Part of me hesitated to make resolutions this new year because everyone always makes resolutions (and rarely keeps them).  But of course it doesn’t make sense not to do something just because everyone else does.  For one thing, a life lived like that would be void of Coldplay!

So, my main resolution this year is to make decisions simply and promptly, and without so much agonizing deliberation.  This pertains to everything from what to get to eat, to whether I should go somewhere, to what I should do with my future.  By forgoeing analization, I don’t mean to let go of wisdom.   But my perspective on wisdom has shifted lately.

I think about having wisdom constantly.  Especially in the little everyday things.  I do my best to make wise decisions as I work, eat, plan my day, and interact with others.  But the other day I suddenly had this feeling like something was off in my perspective about wisdom.  In trying to figure out what it was, I found my mind drifting back to dark and early mornings at the small library of the YWAM base in Montana.  In a determined search for just a couple minutes of alone time,  I used to sneak over there before breakfast and have devotions.  At the time I was reading through Proverbs.  Naturally, I found the book to be full of advice for everyday living.  But I also found a somewhat surprising concept repeated over and over: the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.  “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge…Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil…The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.”

I’m coming to the realization that my previous desire for “wisdom” (as well as the way I made decisions) was self-focused.  It was ultimately driven by the fear of man, not the fear of God.  I wanted to make wise choices in order to be perfect in the eyes of others and myself.  As Keith Green said, “it’s so hard to see when my eyes are on me”!  I am only beginning to understand what it means to fear the Lord, but that is my new focus and I look forward to a purified form of wisdom, more mysterious and ancient than any I could craft myself.