21 Days of Praise and Fellowship: Day 19
- Sherry Braswell
- May 29, 2020
- 6 min read
Updated: Feb 8
Good Morning Sisters,
What is the first thing you should ask God for before you get out of bed in the morning?
Elaine’s word from the Lord is WISDOM. In Ephesians 1:17-19 Paul’s prayer for the church at Ephesus was “I keep asking the God our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of WISDOM and REVELATION, so that you may know Him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he had called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for those who believe.”
Is wisdom the primary thing the world teaches us to seek?
From the time of our birth we are taught to value money and education. We are taught that education makes us smart and with this education we can attain financial security and freedom. We are erroneously taught that when you have plenty of money and are highly educated you are smart. Our world clearly defines this as the path leading to health, wealth and prosperity. If that were true then we should be the smartest, happiest and wealthiest generation that ever lived. More young people go to college than ever before in the history of the world. In our lifetime, we have experienced more wealth and prosperity than any other generation before us. The industrial age of this century birthed a booming middle class that enjoyed luxuries that our great grandparents could only dream of. In theory, we should have our financial house in order and be living the American Dream to its fullest! Then, why aren’t we? Why is our reality so different from the picture that the world has falsely painted for us?
Perhaps, we should re-examine our definition of “rich.” What the world calls rich and what God calls rich are two very different things. Having plenty of money doesn’t make you rich. Having lots of education doesn’t make you smart. You are rich because you know God. You are rich because you know Jesus. God will provide you with more than enough money for your years on this earth. God never intended the world to be your financial source. He wants to be your source for EVERY area of your life! This is why you shouldn’t think of yourself as lesser than the millionaire or the billionaire because their bank accounts have more zeros than yours. You don’t know the troubles they go through. You don’t know how fragmented and broken their lives truly are. The things that have true meaning in our lives cannot be measured with money or education. Our relationship with God, our children, our family and with our friends speak volumes of what we truly value and place as priority in our lives. The billionaire who spends his entire life attaining great wealth but loses his soul and loses his family is NOT rich. In fact, he is very, very poor. He is spiritually and eternally bankrupt. This is why Jesus says in Matthew 6:19 "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal”. God blesses us with money not for us to store up but to bless others as He has blessed us. The only thing of any value that we will leave behind is the impact we have had in other people’s lives. The question that remains to be answered at the end of your life is …”Did you place God first in your life or did you place the things of this world first? Don’t get me wrong here, I believe with all my heart that it is God’s will for YOU to live in prosperity in EVERY area of your life…your health, your finances and your relationships. Jesus shed his blood so that you and I could have salvation AND enjoy life while ON this earth! Money is only one aspect of that. God blesses you with money so that you may bless others. Of course, He wants you to have nice things and not worry about your financial situation. Isn’t this what you also want for your own children? But what He doesn’t want is for you to idolize money and for it to come first in your life because He knows that it WILL destroy you. And God loves YOU way too much to see you destroyed. It’s like my grandma used to tell me when I was a little girl who had big dreams of fame and fortune...”Sherry, you can have money, but just don’t let money have you. Money just makes you more of what you already are. If you’re good, it makes you better, if you’re bad, it makes you worse.” Those words of wisdom cannot be found in a book or a classroom. These priceless words of wisdom can only be found in the Bible. In other words, is it safe for you to have money without it having you? Can you still place God first in your life when you have no financial needs? Unfortunately, so many people only seek God when they are in need and are desperate. Human nature often dictates that when we are in our comfort zones we retreat back to our old nature and our old self reliant ways. This is why it’s probably safer for most people’s souls and eternal future to stay a little needy so they continue to seek and depend on God.
“Education makes you smart.” This is the lie that we have all been taught since childhood. Satan has perpetuated this falsehood since the fall of Adam. Just because someone is smart does not make them wise. There are a lot of very smart people with advanced educations that can’t handle life. They are in positions of high honor and repute, are held in high esteem by their colleagues and have attained much success in their careers. Yet they suffer from broken marriages, are estranged from their children, and are plagued by depression and despair. They simply can’t handle life because they are seekers of worldly knowledge as opposed to seekers of God’s wisdom. There is a huge difference between knowledge and wisdom. Knowledge comes from man. It tends to make us proud, arrogant and puffs us up. Wisdom comes from God and breeds humility. Don’t you think it’s interesting that the wealthiest man to ever live on this earth was King Solomon of the Old Testament, and the only thing he asked God for was WISDOM? It wasn’t money, fame or fortune. He sought God’s wisdom. Where do you think all of the great ideas of this world came from? God of course! We can’t even begin to understand the wisdom of our great Creator.
Without God’s wisdom we can’t use the giftings He is pouring out on us. We need His wisdom to be able to do what He is calling us to do. Is it a little scary? "YES it is" smiled Elaine... “I am a little scared, but that’s okay the Lord is with me and He is equipping me for my purpose.” You see, if we didn’t feel a little nervous we wouldn’t lean on Jesus. It’s our needs and weaknesses that keep us tethered to Him.
Prophet Lana Vawser said in her latest post “Pentecost is going to be a birthing room for many and a place of commissioning. There are going to be some very intense encounters for many where the Lord is going to restore divine sight and the confusion and haziness that has plagued many, will suddenly leave and there will be a divine understanding and receiving of WISDOM of God." (James 1:5)
May we continue to know God in deeper, more intimate ways as we press forward into this new era. I pray that the eyes of our hearts would be enlightened, and that we seek God’s wisdom for our families, for one another and for the leaders of our beloved nation.
Today is day 19 (only 2 days from Pentecost).
Below is the LINK with PASSWORD:
PASSWORD: 1eDpDT
21 Days of Praise & Fellowship
5/4-5/10 7 days
5/11-5/17 (7 day Rest/Break)
5/18-5/31 14 days (Pentecost is 5/31)
I look forward to praising with you tonight! The best is yet to come!!!
Love,
Sherry :-)
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