Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
The Body-Sized Blender Wanting God’s Wise Way
You hurdle up and over a barbed-wire fence sporting a big KEEP OUT sign. You shimmy on your belly across a runway. You scoot past security guards meant to shoo you to safety. And then you ignore the simple yet bold warning on the side of a plane—a sticker that politely maps the cone of death in front of the jet engines, the zone where the whirring turbines suck in anything that steps too close. You’d thought the best way to understand a jet engine was to get an up-close look. So now you’re getting an up-close look, all right—like seeing the inside of a body-sized blender.
BRAIN DRAIN
What’s the dumbest thing you’ve ever done and lived to tell about? Ever fallen out of a tree? Slammed your hand in a car door? Put something in your ear smaller than your elbow?
FLASHBACK
Life is full of “Don’t-run-with-scissors” or “Stay-away-from-jet-engines” kind of rules—nuggets of wisdom that may or may not keep you from bodily harm. The Bible’s wisdom is even bigger than the kind of smarts that keep you from putting a sharp stick in your eye. It’s wisdom that helps you stick close to God and stand clear of the unsmartness of sin. This Bible Chunk is all about why you would want to wise up.
BIBLE CHUNK
Read Proverbs 2:1–11
(1) My son, if you accept my words
and store up my commands within you,
(2) turning your ear to wisdom
and applying your heart to understanding,
(3) and if you call out for insight
and cry aloud for understanding,
(4) and if you look for it as for silver
and search for it as for hidden treasure,
(5) then you will understand the fear of the Lord
and find the knowledge of God.
(6) For the Lord gives wisdom,
and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.
(7) He holds victory in store for the upright,
he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless,
(8) for he guards the course of the just
and protects the way of his faithful ones.
(9) Then you will understand what is right and just
and fair—every good path.
(10) For wisdom will enter your heart,
and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul.
(11) Discretion will protect you,
and understanding will guard you.
STUFF TO KNOW
There’s a whole heap of “ifs” at the beginning of that Chunk. What are they? Scribble them down or circle them. (If you count all the phrases in verses 1–4, you should find eight.)
All those “ifs” sound like a lot of work. But what do you get if you search hard for wisdom (verse 5)?
Puzzled? You’re maybe thinking you’re not thrilled about getting knowledge. You’re probably pretty sure you don’t want fear. But whose wisdom are you guaranteed to get (verse 6)?
INSIGHT
“Fear of the Lord” can be either healthy or horrifying. Think of the healthy kind as the utter respect you should rightly have for God, the King of the Universe. And the knowledge you get from God is the kind of jaw-dropping, awe-inspiring, life-changing wisdom you would expect from someone who is not only all-powerful but all-knowing and all-kind. Proverbs 1:7 says, “The fear of the Lord [or “respect for the Lord”] is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.”
So what good is God’s wisdom? Why wise up? List a bunch of reasons from verses 7–10, and circle two that sound best to you.
BIG QUESTIONS
When has a warning—from a friend, parent, teacher, or stranger—helped you?
How would a sign that tells you how to avoid getting sliced and diced by a jet engine be “pleasant knowledge”?
Do you think God shares his wisdom to wreck your life—or to make it wildly enjoyable? Why do you think that?
SIDELIGHT
If you have any doubt about God’s good goals for you, ponder a couple Bible Chunks. God once spoke through the prophet Jeremiah and said, “I know the plans I have for you ... plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11). And Jesus put it this way: “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10).
How helpful do you think God’s wisdom could be to you? How would it lead you into “every good path” (verse 9)? How is it “pleasant” (verse 10)? How might it “protect you” (verse 11)?
So how important do you think it is to wise up by getting God’s smarts?
SIDELIGHT
Here’s an angle on the importance of gaining wisdom you might not have thought of. As an adult, Jesus often astonished people with his sharp insights (see places like Mark 6:1–5 and Matthew 11:19). But even more astounding is the fact that Jesus had been wise all along. As a little kid Jesus “was filled with wisdom” (Luke 2:40). Wising up was so important to Jesus that the Bible boils down his childhood to two things: He grew up and he grew wise. And as a result he had the favor of both God and people (Luke 2:52).
DEEP THOT
God’s wisdom is what keeps you from hitting the big fan of life. God wants you to wise up so you can stand clear of the unsmartness of sin. It’s the only way you can experience the good life he intends for you.
STICKY STUFF
Wise up by memorizing Proverbs 2:6. There’s a removable card in the back to help you out.
ACT IT OUT
Ask an adult “So who was the smartest person you ever knew?” What kind of smarts did he or she have? How did those smarts show?
DIG ON
Read Proverbs 1 for a bunch more reasons why God’s wisdom is what you want to get.
