Chapter 5, in our companion book, is about wisdom. In particular, the wisdom of choosing a life partner. Jones tells a group of young adults how they can tell a lot about a person by the “leaves” they drop. Jones uses leaf as a metaphor for clues offering insight into a person’s likes and dislikes. “Wisdom can be gathered in your downtime,” Jones tells the curious listeners gathered around him at the local golf course.
And “One of wisdom’s greatest benefits,” Jones added, “is accurate discernment — the learned ability to immediately tell right from wrong…Good from evil. Acceptable from unacceptable.”
It is possible to summarize Chapter 6 in one sentence. What we do matters. Jones sits with an elderly woman on a bench made by her late husband. Willow had recently concluded it was time for her to join her husband. She reckoned her usefulness was over. Now, Willow was “hanging around like somebody’s forgotten holiday wreath, still on the front door in March.” It was time for her life to be over.
When Willow shares her dismay with Jones, she gets pushback. “Who gave you permission to decide that you had nothing more to do, nothing more to offer?” Jones replies, catching Willow completely by surprise.
Wait! Aren’t we in charge of whether we choose to be useful? Don’t we choose our actions based on our own assessments?
The answer is yes, but our answer to the question doesn’t negate Jones’ point.
Our decision doesn’t change whether we’re leaving something undone.Whether we don’t do what God wants us to do. People often reject God. Often, it’s unintentional on our part. We either forget the point Jones made to Willow or we simply respond with faulty discernment.
Which takes us back to the prior chapter and one of wisdom’s greatest benefits.
Good intentions and a dose of wisdom aren’t enough. We need daily inoculations against our human weaknesses that compete with wisdom. Spiritual disciplines, including prayer and reading scripture, offer help. Jones explains to his audience how friends can offer another source of wisdom.
I suspect God hates abortion and cries with each one. I also suspect God hates rape, incest, divorce, climate change and lies. So I believe God is on the side of reproductive freedom, reducing our consumption of meat and prefers renewable energy over fossil fuels. I believe God is a progressive.
But does God interfere in elections? And if God gets involved, does God stick with U.S. elections? If so, which candidate is God’s choice for president?
First, according to Pew Research, about half of us believe God doesn’t get involved with elections. The rest either don’t believe in God at all or believes God plays favorites to the point of influencing outcomes. A small percentage think God’s preference is based on policy.
Their findings were nearly identical after the elections of Obama and Trump. I think God loves diversity.
The Rev Billy Holland, in an article for the Jackson Sun, a newspaper serving East Tennessee, writes, “Instead of trying to change everyone else, let’s ask God to help us become the person He has called us to be. It’s a good possibility that a portion of what we think is being interpreted through a lens that is dusty and out of focus. Have we considered embracing humility, setting aside our party bias, and sincerely praying that God would reveal the individual He wants us to vote for? Can we agree that God knows who would be the best person for the job?”
I have my preferences, but since I can’t see the future and God can, I’ll need to settle for my best guess and cast my vote the best I can. Since character means a lot to me you can likely guess my preference.
Whatever or whoever gave insight to Solomon, the young man displayed great wisdom in asking God for wisdom to lead well. Solomon realized he was too young to know what to do. He wasn’t ready to lead. When God asked Solomon what he most desired, Solomon asked for wisdom so he could govern justly. A wise choice, it turned out. God piled on wealth as a reward for Solomon’s unselfish request.
And later, Solomon would prove to the world that even wisdom fails us if we allow arrogance and entitlement to cloud our wisdom.
Wisdom helps us discern God’s will from our own. A trait clearly missing in most of humankind, including many Christians. And the gospels offer substantial illustrations of wisdom in action, along with many clues about God’s character and preferences. The better we know Jesus and consider the choices He made, the better our chances of doing the same.
Jesus once asked His followers, “What about you? Who do you say I am?”
We answer Jesus’ question with our claims of knowing God’s will. Just before this conversation Jesus had with His disciples, they witnessed numerous miracles where Jesus healed the sick and fed the hungry.
The disciples saw Jesus’ grace in action. They witnessed how His compassion took precedence over tradition. They didn’t see bias or prejudice.
Jesus asked His followers, “What about you? Who do you say I am?”
Luke 9:20
Paying attention to God’s character helps us better recognize God’s wisdom. We often blame our choices on God. Fortunately, God’s grace has no limits. And God’s love knows no boundaries.
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A reminder that we publish this newsletter that we call the Circuit Rider each week. You can request this publication by email. Send a request to FlintAsburyUMC@gmail.com or let us know when you send a message through our website. We post an archive of past editions on our website under the tab, Connect – choose Newsletters.
Pastor Tommy
Parts of our series was inspired by Andy Andrews. The Noticer: Sometimes, all a person needs is a little perspective. Nashville: W Publishing Group, 2011.
Billy Holland. “Who does God want to be President?.” © Jackson Sun, October 30, 2020. Retrieved from: link
Gregory A. Smith. “About a third in U.S. see God’s hand in presidential elections, but fewer say God picks winners based on policies.” © Pew Research, March 12, 2020. Retrieved from: link