Update #152 - Wisdom

"The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge" Proverbs 1:7a

Gamble Gardens, Palo Alto, CA

I have a faithful and true friend who lives in Washington State. She has known me for close to 15 years and has walked with me through many tough, heart-wrenching, and difficult situations. She is grounded, Biblically solid, and calm… even in the face of the worst stuff she is matter-of-fact and digs to the root immediately. She has the talent of speaking truth in love and administering justice in a way you feel cared for and nurtured. I could be stuck in a tree looking for a way down and she is standing 10 feet away appraising the situation - looking for the best branch to lean a ladder against.

I have another friend in Southern California who is much like my Washington State cohort. She also has talked me down out of many a tree. She, like my other friend, is calm in adversity, level-headed, sincere, kind, and deeply cares about me. She has a scripture for just about every situation, uses e-Sword like a dictionary, and prays almost unceasingly. She is not only stunningly beautiful outside, but inside as well.

I sat thinking of them: one blonde, one brunette; one extroverted, one introverted; one single, one married; one with master’s level education, one with bachelors level; one a dancer, one a softball player – both with a love of VW’s, Jesus, and gourmet snacks. What, in addition to their friendship, made them stand out amongst all my other friends and acquaintances? What made them so special to me? Their wisdom. Both of these women had immense God-given wisdom.

I want to be more like these women and asked God how I could gain wisdom, knowledge and understanding (outside of him bestowing upon me the spiritual gift of wisdom - Corinthians 12:8). Proverbs 1:7a popped into my mind.

“…Fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge.”

Ok, um, how do I do that?

I continued reading into Proverbs 2:1-5 and my question was answered:

“My son, if you will take my words to your heart, storing up my laws in your mind; so that your ear gives attention to wisdom, and your heart is turned to knowledge; truly, if you are crying out for good sense, and your request is for knowledge; if you are looking for her as for silver, and searching for her as for stored-up wealth; then the fear of the Lord will be clear to you, and knowledge of God will be yours.”

Here are the bullet points I saw from this passage. I need to:

• Embed God’s word in my heart. Ok, I can do that – read my Bible, listen to sermons, read Biblically based articles…
• Cry out for good sense and knowledge (and in the processes be open to learning, constructive criticism and input into my life). Ok, that is a bit harder sometimes, but doable. Um, check.
• These actions will be the basis for the fear of the Lord (which is the beginning of all knowledge) growing in my life and becoming understandable. In time the knowledge I seek will be mine.

My two girlfriends have “the fear of the Lord” in their hearts. I can assuredly proclaim this because of the hallmark of knowledge and wisdom in their lives. What are you known for? What are you seeking after? Who are the people you turn to for wisdom and advice? Why? What traits draw you to them?

Updates:

Travel – Everyone is on their way home, or is back (G & L hurry home!). The trips, overall, were a great success – India, South Africa and Nigeria will never be the same!

Work – We are gearing up for a busy July – a ton of events, parties, and training begins. Check our website for more details.

Training - recruitment is underway! Want to learn what God thinks of business – and how to work every day from a kingdom perspective? Check out Repurposing Business Training.

Requests:

Work – Recruiting, recruiting, recruiting!

Life – Noodling the book concept, trying to get a greater understanding of what it means to “work from rest,” and trying to keep up with the Johnsons!

Update #151 - Greatest of These

“Meanwhile these three remain: faith, hope, and love; and the greatest of these is love.” 1 Corinthians 13:13

Deer Hollow Farm, Los Altos, CA

I open my eyes to find I am kneeling on a silver platter, big enough to fit my genuflected form. I raise my head slightly - I am in a room of white marble pillars, white walls, white floor - a rich red carpet runner spans the hall from threshold to gold and glided throne - huge and ornate in structure. My breathing echoes throughout the silent chamber.

I start to cry. Tears stream down my nose, dropping off its tip onto my knees, forming a pool on the pristine silver surface. I try to sink lower and lower into the platter – I have never felt so humbled in all my life. The presence in the room is so much greater than I, worthier than I, exalted than I. I am torn between wanting to rise up off the platter and leave and yet I find I am drawn to a presence I can’t yet see.

