Wisdom Matters

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Welcome to Wisdom Matters, the chance to reflect on a Bible verse or two each day for the purpose of living and thinking biblically. Wisdom is a gift from God that enables us to know how to filter and use all we learn for God’s higher purpose. I hope you will join me for Wisdom Matters.

  1. hace 7 h

    Who are the wise people you know?

    If you had to create a list of wise people, whose names would you write? There are people we know and trust to give us wise counsel and biblical advice. As I type these words, I am thinking of the list I would write. They share one common character trait. Their lives, words, and character reflect the meekness of wisdom. In order to understand “the meekness of wisdom,” we need to understand what the word meek means in the Bible. Our culture doesn’t define it the same way anymore. In the Bible, meek is the picture of a powerful stallion controlled by and submitted to the small bit placed in his mouth. A meek person is never a weak person in Scripture. In fact, it is the opposite.  The meekness of wisdom is simply found in a person who has gained a powerful knowledge of God and has been filled with his strength. Their wisdom is then submitted to the direction and control of God. Who is wise and understanding among you? The person whose life indicates that they are filled with the powerful wisdom of God and yielded to his leadership. I look for these people and cherish their help. We should be able to create a list of wise people to study and learn from. At the same time, we should make it a personal goal to live our lives in the “meekness of wisdom.” It will require careful study, dedication, and most of all the reverent humility necessary to submit ourselves to the authority of God. Good advice and careful instruction provide wisdom. Who are the “wise and understanding” people in your life?  Oh Lord, let us listen, learn, and be willing to gain your wisdom. Then Lord, may we have the meekness to live with our strengths submitted to your will.

    3 min

  2. hace 1 día

    When is it wise to slow down?

    We have all made some quick decisions that turned out quite well. On the other hand, if you are like me, it’s the quick decisions that have most often required my repentance. We have all received a hasty text from a friend that hit us the wrong way. We have all sent a text like that as well. We can communicate so rapidly these days that often our choice of words is not a thoughtful choice. We can even hit “send” only to realize our words went to the wrong person. Texting and emailing have made our lives much easier, but it is important to slow down long enough to consider how our hastily written words might impact the reader. If we are diligent, we cannot be hasty. Diligence means steady, earnest, and devoted to working carefully with great effort. Christians have a lot of influence that depends on our lives and words. We should be diligent about our choices, careful to give the time needed to think things through. The wisdom of Proverbs 21:5 teaches us that we should be diligent with our plans. In other words, we are to work through our plans carefully considering God’s will in all the possibilities. If we are diligent with our choices, they will likely lead to an abundance of God’s blessings. The proverb goes on to warn that those who are hasty come to poverty, having to do without. Wisdom teaches that it is the thoughtful person who makes fewer mistakes, hurts fewer people, and gains greater reward.  Wisdom isn’t gained in a day; it is the result of carefully, diligently working to live thoughtful lives. It takes time to think. It takes time to be diligent. Good advice and careful instruction provide wisdom. God’s word teaches us to slow down and live diligently. Therein lies an abundance of God’s blessings.

    3 min

  3. hace 2 días

    Why does every Christian need someone to hold them accountable?

    Who in your life have you invited to “speak up” when you wander from God? Whose friendship is both enjoyable and valuable to your life? Who would list your name if asked those questions? Our culture has become so careful with words that often words have lost any real meaning. Opinions have become truth to the people who hold them, whether or not the opinions are truth. People are often more willing to speak up when they agree than they are when they disagree, even when they know what is right. We live in a culture that values tolerance, even when what we tolerate causes harm to ourselves and others.  The wisdom of Proverbs 27:5–6 is no longer the wisdom of the world. Yet, it remains the timeless wisdom of the ages. Empty words that sound nice are not as valuable as the truth, even when the truth hurts the hearer. A true friend, if they are faithful to God and faithful friends to us, will speak the truth even when their words might wound. A friend who tolerates our weaknesses won’t help us grow stronger in the Lord. If a friend truly loves us, they will want us to be right with God and live for his blessing. All of us need that kind of friend from time to time, and all of us need to be that kind of friend as well. A valuable friend is someone who will help you live right with God and true to his word. A Christian earns the right to hold someone accountable by living a strong spiritual life and loving their friends. We can invite those friends to help us remain accountable to our God.  Good advice and careful instruction provide wisdom. Every Christian should have friends whose advice and instruction are wisdom for us. We should also work to become that kind of wise and helpful friend to others.

