two wives, and the other wife had children. she taunted and humiliated hannah. every year her husband offered a sacrifice to God and would give hannah a large portion of the meal because he loved her and she was barren. but the tauntings of the rival wife were too much for hannah. she went to God's temple and cried out to God. the head priest came and told her to collect herself because he thought she was drunk. hannah humbly replied that she was heavy of heart and had nothing to drink at all. she was crying out to God. the priest blessed her and said "may the God of israel give you what you have asked". she exchanged dishonor and offense for honor and victory. she became a mother, fulfilled her vow, and had many more children.
abigail found that her evil husband had foolishly gotten the household condemned to death by the future king. she told the servants to prepare a feast for the future king and his warriors. then she went into the midst of the blood-thirsty warriors, fell at the future king's feet, and asked if she might whisper in his ear. she reminded him of the promise of God, that he was to be the future king and he did not want to have their deaths on his conscience. his anger was abated and the household was saved. she exchanged the foolishness of her husband for their lives, and counseled a future king when her husband would not listen.
we who fight for God need to let God execute the vengeance on our behalf. we do not fight our own battles, God brings the victory. we use wisdom, hold onto His promises and let go of what must be let go. we have to calm and quiet so that we can hear the voice of wisdom. there is always wisdom to find if we look for it. seek and ye shall find, knock and the door will be open. God does not hide His wisdom from us. He may require us to seek, and that can be a hard part especially when we are in turmoil.
psalm 111:10 the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow His precepts have good understanding. job 28:28 the fear of the Lord is true wisdom; to forsake evil is real understanding. proverbs 2:6-7 for the Lord gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding; He stores up sound wisdom for the upright. proverbs 3:13-18 happy is the person who finds wisdom and gains understanding. for the profit of wisdom is better than silver, and her wages are better than gold. wisdom is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her. she offers you life in her right hand, and riches and honor in her left. she will guide you down delightful paths; all her ways are satisfying. wisdom is a tree of life to those who embrace her; happy are those who hold her tightly. proverbs 1:5-6 if you need wisdom - if you want to know what God wants you to do - ask Him, and He will gladly tell you. He will not resent your asking. but when you ask Him, be sure that you really expect Him to answer, for a doubtful mind is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.
psalm 111:10 the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow His precepts have good understanding. job 28:28 the fear of the Lord is true wisdom; to forsake evil is real understanding. proverbs 2:6-7 for the Lord gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding; He stores up sound wisdom for the upright. proverbs 3:13-18 happy is the person who finds wisdom and gains understanding. for the profit of wisdom is better than silver, and her wages are better than gold. wisdom is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her. she offers you life in her right hand, and riches and honor in her left. she will guide you down delightful paths; all her ways are satisfying. wisdom is a tree of life to those who embrace her; happy are those who hold her tightly. proverbs 1:5-6 if you need wisdom - if you want to know what God wants you to do - ask Him, and He will gladly tell you. He will not resent your asking. but when you ask Him, be sure that you really expect Him to answer, for a doubtful mind is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.
i am seeking wisdom. a life style of wisdom. i still mess up and say too much (if there was an automatic switch that i could place in God's hands - tho i am sure He is trying to get me to be quiet at times.... again, not stopping and listening..), i so want to do things that are pleasing to God. i really don't see any reason to push for my way or demand that things go the way i think they should. it is so interesting how two people can go about the same goal in such opposite ways. so i try to give up my preference (and let me tell you, i am not succeeding too well in this.) i sure need His help and strength, because i can get so out of hand. emotions can sure get stirred up quickly.
well that is it for me. oh yes, i guess an update on the couch is needed: still not done. seems so much has happened that it fell to the back burner again. maybe i am just waiting for my mother-in-law to get here and help me finish it. all the times she offered and we never got to it... lol we shall see.
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