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| Proverbs 2:6-11 |
For the LORD gives wisdom: out of his mouth comes knowledge and understanding; He lays up sound wisdom for the righteous: he is a buckler to them that walk uprightly. He keeps the paths of judgment and preserves the way of his saints. Then shall you understand righteousness and judgment and equity yea every good path. When wisdom enters into your heart, and knowledge is pleasant unto your soul; Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee.
How many times have you said, “If I had only known then what I know now....”
If you are anything like me you probably have said it more times than you can even count. There are so many things that I’ve learned over the years, a lot of them very painfully, and I often wish I could go back to my late teens and early twenties with the knowledge that I have today. I would avoid so many horrible decisions, situations, and people. Sigh. Thank God for His saving Grace.
This passage of scripture clearly tells us that the knowledge we need is actually stored up for us. We don’t have to learn it the hard way. God provides knowledge and wisdom so that we don’t have to look back and say, “If I had only known that he would treat me so bad, I would have never given him my number.” Can anybody relate? :) The bible teaches us that God actually “lays up” sound wisdom for us. He preserves our way. That means He protects it and carefully looks after it. He speaks to us so that we can avoid all the hell that makes us look back and realize how dumb we were. He GIVES wisdom. He GIVES it. So why don’t we walk in it as we should? Why do we have so many “if only I had known” experiences? It’s simple: choice.
While God speaks wisdom, lays up sound judgment and keeps His divine path for us, we must choose to walk in it. Sure, that sounds easy enough but for all of us that choice requires sacrifice and self-denial. And that’s often wrapped in discomfort and waiting. Sister, there is a price for the fruits of wisdom. You must be willing to exchange your agenda for His. You must wait when you want to rush. You must say “no” even when that dude is fine and you are tired of being by yourself. You must restrain even when you want to engage in what seems like the simplest of pleasures that you know are not a part of His will for your life. You must choose wisdom.
I love how this passage ends, and I see it so plainly in my own life. There are things that I would NEVER do again….people with whom I would NEVER be involved again….places I would NEVER go again. Why? Because, now I understand. The things I’ve learned over the years were hard and tough but the understanding I received was invaluable and it shapes my behavior and choices today. Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee. Now that I have learned who I am in God, I no longer tolerate anything less than His best in my life from anyone or anything. Now that I understand that mistreating someone else is not okay just because I’ve been hurt, I am no longer careless with someone else’s heart. And when I learned that whatever I sow, that shall I also reap, I learned to be careful what I sow and to take responsibility for my actions when it’s reaping season. Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee.
So I’d be interested to hear from some of you. What are some things that you look back and think “If I had only known then what I know now, I would never have ___________.” Share some things that you’ve learned the hard way that have changed your behavior for the better. We can all get encouragement from your testimony.
I can’t wait to hear from you!
Nicole
This reminds of the comment that I have heard often "hind sight is 20/20".
ReplyDeleteTrue statement. I believe that looking forward towards the path that lies before is the best thing for me to do.
I read the book "The Present" by Spencer Johnson" years ago. One of the things that stuck with me the most about that book was this:
Live in the "Present"
Learn from the "Past"
Plan for the "Future"
Be Blessed and Favored
J. Mapp
Great words to live by Jackie!
ReplyDeleteThis is a tough yet much needed statement for me. “If I had only known then what I know now, I would never have gotten married at such a young age. I would have waited for GOD to send me the right person for me. I would have enjoyed my childhood verses rushing into adulthood. I would have walked away from people and things that was not meant for me. I would have listened to the whispers verses hearing the screams of heartache and pain years later. I would have loved myself as much as GOD loves me. I would have never put man before GOD. I would have found myself and my freedom and independence a long time ago. I found out the hard way. GOD has allowed me to stumble and fall and its a humbling feeling. I was lost out here in a world hopelessly. But now I can honestly say my past is just that my past. And today with the strength that I have gained through GOD I am able to move forward and understand why things happened and continue to move forward. My past has made me a better person for my present and my future looks brighter now. My walk in faith has been a struggle but i'm forever believing in him.
ReplyDeleteCharmane - allowing our past to make us better and give us direction for the future is good growth! For many of us, our walk in faith is a struggle because we have to experience God to know Him and grow in our faith in Him. Experiencing Him often hurts because we dont make use of His wisdom beforehand so we have to experience Him the hard way. I'm happy to hear that you're learning and growing! Good for you!
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ReplyDeleteIf I had known that every decision I made would really come back to me, in its own distinct way I probably wouldnt have did a whooole lot of stuff. When i initially read this blog this yesterday morning I immediately started thinking about alll my so wrong decisionsand the results of every last one them (that I could think of). You said it so well GODS SAVINGS GRACE. I once viewed my bad decisions as God would give xtra credit for being young or for reasonable cause. Just dumb. I had no idea they would come back so hard and hurt so much. If i had knew that decision I made to gain attention would get me a child at 15, I would have never made that choice. If had knew the decision to do drugs to impress people would cause me so many issues physically and mentally I would have never did it. Those are some of the bigger things but i also thought of the smaller things. If I would have just not brought the shoes I would have had gas money. If I would have simply said No I wouldnt be stressing try to figure out how I'm gone get this done. Thank God for his saving grace and covering me in those moments and I learned so much despite of allll my bad decisions. I now understand and have enough wisdom to know i don't want to keep reaping unnecessary stuff. I now no longer look at my decisions asa bad decision. Once upon a time I couldn't do that. I was living with somuch regret.I wasted so much time on the wrong things I felt like i didn't have enough time to make up. God has showed me how each bad decision although the design was for bad but good came out of it. I now no longer look at those decisions the same way. I now I can say I AM NOW EQUIPPED! I Love who I am growing to become in God. I'm not rushing into a whole lot of stuff because i desire Gods best for me. I have learned so much about me and still learning. While I continue to learn I will take every experienceinto my next decision.
ReplyDeleteWonderful testimony Torie!
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