Read Ecclesiastes 9:13-10:4
What do you make of the story Solomon uses here? I don’t know about you, but there are times in my life when I have felt invisible and unappreciated. Solomon doesn’t tell us anything about how the poor man felt about being overlooked. However, the people of that town surely benefitted from his wisdom which rescued them.
We should appreciate wisdom, no matter where it comes from. Why then, does the world pay more attention to the display of wealth, power, and success and not the wisdom behind it? Wouldn’t it make more sense to look at why the person achieved such greatness? Unless the successful person is simply lucky, there is something they did to attain their position.
Likewise, we can learn from the mistakes of others as well. In that way, their folly is not wasted. Life lessons are all around us if we keep our eyes open for them. We may even have enough of our own mistakes to learn from!
Solomon continues to share his observations, bolstering the importance of wisdom. What do you make of those? My takeaway is that it’s better to be wise, and I’d really like to make sure I’m chasing after wisdom and not something foolish.
Any time we strive to do God’s will, wisdom will follow. Solomon didn’t say that, but he could have. It fits with his theme even if he doesn’t speak about God’s will directly. Solomon does say, “A wise person chooses the right road; a fool takes the wrong one.” For me, that “right road” is living in God’s will for my life. I have gone down plenty of wrong roads in my life to know those were foolish mistakes.
God’s will. What does that look like for you? Do you feel confident that you are living your life as God would desire? Or are there areas of your life that you are still working on?
We are all “work in progress” type people. Especially if we’re trying to live a Christian life. There are just too many obstacles in the world today trying to trip us up. They make even look innocent or in alignment with our faith—to a point. That’s how crafty the evil one is getting.
The wiser we get from immersing ourselves in God’s word, the more we can see through the evil one’s schemes in this world. It’s frightening, really. But I’m with Solomon. Wisdom is the “right road” I want to be on that keeps me in alignment with God’s desire for my life.
Be still for a while today and reflect on how God is working in your life. What is he asking you to do for him? If you’re not sure, listen harder.
Let’s pray. Father God, I am definitely a “work in progress” and so thankful that you are the one in charge of the work. It’s sometimes hard to stay on the right road or be sure that I’m on the right road. Thank you for each of your reminders. I treasure those confirmations and empowerments. Continue to work in me as you draw me closer. It’s truly an honor to be in the time and place you have placed me. May I keep blooming and helping cultivate faithfulness in others. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