    3 min

  4. hace 3 días

    How does your faith in Jesus change your life?

    Romans 12:1 teaches us to present our bodies, our earthly lives, as a living sacrifice to God. We are to be holy and make acceptable choices because that is an act of worship to him as our Lord. Romans 12:2 teaches us why we should want to live a holy and sacrificial life and how we can do that. Our faith in Jesus has changed our lives more than we probably realize. If we could snap our fingers and see ourselves as we could have been without faith in Jesus, we would probably be shocked by the differences. Jesus has “transformed” our lives in ways we may or may not realize. We have a new way of thinking and feeling about the things of the world. We have a new sensitivity toward people and their feelings. We have new standards for what are acceptable and right behaviors.  We can sense God’s favor and we can sense God’s displeasure as well. We can think with God because our faith in Jesus has renewed our mind. We can know what God is thinking because we know his word and his will for us. God doesn’t want the world to influence who we are. God wants us to reflect his holiness, knowing and doing what is good, acceptable, and perfect. Your faith has changed your life, and it will continue to change who you are, how you think, and all that you do—as long as you continually live in sacrificial service to God. None of us will, but all of us can. We each have a daily, moment-to-moment choice to either live a conformed life or a transformed life. Good advice and careful instruction provide wisdom. Wisdom is knowing that your faith can change every moment you submit to God.

    3 min

  5. hace 4 días

    How do we live with a constant faith in God?

    If you have chosen to subscribe to Wisdom Matters, you are likely a person who has chosen Jesus to be your Savior and your Lord. You are also likely to recognize that living faithfully is a constant challenge. Some days we walk hand in hand with God while other days we might feel we have wandered, strayed, or even become completely lost. A lot of Scripture is written in a continuous tense, meaning we are never to stop. Jesus said, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you” (Luke 11:9). Jesus spoke those words in the continuous tense. In other words, Jesus said, “Ask and keep asking, seek and keep seeking, knock and keep knocking.”  Christians are continuously filled with the power and Presence of Christ through his Holy Spirit. There is never a moment we are without his strength, power, advice, and direction—unless we choose to focus on something else. How do we live with a constant faith, continuously filled and controlled by God’s Spirit? We can follow the psalmist’s advice. We can offer our praise to God all day, thanking him for his voice, his guidance, and his peace. We can constantly pray for his will and his strength. We can ask ourselves throughout the day if we are pleasing him with our words and choices. God wants to bless us continuously with an awareness of his holy, perfect Presence in our lives. Good advice and careful instruction provide wisdom. Here is some good advice for this moment. Realize that if you are a Christian, his Spirit never leaves you and his Presence is always within you. Sense his joy, right now, as you realize the enormity of his gift. Spend time with him, simply enjoying your loving Father who enjoys the time he is spending with you.

    3 min

  6. hace 5 días

    How do we submit our ideas to God’s plan?

    The “heart” in the Old Testament referred to a person’s basic drive and motivation. Wouldn’t it be interesting to see a list of every plan we had ever made and compare that list to those things we actually did? All of us who looked would see and be grateful for the hand of God as he intervened with protection and redirection in our lives. Each of us is driven by our own plans, desires, hopes, and dreams. We want to want God’s will but often we don’t want what is God’s will. Sometimes we pray, “Lord, what is your will for my life?” The more important prayer is actually, “Lord, what is your will?” If we know God’s will, we know what he wants us to do with our lives. The Lord establishes our steps. God is less concerned about what we want and more concerned about what we should want. God is less concerned about what we want to do and more concerned that we do what we should. God always has an eternal perspective for each of our steps. His will for our lives is that we do his will. We often make our choices and decisions based on the passions of our heart. When we walk with God’s will, he transforms or authors “the desires of our heart.” God will cause us to want what he wants for us if we just understand that his priority is more for our eternal lives than our earthly lives. That perspective will enable us to “plan” our way according to the “steps” our Lord establishes. Good advice and careful instruction provide wisdom. Knowing that our plans need to be submitted to God’s direction is good advice and wisdom we need to faithfully step onto the path God has established for us.

