For Wisdom is Within You
Wisdom walks peacefully, not fearing each step. She is gentle, and she is strong. She carries herself with her head held high, looking neither to the right nor to the left. Where she treads is cleared, and she is confident in it. She waits on God, her heart resting on His promises. She expects Him, and she knows Him. She is calm in a storm, knowing what action is required. She turns her face to God. She is not timid, but she is calm. Her heart remains steadfast in all circumstances, for God is with her.
What is your relationship with Wisdom? Is Wisdom something you desire? Do you know where and in Whom it is found? In this Encounter, Holy Spirit invites us to engage with Wisdom, beginning with some questions for our hearts:
How are you running scared rather than running free? How is fear entrapping you now? How are you in a rut? What can’t you see–and how do you live blind, pushing for your way rather than listening to Wisdom and heeding her call?
Begin by getting comfortable in a space where you can be undisturbed for at least 30 minutes. Empty your hands, placing them open, face up, in your lap. Place your feet evenly on the floor. Then, with your eyes closed, breathe easily and deeply for a few minutes, feeling your lungs inhale and exhale with air.
Next, consider what you are feeling now—what emotions you are experiencing. Try to name them as specifically as possible, trusting that God will help you tune into your heart:
Lord, in this moment I am feeling…..(anxious, happy, discouraged, peaceful, angry, sad, lonely….)
Now, surrender these emotions to Him and consecrate this time together, surrendering and bringing your heart, body, and mind under His authority.
Jesus, I surrender my emotions to You. As I do, please help me understand why I feel the way I do.
As I listen for You, I consecrate to You my mind, heart, body, and spirit. Lead me. Be my shepherd, teacher, king, brother, and friend.
Pause here for a few minutes as you listen to God’s voice. It might help to keep your eyes closed and listen to instrumental music if that helps you block out unwelcome sounds around you. In addition, you may want to open your journal and write down what you hear God say.
I am here, and I love You. I am listening for You, Lord…
When you feel ready to move on, let’s return to the questions posed at the beginning of this Encounter: What is your relationship with Wisdom? Do you desire wisdom?
Ask God what He feels about Wisdom and the role He hopes it plays in your life:
Lord, tell me about Wisdom. How do you define it? What does it look like in my life now? How do You invite me to accept more of it?
As you listen for His response, contemplate the prayer excerpt from Paul to the Ephesians, written below. Read it at least three times.
Read it silently, slowly, and carefully, noticing what words and phrases stand out to you the most.
Read it again, perhaps aloud. Listen to the words—and notice their impact on your heart.
Read the verses a third time, lingering over the meaning. What is God speaking to you through Paul’s prayer?
“For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power in us who believe, according to the working of his great might which he accomplished in Christ when he raised him from the dead and made him sit at his right hand in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 1: 15-20).
Next, let’s return to Holy Spirit’s words to us at the beginning of this Encounter:
Wisdom walks peacefully, not fearing each step. She is gentle, and she is strong. She carries herself with her head held high, looking neither to the right nor the left. Where she treads is cleared, and she is confident in it. She waits on God, her heart resting on His promises. She expects Him, and she knows Him. She is calm in a storm, knowing what action is required. She turns her face to God. She is not timid, but she is calm. Her heart remains steadfast in all circumstances, for God is with her.
Have a conversation with God—in your heart or journal—about Wisdom, for whom Jesus is the model.
You might want to use the following questions as prompts for questions to ask Him:
How, Lord, are my steps filled with fear rather than peace?
Where are my blind spots, God? What do You want to help me see, as I trust in You?
Please give me a picture of what your hope in my looks like. I want it in my life. How can I wait on You, with the eyes of my heart enlightened?
With Wisdom as my guide, with Wisdom in me, how do you clear my path? What steps do You invite me to take? In what ways do You invite me to wait on You?
Continue your conversation with the Father, Jesus, and/or Holy Spirit. What is your heart’s prayer? And what is God’s response. Listen for it. Expect it. And write it down.
Amen.
