Be Thou my wisdom, be Thou my true word
Be Thou ever with me, and I with Thee, Lord,
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever. (Ps. 111:10)
Wisdom begins with the fear of the Lord. To do His commandments is to have understanding and praise endures forever. Fear the Lord, praise the Lord, and delight in obeying His commandments. Three directives bound together, a trinity of commands, a catalyst for blessing. The one who praises God invests in eternity for praise of God is without end. The fear of God activates wisdom, insight, understanding. Fused with obedience to His commands it brings blessings. To delight in obedience to His commands is to live by them not only with one’s outward actions but to gladly defer to His will, born from a heart and mind that delights in devotion to Him. This is the essence of a veritable faith in Jesus Christ.
God is our wisdom. A wisdom that cannot be purchased with gold for its price is above rubies. His wisdom, in our life, it is tested by obedience, proven by actions, and generously given when asked for. There are those who have great knowledge, talk eloquently, speculate profoundly, speak with authority. But the proof of their understanding is in the doing of God’s will. There is a story of a young lady who admired her friend’s rose garden. One day her friend dug up her most prized rose and gave it to her, carefully explaining how to care for it. The young lady listened intently, read books, thoroughly researched, talked about it with her friends and other gardeners. But she never planted or watered it. The rose did not survive. No matter how much knowledge she acquired, she could not sustain the life of that rose without acting on her knowledge. So it is with us. It is not enough to know God’s Word. We must do God’s Word (James 2:18). True wisdom is found in obedience.
Are you, like the young lady, acquiring a lazy wisdom, a lazy fear of God? Acquiring knowledge but not executing that knowledge in your life? His Law rules in your heart when the choices you make and the actions you take reflect His commands. Won’t you let the Finger of God touch your heart right now? You can sow into eternity today when your heart and mind are filled with sincere praise for your Lord. This is your day to walk past the outer gates, into the inner courts, seek His face, ask Him to grant you delight in carrying out His commands. Won’t you petition Him even now to “Be Thou my wisdom, be Thou my true word, be Thou ever with me, and I with Thee, Lord.”