Wisdom – The Gift God Wants To Give You

This past Wednesday I had been invited to be the main speaker for a senior class day retreat. The theme for the retreat was “Praying Our Decision,” and in talking with the organizers, it was determined that, being seniors, they were on the cusp of making life-long decisions that would determine their life journeys.

One thing I know about this generation: they have a rough road ahead of them. Before, it was promised that anybody who attends college is nearly guaranteed a decent job upon completion. Now, even that job is not guaranteed. Stories of college graduates moving back into their parents’ homes are rampant. They are back to where they’ve started, except this time ladled with student loan debt.

I wanted to convey to them that if they trusted God with their lives, God will show them the way.  this act of God giving guidance is most revelatory in the gift of wisdom.

Wisdom is a Gift of the Holy Spirit

Of all the gifts, wisdom seems to be a slam-dunk gift. Scripture states that anybody who asks for wisdom will get it. (James 1:5).

Furthermore, wisdom is listed both as a gift of the Holy Spirit (Isaiah 11) and as a charism of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12).  If you were to examine both lists, you discover that wisdom is first mentioned.

Even more encouraging is the story of Solomon. At the beginning of his tenure as king, God wanted to bless Solomon with a gift–any gift. It could have been riches, or fame, or any other enticement of the world. Solomon asked for wisdom, over all of these gifts. God was so pleased with Solomon’s request that God gave him riches and fame besides.

In my years of involvement with the charismatic renewal, there have been periodic times where individuals were prayed over, asked what charisms they may want to pray for. Almost never was wisdom encouraged–usually the praying was for something more dramatic, such as tongues or healing. This should not have been. Wisdom ought to be front and center of all such worship times, and perhaps that would have extended the charismatic renewal even further today.

We All Need Wisdom

I believe wholeheartedly that teenagers today, in discerning where their lives are to be, they are going to need supernatural graces to help them in their journeys. Wisdom is a gift that will help them discern how to live, how to be of great character, and how to take the talents of who they are and apply that to a world that is in need of their talents.

And while we do have the gift of wisdom, by virtue of the graces of baptism and confirmation, one can have the gift and ignore it thoroughly. A person can get a Christmas gift and leave it in the corner, have it collecting dust. We need to apply it. And the Holy Spirit is ready to assist us in doing so.

Four Ways to Discover Wisdom

I have found four ways to practically discover wisdom in our lives. Of course, there will be many others. This is just a preliminary place to start.  To attain wisdom, that will assist us in taking what we know and applying it to the world, we need to:

• Pray for wisdom – Scripture states God will give you this gift if you ask (James 1:5).
• Consider, seriously, the observations of others in our lives: whether it be parents, teachers, friends, and even objective resources (like a survey book i.e. StrengthsFinder 2.0).
• Pay attention to the life experiences that you accumulate as you walk your journey. As you try things, discoveries of who you are will be made apparent.
• Living the life for God to its fullest (i.e., Love the Lord with your whole heart, soul, mind and strength).

How often do we pray for wisdom? Perhaps it’s time that we make it a prime focus for our teenagers today. Perhaps it’s time we make it a prime focus for all Christians today.