Focus
Stop and thank God for being present with you today. Ask for God’s guidance as you hear God’s voice through scripture and the writer.
Read
James 3:13-18 (NRSV)
Who is wise and understanding among you? Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not be boastful and false to the truth. Such wisdom does not come down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, devilish. For where there is envy and selfish ambition, there will also be disorder and wickedness of every kind. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace for those who make peace.
Reflect
Once upon a time persons who knew things beyond common knowledge were considered wise. Today, because we live in the age of information, anything can become common knowledge with just the click of a mouse or the touch of a screen. But having every fact known to humankind readily available to us doesn’t make us wise.
Centuries ago, James described the differences between earthly wisdom and Godly wisdom, giving us a way to distinguish between persons who think they are wise and those who really are. The person who wants to appear wise begins searching for wisdom in the wrong place and ends up with nothing but earthly wisdom. Earthly wisdom is born of envy and selfish ambition, it’s boastful and false, it leads to disorder and wickedness. The person with Godly wisdom is gentle, peaceful, merciful, humble, honest, just, and has integrity; his or her life is full of good works. The person who first seeks to know God learns mercy, gentleness, humility, honesty, and peacefulness, and in learning these things comes to possess Godly wisdom.
Pray
Take from me, God, all desire to appear wise. Instead, make me a peacemaker and instill within me a desire to know you and your ways. Give me opportunities to learn and practice mercy, gentleness, and humility. Amen.
Go with God.
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