Wisdom's Call!

Dear Sisters,

Good morning! What’s calling out to you today? A child? The telephone? Email? A to-do list? An employer? A neighbor? A parent or friend?

Do you hear her? There’s someone else calling. Her name is Wisdom! Let’s page to Proverbs 8 and do more than hear. Let’s listen; let’s listen well.

WISDOM’S CALL

Does not wisdom call out? Does not understanding raise her voice?

Proverbs 8:1

When my daughters played sports, and I was in the stands amidst the other parents, if any of the children called out, “Mom!” on cue, every mother’s head turned in that direction. We heard the call “Mom!” and responded – whether it was our child or not!

In chapter 8 of Proverbs, Wisdom calls out with raised voice: You who are simple, gain prudence; you who are foolish, gain understanding. Listen, for I have worthy things to say; I open my lips to speak what is right (Proverbs 8:5-6). Wisdom loudly calls out, but do we hear and respond to her call?

In the New Testament Jesus repeatedly said to His listeners, “Whoever has ears, let them hear” (Matthew 11:15, 13:43, Mark 4:9 . . .)

Hearing and listening can be two different things. I can hear my husband and nod at timely intervals, without listening to a word that he has to say. We can do the same with wisdom. We can read Proverbs and even teach Proverbs, without listening to a word that the Lord has for us.

Ears that really hear and listen, respond with obedience. Their hearts are not calloused to wisdom’s call; they are doing what He decrees! James asked, Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom (James 3:13).

Those who listen will be happy and blessed. Now then, my children, listen to me; blessed are those who keep my ways. Blessed are those who listen to me, watching daily at my doors, waiting at my doorway (Proverbs 8:32, 34).

Those who listen will find true life. For those who find me find life and receive favor from the LORD. But those who fail to find me harm themselves; all who hate me love death (Proverbs 8:35-36). Jesus repeats that life-giving truth in all four gospels. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul (Mark 8:35-36)?

Sometimes we can be guilty of “selective hearing” – hearing what we want to hear, and tuning out what we don’t want to apply to our lives. There’s a deadly price tag to tuning out wisdom’s call. May we hear, listen, obey, and find true life.

Wisdom Step: Today measure your wisdom by what you do, instead of what you know. On a scale of 1 to 10, how wise are you?

Wisdom is hearing and doing the Word of God.

John Piper

Grace & Peace,

Lenae Bulthuis, Training Manager

August Devotional from the Service Center

Why Proverbs?

The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel: for attaining wisdom and discipline; for understanding words of insight; for acquiring a disciplined and prudent life, doing what is right and just and fair. Proverbs 1:1-3

Math is my most challenging subject. More often than not when a new concept was introduced in geometry or algebra and I was stumped, I’d groan to my parents, “Why do I need to learn this? I’ll never use it again in my life!”

For those who may question why it’s important to dedicate a year to studying the book of Proverbs, Solomon, the writer of the book, tells us. Within the first sentence of the first chapter, he lays out the purpose of the book (Proverbs 1:1-3).

Here’s Solomon’s purpose and God’s plan for you and me in the book of Proverbs.

1. To teach us to attain wisdom and discipline for understanding words of insight. We’re not born wise and we don’t automatically or magically become wise when we accept Christ as our Savior. True wisdom only comes from God (Proverbs 9:10). In order to live rightly we need to listen to God’s wisdom, discipline, instruction, and correction.Listen to advice and accept instruction, and in the end you will be wise(Proverbs 19:20). It’s a continuous education program as we sit under the teaching of His Word and Spirit.

2. To teach us to acquire a disciplined and prudent life. Our culture calls the prudent killjoys, spoilsports, and wet blankets. It’s God who gives the true definition of being a prude. The wisdom of the prudent is to give thought to their ways (Proverbs 14:8a). The prudent make choices based on the knowledge of God and have a God-given understanding of where they are going.

3. To teach us to do what is right and just and fair. Righteousness, justice, and equity are attributes of God that He desires to see in our relationships with one another. Through His wisdom we will understand what is right and just and fair – every good path (Proverbs 2:9). These virtues are evidence of His wisdom at work in our lives.The book of Proverbs is God’s handbook on how to live rightly. Studying and then habitually choosing to live by the wisdom found in the book of Proverbs will provide life-changing discipleship that will inspire us to walk wisely and live a life that goes beyond the gold.

Wisdom Step

How well have you been listening and obeying God’s advice and instruction in His Word? If a course correction is needed be wise and begin today.

The goal of Proverbs is to grow ever closer to the God who is Wisdom. Knowing God is the proper definition of the good life, and the highest goal of the Proverbs-driven life. 
Anthony Selvaggio

Proverbs 7

A devotional from Training Manager, Lenae Bulthuis:

Let’s page to Proverbs chapter 7 (a chapter that I admittedly was tempted to skip in our devotional study) as we continue to focus on this season’s GEMS theme, Get Wisdom: Go beyond the Gold!

