Posts with the category “wisdom-wednesday”

One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?” “The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength...  Read More

You are good, and what you do is goodteach me your decrees.Psalm 19:68Most of us desire to do the ‘right thing’ and be good people. But in a complicated world - what does this look like? Over the coming Wednesdays we’re going to consider ethics, morals and how we can be good and do good.Goodness, ethics and morals begin with God. How do we know what goodness is? How can we discern what is right an...  Read More

Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else. 1 Thessalonians 5:15Life is complicated. It wasn’t long ago that we had some relatives over at our house and one of the kids made a comment that they didn’t want to wear a pair of sunglasses because they were ‘girls’ sunglasses. Which elicited a response from my non-Christian...  Read More

31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.Ephesians 4:31-32Friendships can be one of the most enriching experiences in life and one of the most heartbreaking. Conflict is a normal part of any relationship and friendships usually have their ...  Read More

Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. 18 Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. 19 In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming a...  Read More

Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. 18 Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. 19 In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming a...  Read More

Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity.Colossians 4:2-5Einstein said time is an illusion. It sure doesn’t feel lik...  Read More

Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly.1 Timothy 4:7My grandmother is from another time. She was born one of eight children, in a small village in the east of Italy. Her marriage was arranged for her when she was 18 years to a man she had hardly met.She is a lady of deep superstition. We were warned never to wear dark clothes when we went to ...  Read More

The Lord makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him;Psalm 37:23 This will be the last week (for a while) where we will officially explore the idea of ‘Making Godly Decisions’. As I said in the previous Wednesday blog,Phillip Jensen helpful offers three categories of wisdom in decision making:1. Matters of righteousness2. Matters of good judgement3. Matters of triviaSo let’s talk trivia. W...  Read More

For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.Ephesians 5:8-10Over the past/next few Wednesdays, in keeping with our Wisdom Wednesday theme, I’m going to explore ...  Read More

For lack of discipline they will die,    led astray by their own great folly.Proverbs 5:23 Over the past/next few Wednesdays, in keeping with our Wisdom Wednesday theme, I’m going to explore the idea of ‘Making Godly Decisions’. My experience is that many Christians desire to honour God with their lives but sometimes don’t know how.The funny thing is. I reckon a lot of the time. People do know wha...  Read More

Plans fail for lack of counsel,but with many advisers they succeed.Proverbs 5:23 Over the past/next few Wednesdays, in keeping with our Wisdom Wednesday theme, I’m going to explore the idea of ‘Making Godly Decisions’.One of my greatest weaknesses is that I’m a bit of a lone ranger. I’m not very good at asking for help or advice. Which would be fine if I knew everything (obviously I don’t). To be ...  Read More

“But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.”The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?Jeremiah 17:7-9Over the pa...  Read More

Your word is a lamp for my feet,    a light on my path.I have taken an oath and confirmed it,    that I will follow your righteous laws.Psalm 119:105-106Over the next few Wednesdays, in keeping with our Wisdom Wednesday theme, I’m going to explore the idea of ‘Making Godly Decisions’. My experience is that many Christians desire to honour God with their lives but sometimes don’t know how.Our first...  Read More

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.Proverbs 3:5-6Over the next few Wednesdays, in keeping with our Wisdom Wednesday theme, I’m going to explore the idea of ‘Making Godly Decisions’. My experience is that many Christians desire to honour God with their lives but sometimes don’t know how.T...  Read More

Put your outdoor work in order    and get your fields ready;    after that, build your house.Proverb 24:27How do you go with priorities? Are you someone who gets distracted and caught up in less important work/activities? Or are you laser focused?A big part of making godly decisions is about prioritising. One thing we can be sure of, there is always stuff. Stuff we want to do, stuff we need to do ...  Read More

Mockers stir up a city, but the wise turn away anger.Proverbs 29:8Are you a stirrer? Do you escalate arguments? Or are you cool as a cucumber? Sometimes it depends on the situation (and the people!) doesn’t it?One thing I am continually encouraging my kids is to not escalate. Someone bites you (metaphorically speaking), you either respond calmly or you walk away until you can.There’s a principle a...  Read More

I denied myself nothing my eyes desired;    I refused my heart no pleasure.My heart took delight in all my labor,    and this was the reward for all my toil.Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done    and what I had toiled to achieve,everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind;    nothing was gained under the sun.Ecclesiastes 2:10-11I think all of us deep down suspect that if we had...  Read More

The wisdom of the prudent is to give thought to their ways,    but the folly of fools is deception.Proverbs 14:8“Know thyself” is one of the most ancient recorded philosophical maxims or sayings. It’s a timeliness saying in that it’s principle is timeless. As the writer of Proverbs says, the wisdom of the prudent is to reflect on themselves and their ways. Whereas the folly of fools is to deceive ...  Read More

My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.James 1:19-20Have you ever read one of those Christian social media responses that just made you wince? Do you have a friend who just can’t help themselves from commenting on every social issue with an u...  Read More

Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.Proverbs 16:18I think most of my greatest mistakes in life can either be pinned to laziness or pride. Pride can look like many things, an unwillingness to listen, pursuit of self-glory or a refusal to admit wrong. I think this last one is a killer.Is there anything more ugly than everyone knowing someone is wrong and yet they refuse to ...  Read More

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.Matthew 7:24-25A house built on the beach (literally that is) sounds like a nice idea if there were no such thing as tide...  Read More

The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure.Who can understand it?Jeremiah 17:9In the days of ‘follow your heart’, here is a sobering reminder. And Jeremiah knows from experience what God is revealing to Him. Israel has deceived themselves into thinking they could rely on their own martial arts or on the faithfulness of another nation (e.g. Egypt). They have followed their heart all th...  Read More

 All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full.To the place the streams come from, there they return again.All things are wearisome, more than one can say.The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing.Ecclesiastes 1:7-8Ancient wisdom with a timeless truth. Just as the sea is never full, our desire for the pleasures of the senses never seems to be satisfied. Look no...  Read More

Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.1 John 3:18Politicians have probably always been a bit on the nose. But it certainly feels that trust is low at the moment. What is it about them? Part of the problem is that seemingly ‘loving’ words are rarely followed by actions.John’s wise encouragement to his ‘children’ or younger followers of Jesus (John is prob...  Read More

Give careful thought to the paths for your feetand be steadfast in all your ways.Do not turn to the right or the left;keep your foot from evil.Proverbs 4:26-27I remember the first time I skied down a double black run at Perisher. Well, more like tumbled down. It was icy on the slopes and I kept edging as best I could (going across the slope rather than straight down). But eventually, I caught some...  Read More

Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.I have taken an oath and confirmed it, that I will follow your righteous laws.I have suffered much; preserve my life, Lord, according to your word.Accept, Lord, the willing praise of my mouth, and teach me your laws.Psalm 119:105-109How did people ever do camping without head-torches? Whether it’s going for a bush-toilet or finding some firewood....  Read More

For your ways are in full view of the Lord, and he examines all your paths.Proverbs 5:21Privacy is, according to some modern thinking, the sacred right of all humanity. But of course, technology has become the asteroid of impending doom for our privacy hopes. Netflix knows what you watch. Google knows what you search for. Facebook knows what photos you have clicked on. Your whole life is being sto...  Read More

Let the one who is wise heed these thingsand ponder the loving deeds of the Lord.Psalm 107:43What do you ponder? I’m a natural ponderer. It’s what makes me a bad driver and a particularly bad bike rider. I go into dreamland. What about you? For some of us. The problem is that we never do this. Screens have given us the ability to never think deeply but to remain distracted.But when do you, what do...  Read More

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.Galatians 6:9-10Wisdom is having a long view of things. The passage today reminds me of the workload before Christmas. For many jobs, the lead up to Christmas means extra work to get eve...  Read More

These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.Deuteronomy 6:6-7One of the things I love about Village Church is our kids. Oh sure, they are noisy and messy. But they are God’s kids, given to us to raise in the way of the Lord. He has entru...  Read More

Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near.James 5:7-8If patience was a coin, it would certainly be one of the rarest and most valuable. For those of us eager to invest, James thinks we can l...  Read More

Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.1 Corinthians 1:22-24Power is the currency of our world. It’s often called capital or social capital. Power is what impresses people. It’s what people most respond t...  Read More

“Can a man be of benefit to God? Can even a wise person benefit him?Job 22:2One of the great misconceptions about God is that He needs us. Perhaps you have wrestled with this. Maybe you have heard or thought that God created because He was lonely & desired a relationship. Maybe you have thought that God needed you to serve and do His work on earth.The danger of this thinking is that it then leads ...  Read More

Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. As people moved eastward, they found a plain in Shinar and settled there. They said to each other, “Come, let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar. Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves;...  Read More

Then Jesus said to his disciples: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to y...  Read More

“Who is this that obscures my plans    with words without knowledge?Brace yourself like a man;    I will question you,    and you shall answer me.“Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation?    Tell me, if you understand.Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know!    Who stretched a measuring line across it?On what were its footings set,    or who laid its cornerstone—while the morning ...  Read More

So I will always remind you of these things, even though you know them and are firmly established in the truth you now have. I think it is right to refresh your memory as long as I live in the tent of this body, because I know that I will soon put it aside, as our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me. And I will make every effort to see that after my departure you will always be able to remember...  Read More

When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.Proverbs 11:2Do you remember arguing with a parent or a teacher about something, only to find out later that you were wrong. It’s not a nice feeling, particularly if others were watching. It’s something I've experienced too many times. But what if the disgrace isn’t the worst part? Maybe it’s that I rejected an opportunity to gr...  Read More

The righteous choose their friends carefully, but the way of the wicked leads them astray.Proverbs 12:26It’s a strange thought. Choosing your friends. But we do don’t we? We have a choice and there aren’t many more important choices than who we surround ourselves with. I wish I had understood this wisdom sooner. For much of my life, I surrounded myself with people who led me astray rather than clo...  Read More