    3 min

  7. hace 6 días

    Why is the Sermon on the Mount your best advice and instruction?

    Jesus ended his Sermon on the Mount by telling the crowd that a wise person will build his life, his “house,” on the solid foundation of faith his sermon had taught. Some have said that every lesson Jesus taught can be traced back to the foundational truth of his most famous sermon. If we want to be like the wise man who lived with the biblical truth Jesus preached that day by the Sea of Galilee, we need to build our lives on the rock of his truth. The question isn’t “Do you know the Sermon on the Mount?” Rather, it’s “Do you live it?” We can’t just hear these words; we must do them. Matthew 5–7 contains the foundational truth of the Christian faith. So often we read and study those chapters in sections. How long has it been since you sat down and read the entire sermon in one sitting?  You can evaluate your walk with God by this question: How much of your life have you built upon the rock, the foundational truths of Jesus’ key sermon?  The Beatitudes: —Are you living a life God is able to bless? —Are you living as salt and light in a world that needs both? —Do you understand Christ is the fulfillment of the Old Testament Law and God’s new and final covenant with the world? —Do you understand the high standards Jesus set for your earthly life? —Do you pray as Jesus taught you to pray? —Do you live for heaven’s treasures or the world’s rewards? —Do you live with faith or worry? —Do you love and treat others as Jesus would? —Do you believe there is a heaven and a hell and everyone will go to one or the other after this life? Is your life built on the truth of Jesus’ teaching or on a weak foundation? The Sermon on the Mount is crucial teaching for our walk with God and wisdom for our witness. Good advice and careful instruction provide wisdom. Jesus began his earthly ministry by the Sea of Galilee and gave us all we needed to live with his perfect wisdom. Read Matthew 5–7 from start to finish and you will gain the best advice and instruction you could receive for your life now and your life eternal.

    4 min

  8. 13 jun

    Whose counsel do you need?

    God created people to need other people. No one person knows everything. No one is always right about everything. We are all uniquely created with gifts and abilities, but no one has every gift or every ability. We were created to need other people’s help, wisdom, and advice. It’s humbling to realize we can’t live life well if we only live it with our own abilities. On the other hand, it’s comforting to realize we were created that way for a reason. The fact you don’t know everything isn’t your fault; it’s your blessing. Proverbs 15:22 says that “without counsel plans fail.” If we only have our own thoughts and opinions, we only have a percentage of the wisdom we need. Our plans could fail if we don’t gain the counsel of a different perspective.  The proverb also teaches us that with many advisers our plans can succeed. Sometimes too many advisers can muddy the waters, but even bad advice can be good. It is just as important to understand what we don’t want to do than coming to our decision about what we will choose to do. How do we discern our good advice from the bad? Ask: —Which advice glorifies God? —Which choice has a kingdom purpose too? —Which choice is accompanied by the peace of God and seems to be opening doors only God could open? —Which advisers prayed before they spoke? —Which advisers walk with God and understand that his counsel is the only perfect answer? Some advice provides earthly gain while other advice provides treasure in heaven as well.  Good advice and careful instruction provide wisdom. Do your best to discern God’s biblical advice and seek counsel from people who understand their need to receive God’s counsel before they have counsel to give. God made us to need the counsel of others and gave us discernment to understand whose counsel we need.

    3 min
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Welcome to Wisdom Matters, the chance to reflect on a Bible verse or two each day for the purpose of living and thinking biblically. Wisdom is a gift from God that enables us to know how to filter and use all we learn for God’s higher purpose. I hope you will join me for Wisdom Matters.

Información

  • Canal
    Denison Forum
  • Creador
    Foundations with Janet Denison
  • Años de actividad
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodios
    348
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    © 2026 Foundations
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    Wisdom Matters

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