Would you rather acquire Gold or Wisdom? Silver or Understanding? This question from the book of Proverbs (16:16) became a recurring question my father-in-law asked our kids on his last visit. Our kids (4 and 8) would answer gold or silver (incorrectly!) to get a reaction from grandad.
It is a deceptively good question, isn’t it? Gold or Wisdom? Most accounts of the world today would view gold and wisdom as synchronous. If you are wise, you will have more money. But the Bible doesn’t draw so straight a line.
It is hard to live generously right now. That is both my lived experience and what I am hearing from others. When the world feels unpredictable, we turn inward. It even feels wise to batten down the hatches of our lives – financially and otherwise. I was struck recently, reading the book of Isaiah. The book opens on a city in utter chaos. The days have turned dark and frightening – with enemies all around. What is the way forward?
The impulse in that situation is to grab all the gold you can. Save. Store. Horde. But what does wisdom say? What does God say to the people through the prophet? In the midst of a world in disarray, He says:
Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed.[a] Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.
When the portfolio is down, and the grocery bill is up – when my enemies are around me, and it doesn’t look like things will stabilize anytime soon. In the midst of this, the wise thing to do is to look beyond yourself and to take up the cause of those who have it worse than you. This is the opposite of our impulse.
Why would we choose to do that? Well, if God is King, then clinging to Him is the only real security in chaos. But it is also my lived experience (and yours too, I would guess) that when I feel overwhelmed by need, pressing into it with understanding and purpose serves me far greater than allowing my fear to fester at an arm’s length. When I feel overwhelmed by the chaos of my own life, one phone call with a friend in Uganda resets my heart and mind completely. Reading one update from William about the slum outreach program both encourages me and inspires me to press on.
Gold or Wisdom? Silver or Understanding? The tension between them is real. As we raise funds for Term 2, we are so grateful for the many people who have chosen generosity in this season. Those gifts will bless kids in Uganda, and my prayer is that the giving will bless you in turn.
Will you choose wisdom today by giving generously to support these students and help sustain the work of RUHU through Term 2?
Peace, Caleb