Wisdom is a Choice

If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. – James 1:5

I am 30 years old and at the young age, I’ve been told I have an old soul. Honestly, I took this as an insult in my prime, but now, I appreciate it and take it has a compliment. My husband and I have seen God work in amazing ways and we have grown together and individually in Him. Experience can definitely put a perspective on life and things we either take for granted or put too much effort in. Wisdom is a gift and we should be careful how we use it as with any gift. The title of this post is “Wisdom is a Choice” and believe me it is.

I remember when my husband and I were newlyweds and received the news that we were pregnant, it was definitely a joyous moment. At the time, we were in an apartment in Chicago where strange activity took place daily. We were convinced that we could not raise our children in Chicago and we were determined to move far away from the city as possible. Instead of doing what we thought would be great for us, we listened to people around us and got into severe debt. Yes, we bought our first home at 20, but we were not wise to know how to keep it. My husband was a pretty successful and reliable journeyman plumber, but our money management, well there was no managing. We were miserable! My husband would be gone 20 hours a day and some days he didn’t come home just so we can stay afloat. We had 2 mortgages, HOA fees and a bunch of bills….at 20 years of age! We were becoming a statistic! We lived in debt as if we had no other choice.

We failed to realize that God was our source and everything else is just a resource. We realized that we were wasting time trying to maintain a look rather than being a resource. After 5 years of struggling and digging holes we could not get ourselves out of, God provided a means of escape! It was wisdom to know that it was God leading us out of our situation. We have a mind for ministry and missions and God moved us to Texas so we can focus on the Kingdom…not the hustle of the “American Dream”. God told my husband if he focused on Him, that God would do the rest and I can say today, we are mortgage free and own property. People look at us and wonder how we manage to do it. It was God! We’ve realized that money is only a resource. People always put money on this pedestal and think if they make a certain amount, that they will have financial freedom. Wisdom is to know that God owns everything and if you are doing your part (paying your tithes, not spending recklessly, etc), God will take care of the rest. Of course we’ve experienced hardships, but we never viewed them as that. When our home was flooded, lost vehicles and animals… when we were evicted, homeless with 3 children, pregnant with the fourth and our oldest having a seizure all on the same day…. God was still providing. We never missed a meal or a bath. He always provided.

We see young couples struggle to keep up with their appearances and this “look” and we look on sorrowful knowing that they can do it God’s way and live beautifully. Wisdom says that everyone isn’t looking for God to work on their behalf in such a way because that means for them to change.

So how to obtain wisdom? Like the scripture I typed above, it states to ask God! The bible is filled with scriptures about asking and receiving (ref: Mark 11:24, Matthew 7: 7-11, John 14:13-14…just to name a few)

To obtain wisdom is to endure trials with joy and faith knowing God will provide. So how is wisdom is a choice? Well, the opposite of wisdom is folly or foolishness. The bible also characterizes both types of people. the book of Proverbs has to be one of my favorite books! I’ve used the bible as my example in my youth and as a newly wedded wife because I just couldn’t find people I an open up to or who would be honest with me. So I told myself that I will be an open book  to everyone I meet because there are people who were like me searching for truth and honesty. In my case, I am glad God had given me all the knowledge I desire in His Word. But, Proverbs 12: 15 says The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise. Some people will only do what they feel is right, there’s no way to talk any sense into this type of person unless God do a work in them.. otherwise you’ll be foolish. When I first read this scripture years ago, I was so naive and thought why would I not talk to someone who don’t know they are drowning…. I should continue to reach out to them…to me, that was longsuffering. Boy, was I wrong. Wisdom is to know when enough is enough. Proverbs 26: 4 says “Do not answer a fool according to his folly, Or you will also be like him.”

To know wisdom, is to know your need. You must know your need in order to ask for a resolution or help. In our situation, we noticed the need to raise our children in a safe and wholesome environment and to let our lives be used for ministry and Kingdom building. We knew that in order for God to use us wholly and completely, He had to move us out of our situation. But when you think about it, if it wasn’t for our previous situation, we wouldn’t have known the need to get away. Our situation would have been comfortable…but God!