After what seems an eternity (plus some) I feel myself being lifted into a standing position and placed on my feet. I can’t see or feel who is moving me – I am a glove puppet moving at someone else’s command.

My eyes rise. I see a man in front of me. He has the softest brown eyes I have ever seen; they envelop me, caress me, hold me – they twinkle and dance, and are smooth and velvety all at the same time. My knees go weak.

He offers me his hand and we proceed up the stairs toward the throne – in which he sits. I stand before him open-mouthed. This is Jesus. This is my Savior. This is my King. This is the man I have given up my life to serve and follow. This is who died for me so I might live.

I am overcome. Tears fall. I have no words. My knees go weak and I tremble. He reaches out one hand to steady me and pats a space next to him on the throne his other. Before I realize it, I am sitting next to Jesus and look back into the room - but it isn’t a room anymore.

The walls have vanished, the floor has disappeared and the columns are non-existent. The stairs are still in place but the bottom three or four seem to disappear into a vaporous mist of some sort. The world is at my feet. Jesus is somehow manipulating the image and it spins to show me San Francisco, up to Seattle, over to Spokane, across to Calgary (“Hi Dube’s!” I wave… Cute house BTW), and then into Europe, Asia, Indonesia, and Africa… I see things through his eyes and he tells me his thoughts.

Finally, I relax and am partly over the whelming aspect of hanging out with Jesus in the throne room of heaven when silently I wonder “Where is God?” Jesus without even looking at me answers “At the worship center.”

I giggle and we start a conversation with him asking my opinion on world matters (Egyptian Crisis), on trivial things (do I like U2? Do I like blue or brown tinted sunglasses better?), and life (Why ladybugs grow dots.). I ask his thoughts on world politics, wars, uprisings; on Haiti, earthquakes and floods. I ask him what the secret to life is.

He smiles, his brown eyes reaching into my soul so deep I feel I have been swallowed… “Dena, it is simple. So, so simple. The secret to life is love. Love others as you want to be loved, treat others as you want to be treated. What is apparent isn’t always what is real – so don’t accept people at face value. There is much more to be discovered. Love is the secret. Love is the key. Always has been, always will be.”

Ah. So true. So simple - but yet, incredibly profound.

The scene ended there – my daydream in the Saratoga library ended with a polite teenager asking if she could unplug my laptop to charge her own. I smiled, feeling the love I had just received oozing out of me toward this gangly, awkward, 14 year old girl sporting braces, acne and limbs she was growing into.

Who are you called to love? Who are the unlovely in your life you aren’t keen to love but know they are in your life for a reason, for a season? Who do you know has much to be discovered if a little love and hospitality were applied? Who are you to love and unlock them to the secret of life?

Updates:

Travel – Brett and Lyn are in South Africa on their way to Nigeria; Kim, Gareth and Linda just completed the venture in India and are experiencing a bit of fun before they either return home or head to Europe for another adventure. My Texas trip didn’t happen, but I think it was a good thing – I have really enjoyed being at home.

Work – I took a QuickBooks class and am now a bit more comfortable with the bookkeeping I have been tasked with. I am nowhere proficient but at least I don’t break out in a sweat when opening the application!

Training - recruitment is underway! Want to learn what God thinks of business – and how to work every day from a kingdom perspective? Check out Repurposing Business Training.

Requests:

Travel – The team completed the venture with the Client Presentation Celebration last night – check out the team blog for details of what happened while they were away.

Work – One more week and everyone returns from all points beyond. July is PACKED with events, activities, weddings, birthdays, and celebrations – come join the fun!

Life – for rest, continued rejuvenation, relaxation and FUN! Also, I have been challenged to put some of my “inspirationals” into book format – the question is, HOW? What format, how to group, what’s the title (suggestions)? Prayer around this would be appreciated.

PS Happy Birthday! Keith, Kara, Brandon, Rebe, Jeff, Uncle Greg, Aunt Julie (RIP), Christine, Loretta, Joy, Don... and whomever else I may have missed!

PPS Congratulations to Felix and Brenda, Bart and Jessica, and Ruth on their upcoming weddings!