WISDOM AND UNDERSTANDING

WISDOM AND UNDERSTANDING

My son, keep my words, and treasure my commands within you. Keep my commands and live, and my law as the apple of your eye. Bind them on your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart. Say to wisdom, "You are my sister," and call understanding your nearest kin, that they may keep you from the immoral woman, from the seductress who flatters with her words.
Proverbs 7:1-5

Addiction is all about lies. We believe lies about ourselves and about our addictions. The biggest lie we often tell ourselves is that we're not addicted! Those who fight for freedom must understand that it is a fight-an all-out war! Our enemy is the Master Liar, and he's incredibly skillful at making those lies look like truth.

Just a few lines down in chapter 7, the writer tells us about a young man who went the way of the harlot. He was "devoid of understanding." He didn't know how to live life skillfully. The ability to tell truth from lies didn't exist in his life. He believed all her lies and paid a huge price for his "night of pleasure."

The lines from Proverbs 7:1-5 tell us how to detect the lies and avoid their consequences. You may think I sound like a broken record, but the tools for skillful living haven't changed. Solomon simply says "Be good friends with God's Word!" It will keep you out of the ditch.

Your harlot may not be a woman. It may be a bottle or a pill. It may be a computer or a VCR. Whatever your poison, if it brings you into bondage and away from the God of heaven who loves you, you live a lie. You believe a lie. That's the bad news.

Here is the good news. You don't have to live in slavery! Jesus Christ came to set us free, to break the chains that bind us. He has given us the tools we need to discern truth and avoid lies. First, as genuine followers of Jesus, we have the Holy Spirit, also known as the Spirit of Truth. Then, we have this book we call the Bible. Finally, within this book, we have one particular book designed to build wisdom into our lives.

Look at the things you that take your time and attention. Do they have the ring of truth, or do they have the odor of lies? Can you tell a lie when you hear it? You may need some new relatives. Solomon calls them wisdom and understanding. They're available if you want them.

Don't forget: Wisdom and understanding . . . don't leave home without them! (Pastor John Strain -- First Baptist of Toms River)

Good words for today!