Make Wisdom Your Priority (Part 1/3)

When you know Jesus as your wisdom, you will begin to see lasting and practical success over every challenge and crisis that comes your way. Join Joseph Prince in this three part series as he explains the importance of prioritizing the wisdom of God in your everyday life.

God’s Wisdom Makes You Excel

Ever found yourself given a job, and feeling like you’re the least equipped person in the world to carry it out? Andy had such an experience. Not too long ago, he was appointed acting manager of a leading technological company in his home state of Colorado, US. On hearing this piece of news, half of him was delighted, the other half plain terrified. His first thought was, “How am I, a 20-year-old boy with not much working experience, going to run a well-known store, effectively lead some 90 employees—­some of whom are more than twice my age— and bring in the expected profits?”

The young man was downright intimidated and he knew that he needed to seek God for wisdom. At the start of this job, Andy listened to one of my sermons on speaking God’s promises over his life. “This,” he wrote to tell me later, “gave me the insight to apply the spoken Word of God in my life.” I’ll let him tell you the resulting success he saw in his own words:

“By constantly declaring scriptures on God’s promises, my mind was directed away from fears and into possibilities. God gave me favor with the higher management and I also gained the trust of my team as their new leader. He gave me innovative ideas that my company was able to apply at my store and these ideas are now used across the country. And to top it all off, our store had our two best quarters ever!”

I want you to notice what Andy said. When the wisdom of God showed him how to apply the Word to his mountain of a situation, he began to see possibilities, not limits. The challenges were still there, but now he saw what he could do instead of being paralysed by what he thought he could not do. God’s wisdom and favor gave him influence with the management and his team. It also opened the door to a slew of brilliant ideas that became a blessing to his store and to the company, and sent his sales soaring to a whole new level! What an amazing outcome as a result of tapping into God’s wisdom.

God Wants To Give You Wisdom

One drop of God’s wisdom will show you what you need to do.

Are you facing a situation where you’re conscious of the pressure on you or where giants loom large in the landscape? Maybe you’re a young person starting a business in a highly competitive industry dominated by big players. Perhaps you’ve been dealing with a disintegrating relationship with your spouse or child that seems to be getting worse. Or maybe you’re at a crossroad today—you have to make a decision that could change the direction of your life. Whichever the case, you’re crying out, “I don’t know what to do! Help!”

My friend, God wants to give you all the wisdom you need to excel in whatever it is you need to do. You may not be the most qualified, most experienced, most talented or most intelligent, but one drop of God’s wisdom will show you what you need to do and put you at the top of your game. Like Andy, you’ll not just survive, but you’ll also thrive. You’ll not just do well, but you’ll also excel!

Wisdom Above Knowledge

Please don’t get me wrong. I’m not against having paper qualifications, a high IQ or pursuing information and knowledge, but think about it: in this digital age we live in, we have a wealth of information at our fingertips and yet, despite the daily bombardment of information bits and bytes, it seems like many of us are more confused, stressed and depressed than ever.

What we need is not more worldly knowledge and counsel, but wisdom that comes from God. There is counsel that comes from the world, but the Bible tells us the blessed man does not walk according to it. Instead, he walks according to God’s Word and wisdom. (Psalm 1:1–3) God’s wisdom, however, does not come by reading a lot of books, going for courses or getting the latest news and information. It comes from knowing the Lord and having Him lead you by His Spirit and His Word. And His wisdom is what the world is sorely lacking. It is what we need more and more of—every day and in every facet of life.

Put Wisdom At The Top Of Your List

It’s no wonder God tells us the number one thing we should be pursuing every day is wisdom: “Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding.” (Proverbs 4:7) Let me give The Message translation, just for those who like making to-do lists: “Above all and before all, do this: Get Wisdom! Write this at the top of your list: Get Understanding!”

Most of us, however, don’t seem to have “Get wisdom” on our daily to-do lists, or it’s just not at the top. We make time for anything and everything but wisdom: “Gym at 10am.” “Lunch with Pam at 12.30pm.” “Get Chelsea a dress for her birthday.” “Pick up kids at 5pm.” “Meet new client at mall, 7pm.”

There’s nothing wrong with pursuing the things we need to do for the day. But God wants us to prioritize His wisdom above everything else we set our hearts to pursue. The word “principal” in Proverbs 4:7 is the Hebrew word re’shiyth, which means “very first”, “best” and “chief”, telling us that in all our daily pursuits, getting wisdom is the most important and best thing we can do.

You see, if you seek the Lord’s wisdom first, He who knows all things will lead and help you do all the things you need to do for the day. Wouldn’t you prefer His kind of results over what your limited strength and intelligence can produce?

How can you lose, when you have the Lord’s wisdom flowing through you? 

My friend, Jesus cares for you deeply and wants to bless all the work of your hands. He wants you to have fruitful days, not wasted days. He can tell you which body part needs more of a workout and which muscles need a rest, so you don’t suffer injuries. He can help you select the right dish from the menu since He knows that you’ve been wanting to lose some weight. He can help you pick out the right dress that your daughter will absolutely love, and at an affordable price too. He can give you wisdom and favor with your client, such that your client will be delighted to do business with you. How can you lose, when you have the Lord’s wisdom flowing through you in all that you set your hands to?

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>> Read Make Wisdom Your Priority (Part 2/3)

>> Read Make Wisdom Your Priority (Part 3/3)

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Make Wisdom Your #1 Prayer Request