Elizabeth Elliot, in her book Let Me Be a Woman, records the story of Gladys Aylward. Gladys grieved deeply over the physical appearance God had given her. As such, she struggled mightily to accept herself. Ms. Aylward told how when she was a child she had two great sorrows. One, that while all her friends had beautiful golden hair, hers was black. The other, that while her friends were still growing, she had stopped. She was about four feet ten inches tall.
Eventually, God called her into the foreign mission field. When at last she reached the country to which God had called her to be a missionary, she stood on the wharf in Shanghai and looked around at the people to whom He had called her. “Every single one of them” she said, “had black hair. And every one of them had stopped growing when I did.” She was able to look to God and exclaim, “Lord God, You know what You’re doing!”
Without exception, human wisdom always falls short. We simply cannot see all that God sees. We cannot understand all that God understands. He alone can see the end from the beginning, while we are limited by time and our circumstances. He alone knows the plans and purposes that he has set in place and unless he reveals them to us, we will always come to the wrong conclusions about life.
In Job 28, we encounter a stalemate between Job and his friends. The friends have applied every bit of human wisdom they can muster to the problem of Job’s suffering. They have no answers. Job is also dumbfounded. He simply cannot understand why his life is filled with pain and loss. Job finally turns the conversation to the question: “Where can wisdom be found?” (Job 28:12). Job declares that wisdom cannot be found among the most precious elements of this earth (gold, jewels and precious metals). Neither can wisdom be purchased. Ultimately, wisdom is found only in God (vv 20-27). God alone is all knowing, all powerful, and all wise. He is the Creator of all things and from him everything moves and has its being. Job concludes, “The fear of the Lord – that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding,” (Job 28:28).
What each of us needs, in the confusion and finiteness of our lives is the wisdom that comes from God alone. His wisdom brings understanding to the confusing messages the world continually gives us. His wisdom helps us to see through the darkness of life. His wisdom helps us to discern the difference between the true and false. His wisdom illuminates our minds to deception and danger. Ask the Spirit of God to give you the wisdom you need today.
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