•8:24 AM
The other day, as I usually do when I get a little down about our financial state of affairs, I opened up the Bible to the book of Proverbs. I started reading at chapter 1, and read to chapter 9 or 10. When I first started, I had a green colored pencil in one hand and a pen in the other. I was going to highlight all the money verses and make notes as I read.
Sounds like a great idea, huh?
I soon realized that I had already done this! All the money verses already had green pencil markings on the them. Well, I figured, I'll just do it again. Did you know that the first seven chapters are all about 'NOT losing money' and 'NOT losing honor' and 'NOT losing a good life'?
It's true. Chapter 1 is the intro chapter; it warns against following after thieves and criminals. Chapter 2 briefly warns against 'evil' men and 'strange' women. Chapter 3 warns against being disobedient to parents, casting aside wisdom and choosing the ways of the oppressor. Chapter 4 again warns about ignoring the wisdom of parents, and following after 'evil' men. Chapter 5 is a huge warning against ungodly women, and a small section on avoiding co-ownership of a business (co-signing, etc.). Chapter 6 is a warning against being in debt, being lazy, and following the 'strange' woman. Chapter 7 is another HUGE warning against the hottie, I mean, the 'strange' woman.
The biggest thing, the first thing, that we need to understand is that there are some things that we should avoid (pitfalls, if you will) that will completely wreck our lives. These are listed in the first seven chapters.
And at chapter 8, we are given a BIG introduction to the subject of wisdom, and how wisdom is better than money.
At this point, a light bulb went off in my head. If money and honor are the RESULT of being wise. If they are the FRUIT of wisdom, . . .
then why were all the money verses highlighted and studied, but none of the wisdom verses were? Why hadn't I studied the cause rather than the effect?
There is an old saying that says you will never find joy by seeking joy. Joy is the by-product of focusing on others. The relationship between money and wisdom is the same thing. You will never have money by seeking money. Money is the by-product of wisdom. Get wisdom, get understanding. And the money will come.
What is wisdom, though? Everybody else always seemed to 'get' this idea of wisdom, but it's never made sense to me. It's not just knowledge. It's not just understanding. It's not even insight.
The Eskimos say that a person becomes wise when they can see what needs to be done and then then they do it successfully without being told what to do.
This definition includes the ideas of initiative, courage, and instruction. It also lives in the REAL world.
Have you ever thought about why Wisdom in the book of Proverbs hates evil? Why it loves righteousness? Why it is upright? It's because Wisdom is based upon understanding the interconnected relationships that exist in God's creation. It is based upon His laws of creation.
You may think that hoarding money will make you rich, but that is based upon YOUR understanding of things, not on God's creation. It is not based upon how things REALLY are.
You may think that it is best to oppress and be a dictator, but that is a misunderstanding. God's laws and principles state something entirely different.
So, wisdom must dwell in God's REALITY, the true reality. This is why the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Until we fear God, truly honor him as God, we will never see that he is the one in charge. His truth is the ONLY truth.
Figure out his truth and you have gained wisdom.
God's truth doesn't extend to just spiritual things, but financial things as well. Have you ever heard an excellent teaching on business? on politics? on natural medicine? on baking? And you say, "That's awesome!!" as your eyes open to something that you've never seen before. You want to tell everything what you just learned. Pieces of the puzzle just fell into place, and the world is a little easier to understand.
That's wisdom. It's upright. It's pure. It's enlightening. It's a look into the laws of God's creation.
Get more of that wisdom. Seek it with all your heart. And the money will follow. And with it honor, and joy.
Sounds like a great idea, huh?
I soon realized that I had already done this! All the money verses already had green pencil markings on the them. Well, I figured, I'll just do it again. Did you know that the first seven chapters are all about 'NOT losing money' and 'NOT losing honor' and 'NOT losing a good life'?
It's true. Chapter 1 is the intro chapter; it warns against following after thieves and criminals. Chapter 2 briefly warns against 'evil' men and 'strange' women. Chapter 3 warns against being disobedient to parents, casting aside wisdom and choosing the ways of the oppressor. Chapter 4 again warns about ignoring the wisdom of parents, and following after 'evil' men. Chapter 5 is a huge warning against ungodly women, and a small section on avoiding co-ownership of a business (co-signing, etc.). Chapter 6 is a warning against being in debt, being lazy, and following the 'strange' woman. Chapter 7 is another HUGE warning against the hottie, I mean, the 'strange' woman.
The biggest thing, the first thing, that we need to understand is that there are some things that we should avoid (pitfalls, if you will) that will completely wreck our lives. These are listed in the first seven chapters.
And at chapter 8, we are given a BIG introduction to the subject of wisdom, and how wisdom is better than money.
At this point, a light bulb went off in my head. If money and honor are the RESULT of being wise. If they are the FRUIT of wisdom, . . .
then why were all the money verses highlighted and studied, but none of the wisdom verses were? Why hadn't I studied the cause rather than the effect?
There is an old saying that says you will never find joy by seeking joy. Joy is the by-product of focusing on others. The relationship between money and wisdom is the same thing. You will never have money by seeking money. Money is the by-product of wisdom. Get wisdom, get understanding. And the money will come.
What is wisdom, though? Everybody else always seemed to 'get' this idea of wisdom, but it's never made sense to me. It's not just knowledge. It's not just understanding. It's not even insight.
The Eskimos say that a person becomes wise when they can see what needs to be done and then then they do it successfully without being told what to do.
This definition includes the ideas of initiative, courage, and instruction. It also lives in the REAL world.
Have you ever thought about why Wisdom in the book of Proverbs hates evil? Why it loves righteousness? Why it is upright? It's because Wisdom is based upon understanding the interconnected relationships that exist in God's creation. It is based upon His laws of creation.
You may think that hoarding money will make you rich, but that is based upon YOUR understanding of things, not on God's creation. It is not based upon how things REALLY are.
You may think that it is best to oppress and be a dictator, but that is a misunderstanding. God's laws and principles state something entirely different.
So, wisdom must dwell in God's REALITY, the true reality. This is why the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Until we fear God, truly honor him as God, we will never see that he is the one in charge. His truth is the ONLY truth.
Figure out his truth and you have gained wisdom.
God's truth doesn't extend to just spiritual things, but financial things as well. Have you ever heard an excellent teaching on business? on politics? on natural medicine? on baking? And you say, "That's awesome!!" as your eyes open to something that you've never seen before. You want to tell everything what you just learned. Pieces of the puzzle just fell into place, and the world is a little easier to understand.
That's wisdom. It's upright. It's pure. It's enlightening. It's a look into the laws of God's creation.
Get more of that wisdom. Seek it with all your heart. And the money will follow. And with it honor, and joy.
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