PROVERBS 7 WARNINGS

Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,” and call understanding your kinsman; they will keep you from the adulteress, from the wayward wife with her seductive words.

Proverbs 7:4-5

With the Bible heading, Warning Against the Adulteress, Proverbs 7 seems like a chapter exclusively for men. The reality is that each page of God’s book is for each one of His children – male and female. The warnings given to the young men in Proverbs 7 are needed by women of all ages, too.

In an online article posted on April 7, 2011, Guardian reported that more and more women are using pornography. “At Quit Porn Addiction, the UK’s main porn counseling service, almost one in three clients are women struggling with their own porn use, says founder and counselor Jason Dean. Two years ago, there were none. While more than six out of 10 women say they view web porn, one study in 2006 by the Internet Filter View found that 17% of women describe themselves as ‘addicted’”.

Sexual temptations for men and women are not limited to the Internet. There are TV shows like “Sex and the City”, larger than life posters of scantily dressed models in the mall’s display windows where families are flocking to purchase school clothes this time of year, and morning talk shows openly discuss sex toy parties.

Be warned! To follow after these temptations will be like an ox going to the slaughter, like a deer stepping into a noose till an arrow pierces his liver, like a bird darting into a snare, little knowing it will cost him his (her) life” (Proverbs 7:22-23).

Now then, my sons (daughters) listen to me; pay attention to what I say. Do not let your heart turn to her (the ways of the adulteress) or stray into her paths. Many are the victims she has brought down; her slain are a mighty throng. Her house is a highway to the grave, leading down to the chambers of death (Proverbs 7:24-27).

Sex is God’s idea. Sadly, the images, persuasive words, and smooth talk of our culture are desensitizing an entire generation from God’s good and beautiful plan.

We must store up His commands within us, guard His teachings as the apple of our eye, bind them on our fingers, and write them on the tablet of our heart (Proverbs 7:2-4) – and teach the girls in our clubs to do the same! His wisdom will give us a discerning heart and keep our feet on His good and pure paths.

Wisdom Step: Measure everything you read, see, hear, do, and wear today to the plumb line of God’s commands.

When young women understand the cosmic consequences of sexual sin, the worldviews that shape our consumption of sexual messages today, and how God’s glory is under spiritual attack . . . they will be sobered by how Satan still “prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8) – and that men and women alike are fair game.

Carolyn McCulley

Obedience is God's Love Language

For your ways are in full view of the LORD,

and he examines all your paths.

Proverbs 5:21

In one of Anne Graham Lotz’s books I recall a story that she told about her mother’s cleaning spree in preparation for a TV interview that was taking place in Billy and Ruth’s home. Ruth scrubbed, dusted, and vacuumed every nook and cranny until their home was spotless. All was squeaky-clean and ready by interview day. At least that’s what Ruth thought. It was lights, camera, horror! Ruth was shocked and dismayed when the intensity of the camera crew’s lights revealed a haze of dust and cobwebs in her seemingly immaculate home. What was hidden in natural lighting was made visible under the scrutiny of the penetrating lights.

When it comes to sin, we can deceive ourselves into thinking that our lives look pretty good, even squeaky-clean when compared to some. Like the Proverbs 5 adulteress whose words drip honey and whose speech is smoother than oil (v. 3), we can smooth and soften sin by calling lying, a slight exaggeration, by calling gossip, a prayer request, by labeling murder, the right to choose, calling immodesty, fashion, dubbing flirtatiousness, as being friendly, and naming greed, entitlement.

The sin we rationalize, excuse, downgrade, justify, overlook, tolerate, and even defend is not hidden from God. For your ways are in full view of the LORD, and he examines all your paths (Proverbs 5:21). “The word ‘paths’ refers literally to the ruts worn by repeated travel of wagons over a roadway” (John A. Kitchen, Proverbs A Mentor Commentary). Is there a repeated, habitual sin that is part of your and my life? Has it become such an everyday rut in our life’s path that it doesn’t feel like it’s really that big of a deal?

At the GEMS Counselors’ Leadership Conference in Fort Collins, Colorado, Ray Vander Laan pointedly and passionately taught us from God’s Word that God’s love language is obedience. Make no mistake; we are saved by grace alone (Ephesians 2:8), but it’s through obedience that we tell God, “I love You!” This is love for God: to obey his commands (1 John 5:3). Obedience shows love to God; obedience is God’s love language!

Wisdom Prayer: Heavenly Father, our ways are in full view of You – the blatant sin, and the sin we think no one else knows about. Test us, O LORD, and try us, examine our hearts and our minds. Reveal the ruts and potholes of our paths. Shine the penetrating light of Your Word and Spirit into our lives so we can clearly recognize sin’s addictive and destructive nature. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. Teach us to pay attention to Your wisdom, and to listen well to Your words of insight, so that we will maintain discretion and our lips may preserve knowledge. We love You. We will obey Your commands. In Jesus’ name, Amen (Proverbs 5:21, Psalm 26:2, Matthew 6:12, Proverbs 5:1-2, I John 5:3).

