Wisdom and discretion - tools to use

The Common English Bible (CEB) heads Proverbs chapter two: Benefits of Wisdom, and The Message encapsulates the chapter with the words Make Insight Your Priority. 

A family dinner this evening included my younger sister’s friend and her husband – a lovely couple.  I was impressed by the way this friend had spoken about a significant re-structure happening in her workplace.  Her comments included no resentment, no rancour or bitterness, no “woe is me” or blame; just a genuine love of the work and of the expected good results for everyone.  To my ear, she demonstrated integrity, uprightness, and discretion – qualities inferred in Proverbs chapter two!

Verse eleven is most interesting regarding the concept of discretion:

·       “Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee.” (KJV)

·       “Discretion will guard you, understanding will protect you.” (CEB)

·       “Good sense will scout ahead for danger.  Insight will keep an eye out for you. They’ll keep you from making wrong turns.” (Message)

In my KJV Bible is a pencil marking indicating that discretion can mean “capable of prudent silence.”  And the Dictionary app on my iPhone says that discretion is:

1. the power or right to decide or act according to one’s own judgment; freedom of judgment or choice e.g. It is entirely within my discretion whether I will go or stay.

2. the quality of being discreet, especially with reference to one’s own actions or speech; prudence or decorum e.g. Throwing all discretion to the winds, he blurted out the truth.

 

The wonderful news in verse six is that God is the source of all wisdom.  Thus, wisdom is available to us right now.  It’s ours as we listen for it and use it.  Mary Baker Eddy writes that “Each succeeding year unfolds wisdom, beauty, and holiness.” (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures p. 246:25)

Proverbs One - Listen Up Everyone

Who would like to be wise, to make wise decisions, to reason from the basis of wisdom?  To whom do we turn to learn wisdom?  Our parents?  Our teachers?  Our philosophers?  Writers?  Statesmen and women?

 

Our book, said to have been written by Solomon, son of King David of Israel, begins by telling us why we should read it.  Eugene Petersen (see The Message) calls it a Manual for Living.  I love how the New English Version of the Bible tells us that the “purpose is to teach wisdom and discipline” -

 http://www.commonenglishbible.com/Explore/PassageLookup/tabid/210/Default.aspx

 

I am reminded the saying “if you don’t stand for something you’ll fall for anything”, and we are certainly given some things to stand for right here from chapter one.

 

·       Verse seven tells us to always start with God – “the beginning of knowledge” is the fear (love) of God. 

·       Verses ten to eighteen counsel that we watch who and what we associate with, and resist the temptation to go along with the crowd.

·       Verse nineteen points out that greed implodes. “The more you get the less you are” writes Petersen.

·       In verses twenty to twenty-five we are told that wisdom “crieth” by making it obvious that “simplicity” (ignorance) and “scorn” (cynicism) are certainly not helpful attitudes, and that those who “hate knowledge” (are not ready to buckle down and learn) are foolish.

 

The scene is set.  We’d better pay attention, because carelessness and complacency bring calamity.

 

Julie Swannell

Spiritual healing is for everyone - thoughts from the Sunshine Coast

How enriching it is to again read all the beautiful testimonies in Healing Spiritually.  After a month of quite sporadic reading, I’m still only part of the way through, but I thought that on this blustery final evening in June I’d just flip through some of the pages that stood out to me.

 

I love that the book begins with: “Spiritual healing is for everyone.  Everywhere.  Every day.”

My family and I were at a church service on the Sunshine Coast this morning.  It was good in so many ways: