WW Podcast Episode 1 Wk1 November Final

Stephanie Oliver, author, speaker, and associate pastor hosts the Wisdom Workshop podcast, focusing on how God's wisdom intersects with everyday life. Wisdom involves applying knowledge appropriately, making sound decisions beneficial to oneself and others. Proverbs, especially chapter one, emphasizes the importance of honoring God first for wise living. Seeking God's wisdom empowers saying no to temptations and setting boundaries. Prioritizing God's guidance leads to better outcomes and peace in life decisions. Hello, my name is Stephanie Oliver and I'm an author, speaker, associate pastor and your host for the Wisdom Workshop podcast. I am so glad that you're joining me today and we get to talk about where the wisdom of God meets your everyday life. Our motto here at Wisdom Workshop is that wisdom wins every time. The conversations we host, the events that we host, everything we do is designed to help you get a better perspective of God's heart for you and what kind of life he has called you to live. And so we are going to spend time every week in the word of God, just gleaning and learning what God has to say to us about the life he's called us to. We're going to jump in this week with Proverbs chapter one and talk about what is wisdom and why we need it and its purpose in our lives and God's intention for us to walk in it. So come along with me. We're going to start with Proverbs chapter one. We're going to, the definition, I'm going to pause. The definition, we'll have to cut it. The definition of wisdom is I think a really good starting place for this conversation today because I think it's a buzzword and a lot of people use it and I don't know how many people really understand what true wisdom is. So the first thing I want to do is really define it. Wisdom is this ability to gain knowledge and to use it appropriately. I used to laugh about it and say it jokingly, but actually it's true. You know, wisdom is the application of knowledge. It's your ability to use experience, insight, understanding to make sound judgments and make good decisions that are beneficial for not only yourself, but for others in your world too. And so I think that's a good starting point for us to understand that wisdom really is this capacity to take what we know and do what we know to do with it. I think Proverbs is the best place to start in scripture when you're trying to understand what wisdom is, what biblical wisdom is, and how it's intended to be used in our life. So I'm going to start with reading Proverbs chapter one and we're going to read verses two through seven. Their purpose is to teach people wisdom and discipline to help them understand the insights of the wise. And just a sidebar here, this is talking about the purpose of Proverbs of Solomon. And Solomon was known as the wisest person that ever lived and he wrote the book of Proverbs. And so verse two starts out telling us that that's the purpose of this book to teach people wisdom and discipline to help them understand the insights of the wise. It says in verse three, their purpose is to teach people to live disciplined and successful lives to help them do what is right, just, and fair. These Proverbs will give insight to the simple, knowledge and discernment to the young. Let the wise listen to these Proverbs and become even wiser. Let those with understanding receive guidance by exploring the meaning in these Proverbs and parables, the words of the wise and their riddles. The fear of the Lord is the foundation of true knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline. Wow, there is so much in just the first seven verses of this book of wisdom, literature and scripture. But I want to land on a couple of key things here in this first chapter. The starting place of wisdom, it tells us, isn't in books or experience. It's actually in our understanding and our reverence or response to God. It tells us in verse seven, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction. I think it's important to recognize that honoring God first positions everything else in your life to be in right order, whether you're leading at home or work, or you're just trying to make things go right for a day in your own personal life. True wisdom and wise living starts with God and a proper respect and recognition of his authority and his sovereignty and his character as God. So I think it's important that we understand that, you know, seeking God first and understanding that no matter what we're doing, if God is first in that, we are going to be better off than if he wasn't. Here's a question I want you to think about as we talk about this throughout this episode, is that, you know, what would your week look like or what would your life look like if you were to honor God first in your decisions? Before you ever do anything else, before you turn to a best friend or a trusted colleague or start doing your internet research or calling your mom, what would it look like if you allowed God to be the honored voice in your head about the things that you have to make decisions on? You know, I was thinking earlier this week, I just thought I had so much on my plate and I felt like I have this bag that was filled with potential, like all these wonderful things that I was holding in this bag, but I felt like as the week progressed, there were circumstances or situations that were coming along and they were poking holes in the bottom of my bag. So all the potential, all the goodness that was prepared for the week was like at risk of leaking out. And I had to figure out in my mind, just going with this analogy, how am I going to go ahead and plug these holes or mitigate or minimize this threat of losing time or losing capacity or losing money or losing energy so that I can keep moving forward in some things that I feel like that are really good that are going on in my life. And I was actually at first spending a lot of time online, just trying to figure out how to reorganize some things, maybe make some different decisions in the way I manage my business and do some things differently and with my health and wellness routines just to make room for more peace, more sleep, you know, better meals, all kinds of different areas of my life that this could apply to. But I remember feeling like by Tuesday of the week, I was feeling pretty frustrated and overwhelmed. And then I realized, you know, I was really struggling to give God priority, or what I consider to be an honored voice in the way I was handling things. And it wasn't until I sat still. And I realized