Lean not on your own understanding.....

As I was praying and fasting yesterday I found this passage creep into my mind:

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding;
In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths." (Proverbs 3: 5-6)

I have been meditating on this verse as I go about doing things and asking myself questions like 'What does it mean to really trust God?' 'What does it mean to lean on God and not our own understanding?' 'What does it mean by acknowledging Him?'

I'm the sort of person that when I have to think about an important decision I can sometimes find myself relying more on the wisdom of my good friends than going straight to God. Having counsel from others can be important but God wants us to ask Him before anyone else. Often the advice of our own minds and that of others may sound good, great common sense and seem totally rational but the Bible is clear that man's wisdom is not the same as ours . In fact in 1Cor 3:19 it says, "the wisdom of this world is foolishness with (or to) God." That means that the counsel of God and His wisdom may not seem wise to the world and those around you. God thinks differently.

So what does it mean to acknowledge God? I think it means to recognise his presence and sovereignty over all things. As we worship Him and lift our eyes off ourselves and the decisions we have to make, we are laying ourselves open to recieving His wisdom and direction. Sometimes this makes us vulnerable and we will be asking questions like "will He really speak to me?" but God loves us to spend time in His presence and so desire His wisdom above all else. Even as we focus on His glory and praise Him we are looking away from ourselves.

In the Bible wisdom is closely associated with the fear of God, "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding" (Prov 9v10). I don't think this is a fear that makes us run away from the Lord like a scared rabbit! It's a spirit of reverance and awe and desire to do what He wants above anything else. Proverbs 3 goes on to explain that Wisdom is worth far more than worldly riches (v13-14), it brings life, peace and health (16-18, 22), and that the wisdom from God also allows you to walk securely without fear (v23-26) so your sleep is sweet because your confidence is in Christ (v26). Wisdom from above always ultimately glorifies God and not man (1 Cor 1v17, 2 v 1,4,7). Wisdom from above is also extremely powerful. It says that by wisdom God created the world (Jer 51v15) and that having wisdom is better than weapons of war! (Ecc 9v18).

So how do we recieve more godly wisdom? Well, the bible includes it amongst the spiritual gifts in 1 Corinthinas 12v8 and clearly states that it is a gift from God. However we can all ask the Lord for more wisdom and the bible says its something that we should certainly seek (James 1:5). Wisdom appears to be also given to the humble and not the proud (Jer 9v23, James 3v13) so my prayer is that I will have a contrite heart and learn to come to Jesus assured that He knows best and not me!