To escape the error of salvation by works we have fallen into the opposite error of salvation without obedience.


A. W. Tozer

Guard Your Heart

Above all else, guard your heart,

For it is the wellspring of life.

Proverbs 4:23

The children’s song, O Be Careful, Little Eyes, wisely instructs children of all ages to be careful what their eyes see, what their ears hear, what their hands do, and where their feet go. According to Proverbs 4:23, it’s missing a verse:

Oh be careful little heart what you keep.

Oh be careful little heart what you keep.

There’s a Father up above

And He’s looking down in love

So, be careful little heart what you keep.

What we keep within our heart, to a great extent determines how we live. That’s why Solomon gives the command to guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life (Proverbs 4:23, NLT).

In my high school basketball days I was a scrappy guard. I had zero comprehension of what to do on offense, but had an innate understanding that on defense I was to guard the basket at all costs. The context of this verse isn’t a guarding that keeps a basketball from the hoop, or a hockey puck or soccer ball from the net. This verse’s primary focus is not so much to guard our heart by keeping the bad stuff out, but by keeping the good stuff of God’s teachings, commands, and wisdom in!

The verses that precede the instruction to guard our heart reiterate the importance of keeping a vigilant watch over what we keep within. My son (daughter), pay attention to what I say; listen closely to my words. Do not let them out of your sight; keep them within your heart (Proverbs 4:20-21). Deuteronomy 4:9 says, Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them slip from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children (and your GEMS!) and to the children after them.

Our heart houses our motives, thoughts, and emotions. What we keep within the control center of our heart will guide the choices we make and the paths that we take. The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, shining ever brighter till the full light of day. But the way of the wicked is like deep darkness; they do not know what makes them stumble (Proverbs 4:18-19).

Wisdom Step: Do a heart check. What is your greatest affection and treasure? Is it God and His Word? Your family? Your agenda? Work? Money? Weekends? Travel? What you treasure will determine the course of your life. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also (Matthew 6:21).

God be in my head, and in my understanding;

God be in my eyes, and in my looking;

God be in my mouth, and in my speaking;

God be in my heart, and in my thinking;

God be at my end, and at my departing.

Old Sarum Primer, 1558

July Devotional from the Service Center

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Leadership 101

The God of Israel spoke, the Rock of Israel said to me: “When one rules over people in righteousness, when he rules in the fear of God, he is like the light of morning at sunrise on a cloudless morning, like the brightness after rain that brings grass from the earth.

2 Samuel 23:3-4

At the close of King David’s life, he wrote a beautiful song about leadership. The song may have blessed and inspired his son Solomon who was anointed king after David and can continue to challenge each one of us as first year or seasoned leaders within the GEMS ministry today.

1. Leaders must be called and empowered by God. These are the last words of David: “The inspired utterance of David son of Jesse, the utterance of the man exalted by the Most High, the man anointed by the God of Jacob, the hero of Israel’s songs (2 Samuel 23:1).When David was called to be King of Israel he seemed the least likely candidate of Jesse’s eight sons. Samuel thought that surely the LORD must intend to anoint Jesse’s firstborn Eliab, not his youngest David. God directed Samuel to His qualifications for leadership and said, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart (1 Samuel 16:7). Maybe you feel as unlikely to lead within the GEMS ministry as Samuel originally thought David was. It’s not a matter of how you look or how qualified you feel, it’s a matter of the heart. God called and empowered David, and if He calls you to GEMS, He will empower you, too!

2. Leaders must be taught God’s Word through His Spirit. David wrote, The Spirit of the LORD spoke through me; his word was on my tongue (2 Samuel 23:2). David experienced first hand the horrors that took place when the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul (1 Samuel 16:14). To understand and then teach God’s Word, we must be women of the Word who have the light of the Spirit of God shining in and through us! Make David’s prayer your own as you prepare to lead girls next season, Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground (Psalm 143:10).

3. Leaders must fear God (2 Samuel 23:3-4). While King Saul and the Israelites cowered in fear of Goliath, David was willing to fight. Because he feared the LORD Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, he had no fear of Goliath. When we fear God, we need not fear the leadership He’s called us to within GEMS. Does it make you afraid or anxious? David experienced that, too, and though his knees may have knocked on occasion, he trusted God. Follow David’s example and serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling(Psalm 2:11).

Wisdom Step: Fear God, not the leadership He’s called you to! What can you do today to prepare for the new GEMS season?

So, where He leads me, I can safely go,

And in the blest hereafter I shall know,
Why in His wisdom He hath led me so.

Unknown