Proper 15 B                                                                            Proverbs 9:1-6
August 20, 2006                                                                     Psalm 34:9-14
St. Margaret of Scotland Episcopal Church                             Ephesians 5:15-20
The Rev. Linda McCloud                                                       John 6:53-59 

Living as Wise People 

It’s amazing how fast life zooms past us.  It goes at an alarming rate of speed.  If you need proof of that, just watch how fast infants grow and change.  Sometimes, they seem to change faster than you can change them.  With time gaining on us every day, we need some anchor in our lives.  We need a touchstone that we can return to time and again.  Our scriptures for today point to just such a thing – they suggest that we get, keep, and nourish Wisdom in our lives.  The reward is that Wisdom in return will then keep us.  Wisdom will keep us from acting foolishly.   

What does wisdom do for us that we cannot do for ourselves?  Our reading from Proverbs describes Wisdom as a hostess preparing a banquet.  She goes to a lot of trouble to get it just right.  First, she builds her house.  This is no ordinary house – no, it is a stately house with pillars.  Wisdom has prepared an elaborate meal for us, and the good news is that everyone is invited to the banquet.  Those who are wise choose to attend this banquet.  They discover that feasting at this banquet will result in life – abundant life.  Living wisely will enable us to do the right thing at the right time without being told to do it.  Living wisely includes knowing that we are operating and living in the presence of God.  Wisdom is soul candy.  Wisdom is nothing less than the Holy Spirit of God, guiding us into all truth and allowing us to know the truth about ourselves and our situations. 

I love the wisdom literature of the Old Testament, especially the Book of Proverbs.  I think its pithy, memorable sayings put common sense into unforgettable phrases.  Take, for example the admonishment to train up children in the way they should go, so that when they are old, they will not depart from it.  This works.  When I was growing up my mother trained me to write thank-you notes and to iron my clothes. My mother is now more than ninety years old and lives 625 miles from here, but I expect that long after she is dead and gone, my mother will still be making me iron my clothes and write thank-you notes.   

How does wisdom play out for us on a practical level?  Wisdom in our daily lives means that we have the ability to discern right from wrong.  Wisdom allows us to take a snapshot of the past and present in order to make the right move into the future.  Living as wise people allows us, as St. Paul points out, to use our time well and not to fritter away our lives.  One of the wisest things we can do is to cultivate our relationship with God through our faith in Jesus Christ.  I remember a plaque on the wall of my grandmother’s house when I was growing up:  “Only one life – ‘twill soon be past.  Only what’s done for Christ will last.” 

Jesus, in his great wisdom, spent time alone with God the Father.  Jesus also gathered with others for public worship of God as a custom of his life.  In the New Testament, Wisdom is personified in Jesus Christ.  St. Paul says that Jesus is the wisdom of God and the power of God.  How can we get wisdom?  Ask God.  Cultivating a prayer life is a really wise thing to do.  All wisdom comes from God, and we have only to ask for wisdom to receive it.  Is your life joyous right now?  Pray for wisdom.  Are you in a difficult situation?  Pray for wisdom.  Are you concerned about your next career move?  Pray for wisdom.  Are you trying to plan your retirement?  Pray for wisdom.   

Wisdom is cumulative.  Once you have a taste of wisdom, nothing less will satisfy you.  Being wise includes making the most of our time here on earth.  We never know when the last minute will tick off our clock and we will find ourselves in eternity.  I have been reminiscing this past week about two friends of mine who recently died in a car crash.  Bob and Becky Gentry were young when they got married in Nashville, Tennessee.  Bob wanted to start his own business, and Becky wanted to be a stay-home mom with their two young sons.  Well, he did and she did.  Bob thought it was his place to make the money, and Becky thought it was her place to help him keep it.  She was a coupon clipper and smart shopper extraordinaire.  Eating out with them was always an adventure and a lesson in economics. 

Along the way, Bob and Becky’s chief anchor in life was their shared faith in Jesus Christ.  They served their church and community faithfully because they had long since set their priorities straight.  They would serve God, love each other, and be good parents.  By the grace of God, their two sons have grown up to be responsible adults.   

When the family outgrew its starter house, Bob and Becky began to look for a place that would accommodate their sons as they grew to be teens.  Ever wise in their shopping habits, they settled on a new development that was being built in the exurbs of Nashville.  Land was cheaper there, and they could get more bang for the buck on their new house.  I remember going out there as their house was being built and thinking, “This place is a jungle.  Will the developers ever get all these trees cleared, and when will this subdivision be finished?”  But this place suited Bob and Becky just fine.   

            There was only one catch, and this was really tough for them.  They were so far away from their church that it was terribly difficult to get there on Sunday mornings.  They were also so far out in the boonies that there was not another suitable church nearby.  So, Bob and Becky had a bright idea.  They would start a church in their neighborhood.  It was only the practical, wise thing to do.  It would save time, gasoline, and maybe also the souls of some of their neighbors.  They began by inviting their new neighbors to their house for planning meetings and Bible studies.  Then there was the feasibility study – how much land would they need?  Could they get the right acreage in a central location for the entire community?  How much would it cost?  Could they do some of the work themselves?  And last but not least, where would they get a pastor who would share their vision? 

            That was about fifteen years ago, and to make a long story short, they were successful.  They took a wise approach.  They took a prayerful approach.  The church is still there, serving the community.  From my point of view, the lives of my friends Bob and Becky were cut short, but I trust God’s wisdom that all shall be well, and all shall be very well.  When I get past the hurt, I will be able to think about how they used their lives well here on earth, and then walked into heaven hand in hand.  They left a legacy of family, a business started and built, and a church started and growing, spreading God’s kingdom here on earth.    

That plaque on the wall in my grandmother’s house got it right — “Only one life – ‘twill soon be past.  Only what’s done for Christ will last.”