Week Fifteen, 2018
Wisdom
By Senator John Grant (Retired)
Wisdom is with the aged, and understanding in length of days. Job 12:12
When I was in school, they were my favorite musical group and not mine alone, they were number one across the world for years until they were passed by The Beatles. They were known as The Kingston Trio, an American folk and pop music group that helped launch the folk revival of the late 1950s to late 1960s. They rose to international popularity, fueled by unprecedented sales of LP records, and helped to alter the direction of popular music in the U.S.
They started in 1958 with the release of their first album and its hit recording of “Tom Dooley”, which sold over three million copies as a single. The Trio released nineteen albums that made Billboard’s Top 100, fourteen of which ranked in the top 10, and five of which hit the number 1 spot. The Trio was described as “the most envied, the most imitated, and the most successful singing group, folk or otherwise, in all show business” and “the undisputed kings of the folk singing rage by every yardstick.”
Everyone knew who they were and most could sing their songs. Recently, when I heard that they were coming to town, I rushed to get tickets, as did a lot of my era.
Today, the millennials have never heard of them. When I mentioned to our young music minister that I was going, he asked, “What’s that, are they from Jamaica?”
We old folks know a lot that the younger generation don’t know and they don’t know that they don’t know it. When I was young, I now wish I had listened to the wisdom and advice of the older generation. It would have saved me from a lot of heartache and trouble.
The Bible extols the wisdom of maturity. Ancient Israel’s 12 tribes split into two competing factions — Israel in the north and Judah in the south. This rancorous rupture of a once-united nation occurred for one simple, primary reason: the new king listened to the bad advice of his youthful companions and rejected the sound counsel of the older men of Israel.
Proverbs 20:18, tells us to get good advice and you will succeed; don’t go charging into battle without a plan. A wise man or woman is one who listens to advice. This is in contrast to a fool, who looks to himself as the source of wisdom.
But it’s not just advice that we need. Rehoboam got advice from his young companions, but it was wrong advice! It led to catastrophe for the king. So remember, it’s not just counsel, but good counsel that we need from others.
The Scriptures give a number of illustrations where that good counsel is likely to be drawn out of the older men and women, who have lived a long life and learned many valuable lessons. And by “older”, I mean those significantly older than the one seeking advice.
As a younger, do you seek and follow advice from more wise and experienced elders? As elders, do you take time to counsel with and impart your wisdom to the younger generation? That’s what the Bible tells us to do.
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SOMETIMES TRUE STORIES
PRAYER
C. S. Lewis from his book, “God in the Dock”, offers this interesting bit of dialogue regarding prayer.
“Praying for particular things,” said I, “always seems to me like advising God how to run the world. Wouldn’t it be wiser to assume that He knows best?”
“On the same principle,” said he, “I suppose you never ask a man next to you to pass the salt, because God knows best whether you ought to have salt or not. And I suppose you never take an umbrella, because God knows best whether you ought to be wet or dry.”
“Lord, I have heard of your fame; I stand in awe of your deeds, O Lord.
Renew them in our day, in our time make them known; in wrath remember mercy.” – Habakkuk 3:1-2
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JEHOVA’S WITNESS
Saturday morning the weather was too bad to play golf. I was bored with nothing to do. Suddenly there was a knock on the door. I opened it to find a young, well- dressed man standing there who said:
“Hello sir, I’m a Jehovah’s Witness.” So I said, “Come in and sit down.” I offered him a fresh cup of coffee and asked, “What do you want to talk about?” He said, “Beats me. Never got this far before..”
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QUOTES YOU CAN USE
There is no right way to do a wrong thing. —Norman Vincent Peale
If Jesus Possesses Absolute Authority, then He Is Worthy of Absolute Allegiance. He has authority over the physically uncleaned, the ethnically outcast and over demons. As Christians, we need to trust wholeheartedly in His ability, rest peacefully in His sovereignty, submit completely and rejoice gladly in His eternity. —Ken Whitten
Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. God has come to test you so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning”. Ex 20:20
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©2018 John Grant | Florida State Senator (Ret.) | 10025 Orange Grove Drive | Tampa, FL 33618