Finding the answers to life’s questions -- knowing how, knowing which way, knowing when, knowing why -- can become a frantic search. Wisdom is God’s provision when our look is godward. He promises not to disappoint us, and the more often we come, the more we will come with certainty knowing He will provide. Psalm 22:4-5 refers to the “history” the Israelites had established with God. Although there were times the Israelites failed in their trust, the psalmist reflects on the times when their look was godward. These were times when situations seemed hopeless and their hearts cried out to God. What was the result? The verses tell us, “In You our fathers trusted; they trusted and You delivered them. To You they cried out and were delivered; in You they trusted and were not disappointed.” Have you begun to establish your own “history with God”? Have you seen God’s faithfulness, dependability, or wisdom in response to your own prayers for help? Developing your own history with God comes as you live in a love relationship with Him. Learning to trust, to depend, and to count on God gives you a growing certainty of His provision.
God promises His wisdom to the one who asks, and He assures us that He will never reprimand us or discipline us for asking. But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. In Psalm 31, David needed wisdom for life, and trust dances again with reality! If you read the psalm slowly, there is probably much in which you can identify with David. David’s feelings are vividly portrayed. His anguish, distress, and grief are very real. But he also keeps coming back to the facts. God is his rock and his fortress. God is truth. God is worthy of trust. His hands hold us. His love never fails. He is a place of safety. His goodness waits for our need. Reality will persist, but God will never disappoint us.
Where does an unbeliever go for wisdom? Life holds too many challenges, and the thought of attempting to navigate through all of those challenges without God is extremely unsettling. Apart from God, there are no absolutes; there is no sane reasoning behind the insanities of our messed up world. With God, there are answers. God has a wisdom to give that enables and strengthens, and gives hope, purpose, and direction. There are no other options!
(Related Bible reading: Psalm 31:1-24)
