Think About It

Have you ever given much thought to wisdom? We do a good job in assessing knowledge. We grade our children on how much they know and we assess the value of people by their Intelligence Quotient. Jobs are offered and promotions are made by how well people score on tests. While there is value in knowing certain things, wisdom seems to have taken a backseat to knowledge. Over the last few weeks I have been thinking about justice. Interestingly, there are all kinds of laws on the books about how to administer justice, but have we given much thought to the process that wisdom plays in it? The other day I was reading and came across this observation, “Then you will discern the fear of the Lord and discover the knowledge of God. For the Lord gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding. He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk in integrity, guarding the paths of justice, and He preserves the way of His godly ones. Then you will dis...

Early on in Jesus’ ministry He uttered a very simple concept that really caught on – I mean who hasn’t heard of the Golden Rule? Jesus established the standards by which His people would live, “… treat people the same way you want them to treat you …” (Matthew 7:12). Not only do these words promote good, but they also sound good. However, have you really ever thought about how difficult this can be? I would imagine that when Jesus said this, He was looking into the future and saw the potential stumbling blocks that lay ahead of Him. He was walking headlong on a path that would lead Him to a cross where He would die for the sins of those who nailed Him on it. Wow! Now all of a sudden, these simple words took on a whole new meaning. A little later the Apostle Peter would offer this summary, “… while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously; and He Himself bore our sins in His bod...

The other day I was driving to work and noticed something interesting. Right in front of me was a nice looking, powerful Corvette. I mean it had all the bells and whistles that a $100,000 car should have. It was ready to roll! However, right in front of it was a rather common looking utilitarian vehicle driving slowly. I really don’t remember much about the car other than it was dictating the speed of the ‘Vette. There was nowhere for the sports car to go, so all that power went untapped because of what was leading it. As I followed behind these two vehicles I got to thinking about leadership. How many of us who serve as leaders are actually holding back the talented people who are coming up behind us? Since we are in positions of authority, we set the tone for the organization and, for whatever reason, we are limiting the potential of people who are raring to go! I understand that without some sort of guidance some movers and shakers can do things that put them (or us) in j...

One of the blessings of doing these little daily thoughts is that I get people sending me their own insights. I had one show up in my inbox the other day that reminded me, “An umbrella cannot stop the rain, but it allows us to stand in the rain. Faith in God may not remove our trials, but it gives us strength to overcome them.”. As I pondered this observation, I was led to a discussion that people often have about trauma and crisis. The issue is often broken down this way, “How can a loving God allow bad things to happen to good people?”. There are all kinds of answers to this question – some make sense, while others just seem to muddy the waters. Yet, as I think about this, there are two things that come to mind. First, bad things happen to all kinds of people. They always have and they always will. God has never promised to put a hedge around believers and shelter them from the nature of living in sin-filled world. However, it is the second reality that makes Christianity a...

What is your talent? The first danger of starting with this question is that too many people will just keep reading on without stopping to answer the question. So, I repeat, what is your talent? What can you do well? The second problem with this question is that there are people who will say, “I don’t do anything special. I’m not talented.”. The problem with this response isn’t that it’s true, the real issue is that it just isn’t thought out. We all have skills that can be used to benefit others. We may not all have the ability to make millions of dollars or sing beautiful songs or write inspiring poems – but we can all do something. Maybe it is the gift to fix an air conditioner or make a scrumptious meal or build someone’s spirit with a kind word. Maybe we have the ability to sit with an older person whose friends have all passed away or help someone who is confused by the Medicare process. Maybe we can babysit for a young mother or nail up trim on a Habitat For Humanity h...

If I were asked in public, I would probably like to say that I would just like to be an Average Joe. I don’t want to receive any favors and I reject the idea of desiring a life of privilege. I just want to be that common guy who keeps plugging away, heading toward a goal. That sounds good, doesn’t it! However, if you were to ask me in private if I would like to live the good life, I would be happy to sign up! It would be nice to enjoy the benefits of high society – to be in the upper echelon. It would be great to have the pedigree (and the benefits) that come from either royalty or influence. Yes, I would like to have what others have and live the way the “haves” live. Now, you might be thinking, “That’ll never happen” (and if you are talking about this life, you are correct). My physical family is about as plain as we can get. However, I am a member of another family that lives in “tall cotton”. When Peter describes Christians he says, “But you are a chosen race, a royal p...

Do you believe that life is bad? Are you convinced that we are living in an awful time that is designed to make us miserable? Do you think that evil is succeeding in making this world a difficult place to live? Well, welcome to the club! I believe that our generation has succeeded in emphasizing the sorry state of affairs; however, what we fail to realize is that it always been that way. From the first sin, satan has staked his claim as leader of the unfaithful. Now, while all of this is true, there is also hope. When Paul began his letter to the Galatians he did so with this assurance, “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for our sins so that He might rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be the glory forevermore. Amen.” (Galatians 1:3-5). Doesn’t this analysis of the world sound like it could have been written today? Yet, if that is true, the hope for the church should be...