that I don't know, I think I'm getting out of the shower or something and realize, okay, I just need to sit down and pray about this. And the first thing that came to mind after prayer was Psalm 4610, where the Lord tells the Israelites to be still and know that he is God. And it just in that moment, I realized, oh, my goodness, I've been spinning my wheels trying to figure out how to make things work and protect my investment of energy, time and expertise in areas. And God was already prepared to help me with it. I just needed to tap into where he was already at work and let his wisdom provide for me in that. And it seems so funny, because you think when you're busy, and you have a lot of responsibility, being still is probably the last thing you need to do. It's so contrary to our natural mindset of things. But that's just the thing. A lot of times the wisdom of God can seem contrary to our own human logic. And in the grand scheme of a faith filled life, though, it's exactly what makes sense. It's exactly what we need. It makes perfect sense. And so I think it was one of those things where God was just trying to get me to reverence the fact that he was already taking what the enemy meant for my anxiety and destruction, and working it out for my good. So I settled in my mind that day, I remember this, like, the first thing I did was repent, I was like, Lord, forgive me, I'm so sorry, I should have should have consulted you first. And I just quieted my mind and began to listen to what he had to say. And it, it honestly seemed like the day gained hours, and my decisions, the things I was choosing to do first and second, I got better results than I had gotten all week. And I'm just sharing that with you to encourage you, you know, that wisdom starts with putting God first, he's got to have the honored voice in your life. And so what would it look like for you this week, or this year, or this month, if you were to honor God first in your decisions, and let his wisdom lead you, that's an interesting thing to consider. I want to I want to move to another thought to with this, about wisdom and what it looks like. And, you know, the purpose for God providing for us in this way. One of the other themes that we see in chapter one of Proverbs about wisdom is its protective capacity. So if you look at verses eight through 10, and then verse 15, I'm going to read them. It says, My child, listen, when your father corrects you, don't neglect your mother's instruction. What you learn from them will crown you with grace and be a chain of honor around your neck. My child is sinners entice you turn your back on them. Verse 15 says, My child, don't go along with them. Stay far away from their path. Now if you read that whole section, like verses eight through 19, it seems like just a lot of warning, like don't go with bad people, don't do things that are going to get you in trouble. Listen to the advice of your parents. And it seems like very basic advice, but really, what it's reminding you is that wisdom listens to authority. And it's that capacity that protects it from taking wrong paths. I think the other thing that it reminds us is that when we lean into the wisdom of God, when we honor God as the most important voice in our head, it empowers us to say no, when we're tempted to say yes. You know, sometimes it's a toxic relationship, or it's peer pressure, or maybe it's just a little shortcut that looks easy, but essentially, it's going to lead to a destructive end. Wisdom is God's loving warning sign to tell us don't do that. Don't take the shortcut. Don't go with that group. It's like the voice that reminds us you're going to need a boundary here before we step over into a danger zone. Just think about it. Where in your life do you need to have wisdom boundaries and start saying no? Where are people enticing or tempting you to do things that may not even seem bad on the outside, but they're not the God thing that he's ordained for you in that day or that time or that season of your life? And so I think it's important that, you know, we remember that wisdom gives us the capacity for good boundaries, and those boundaries protect us. I hear people say a lot of times, like, boundaries are biblical, and I understand boundaries and I recognize they're important, and I think that's all really good. But what I think when we talk about wisdom, I think it's important to not just know that you need a boundary, but to have what it takes to set it and enforce it. I don't think boundaries ever feel good to people that are used to crossing them. And sometimes when we are in a place where we know the Holy Spirit is prompting us to put up a boundary, and we resist that, it's because we don't want to deal with the guilt or the conflict that sometimes endures. But I think that brings us to this other part of the protective nature of wisdom. It's not present with us to make us feel better about what it's asking us to do. God is not there to, and I'm going to say that again so that, you know, it makes sense, but God's not giving us wisdom so we can feel better about what he's calling us to do or asking us to do. He's not even giving us wisdom so we know better. Remember, wisdom implies that you already know. He's giving us wisdom so we can be better and actually do better. It's like that thing like, you know, I can know the fire is hot and still decide to burn myself in it. I don't know who would really do that, but there are people that know something's a bad idea and they know they need a boundary, but they don't exercise the courage or the obedience to put it in place. And I think God's reminding us in the second part of the first chapter, it's not just enough to know what you need to do if you're not willing to do it. I mean, I think this is where like prayer comes into part of the thing, right? So prayer is an important part of Christian living and most people will say, yeah, prayer is important and they know that they should pray. But I heard a lady once say that prayer is the practice that massages the will of God into your heart. And so I think when we find it difficult to let the wisdom of God protect us and to actually be better and do better based on what we know, that it's time for us to sit down and pray and to let that truth sink in and to partner with it long enough so we can actually do and become what it's calling us to become. You know, here's a question for you to consider as we think about wisdom protecting us and giving us the capacity for needed boundaries in our life. Where in your life do you need to put up a wisdom boundary? And where do you need to say no? And where does the honored voice of God get to be the final say in that? I want you to take a moment and to think about that. We're going to make room for our wisdom win of the week. It's coming up next and I'll see you on the other side. Well, welcome back. I hope you had a moment to reflect on what we've been talking about today. I want to leave you with one more thought out of Proverbs Chapter 1 about wisdom. And I don't think before reading this chapter, I really understood how powerful wisdom can be in helping us overcome insecurity and anxiety. Proverbs Chapter 1, verses 29 to 33 says, For they hated knowledge and chose not to fear the Lord. I'm sorry, I should have started at verse 28. So I'm going to go back for a minute. Verse 28 says, When they cry for help, I will not answer. Though they anxiously search for me, they will not find me. For they hated knowledge and chose not to fear the Lord. They rejected my advice and paid no attention when I corrected them. Therefore, they must eat the bitter fruit of living their own way while choking on their own schemes. That's such a vivid image right there. Verse 32 says, For simpletons turn away from me to death, fools are destroyed by their own complacency. But all who listen to me will live in peace, untroubled by fear of harm. I want to say this, and I want you to hear me when I say it. Wisdom doesn't erase the storms of your life, but it anchors you with peace in the middle of it. And it gives you a way through it. God's wisdom provides security in places so we don't have to fear. I think of it in this way that his wisdom provides the security so that fear doesn't get to control us. I want to say it again, and I want you to hear me when I say it. Wisdom doesn't erase every storm. It doesn't keep us from hardship, but it anchors us with this supernatural peace in the middle of the storm so we can get through it. I absolutely love this idea that God's wisdom provides security and that I can actually rely on it. I don't have to give in to fear. I don't have to become anxious. I can remember that with God as the honored voice in my head, fear has no place. It doesn't get to control what I think. It doesn't get to control what I feel or what I do because the wisdom of God has put up this protective barrier between fear's agenda and God's will for my life. So I don't have to give in to it. I think it gives me proper perspective, right, of who God is in the midst of my earthly experience or my storm or my situation. I can live based on who God is, not based on that situation. So wisdom empowers me and it encourages me that I'm safe and secure and that my success is assured. Part of that last part of the chapter is so interesting to me because it literally says that when we try to work our way through situations based on our own schemes and rejecting and resistant, I should say, to wisdom, we end up eating the fruit of that and sometimes the very thing we're afraid of happens to us because there's no barrier of protection. There's no force stronger than the fear to combat the fear if wisdom isn't with us. You know, some years ago, I suffered the devastating loss of my spouse of over 24 years and it was a really hard time of insecurity. I felt really unstable and really uncertain about my present and then and my future. And I remember in the midst of that, I was reacquainted with the fear of the Lord. Now, I wouldn't say that I had experienced wisdom at that point. It was just me remembering, OK, there's no there's no force on earth stronger than God. There's no power on earth greater than God. There's no power period greater than God. And so if I was going to trust in something, I needed to trust in that in the in the in the sovereign, all powerful, all knowing, all loving God. And so I began to reacquaint myself with the fear of the Lord and this reverential understanding that God is sovereign and he's all powerful. And if anybody was going to be able to make this bad situation into something beautiful again, he would have to be the one to do it. And it would have to be on his terms, not mine. I had to literally surrender to his word and his way of providing peace, his way of giving me comfort and his way of giving me joy. And in that, I would find that his word and his his presence was beyond anything that anybody else could provide. You know, as I began to grow in that reverential fear and knowledge of the Lord, I also grew in my capacity to live based on that. It was like the more I learned of him, the more my heart became aligned with his, the easier it was to accept and follow his way of life. It reminds me a little bit of what Job said at the end of his journey, that he knew God once by a rumor. So like he he'd understood who God was based on the testimony of all these other people. But it was in his own experience of growing in the fear and knowledge of God through what he suffered that he began to know the Lord for himself. And in that, you see the success that the wisdom of God brings. And I think that's what wise living really looks like. It's this success that we experience that's contingent on God's character and his way, not my own imperfect scheme or my own way or my own inconsistent human effort. Well, I'm not going to labor on that too long. You go back and you read it for yourself. But I just want to encourage you today that God's provided for our peace. He's provided for our protection and he's provided for our success through the wisdom that's only found in Christ. Did you know that First Corinthians 124 reminds us that that Christ is not just the power of God, but he's also the wisdom of God. It literally says Christ, the power of God and the wisdom of God for the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength. Let that sink in. What area of your life do you feel uncertain right now? And how can you lean into God's wisdom for peace? I just want you to know that it's going to always be worth it to give God that honored voice in your head, no matter what you're facing, what you're trying to accomplish or what you're coming out of. The wisdom of God is not some distant abstract concept that we can't access. It's actually God's daily gift to us through a loving relationship with Jesus Christ. And when we walk in it, our life becomes anchored, fruitful and full of peace and lasting success. I want to thank you so much for joining me today on the Wisdom Workshop podcast. If this encouraged you, I'd love for you to share it with a friend who is also seeking God's wisdom and remember wisdom wins every time.