“I don’t care, it’s my life,” the twenty-something adolescent yelled as she ran out the door, jumped behind the wheel and sped away. My parents just don’t understand, she thought, no one does.
Sometimes, we think we know better but in reality, we ought to know better than that.
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.” Proverbs 1:7 (NIV)
What is a ‘fear of the Lord?’ The acknowledgment the He, God the Creator, breathed life into each of us and can extinguish that breath at any time? No counsel against Him can stand? The realization that He is God, and I’m not? That God knows everything, and I don’t know nearly as much as I think?
Psalm 33:8 says, “Let all inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.” When we consider who He is, what He has done, and what He promises, yes, we absolutely must stand in awe of Him.
He created us. He gave us a choice: submit to Him, a good and loving Father, or live for ourselves.
The problem with the latter is often our pride spouts promises we just can’t keep. Before we know it, our words of worldly wisdom are empty noises underlining our weakness: we tried to do it all alone.
How wise are we when we realize, ‘hey, it’s not really all about me, it’s not really just my life.’
How wise we become when we stand in awe of Him. When we determine, ‘I should not be front and center.’ When we back up, back down, understanding our rightful place is on our knees. We need to know where we stand in relationship to God. It’s certainly lower than we might think!
I don’t know about you, but I’m physically past twenty. But, how often do I visit that adolescent mindset? To continue maturing, I must stay grounded in God’s word so I can grow wiser.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. How wise are you?
Prayer: Dear Gracious Father,
Thank You for Your instruction, Your wisdom, and Your love. You know the plans You have for me; there is no reason I need to go it alone. I trust You and I thank You for Your constant care. In Jesus’ name, Amen.