Wednesday, January 14, 2015

Prudence

"Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God." - Philippians 4:4-6 ESV

The King James says 'Be careful for nothing' in verse six and I like this better... maybe because it doesn't carry all the psychobabble connotations that the word anxious does.

Prudence is good. Wisdom is prudent. A prudent person is in it for the long haul. They want to have words and actions that contribute to something lasting. Instead of living only in the moment they are living in the future as well.

Being 'careful' is fear based. Being prudent is wisdom based. Carefulness is born from fear of failure or exposure but prudence is sourced in desire for success.

Wounds make us careful people. Actions and words are buried out of fear.

Prayer changes that. Thanksgiving can be transforming.

We take the words we tempted to bury and give them to God. We take the actions we are responsible for because we acted in passion instead of principle and give them to God.

Wisdom isn't holding back. Wisdom is moving forward by faith because we have an outcome that we desire to see accomplished.

"Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me." - Philippians 4:11-13 ESV

"Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith - that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you." - Philippians 3:8-15 ESV

If we know God then we have a calling to reveal God in the world to people and walk with Him in peace. Today is another day that calls for prudent action and not 'careful' avoidance.

God fill us with your Spirit and make us wise by reminding us who You Are and who you have made us to be. Send us out into our day and give us wisdom to make bold decisions that are based on 'long haul' thinking. We love You. We trust You. Amen.

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