Day 3: Words of Wisdom
My mouth will speak words of wisdom; the meditation of my heart will give you understanding (Psalm 49:3).
Heavenly Father, Teacher of mankind (Psalm 94:10), from You come wisdom, knowledge and understanding (Proverbs 2:6). You desire to teach us Your ways so that we may walk in Your paths (Micah 4:2). And You desire that we share with others—freely giving what we have freely received (Matthew 10:8).
Throughout human history, hearts have searched for stability, for reliability, for constancy. We have so many questions as we wrestle with the turmoil, the chaos, the confusion, and the perplexities of life. Many struggle to make sense of it all.
The hopeless and the cynical conclude that everything is utterly meaningless (Ecclesiastes 1:2). The despairing determine that truth is nowhere to be found (Isaiah 59:15). And the cynical issue the challenge, "What is truth?" (John 18:38).
But even as You have recognized and acknowledged these human struggles in the Scriptures, You have not left us to wander in fear and confusion: The Lord has made His salvation known and revealed His righteousness to the nations (Psalm 98:2).
O Lord, You know the pressing questions, the exhausting enigmas and the desperate searches. You know the lies and the deceit of the father of lies, the murderer from the beginning, the deadly enemy whose mission is to steal, kill and destroy souls (John 8:44; 10:10). But You are God, and You are truth (John 14:6). You have given us Your Word, and You have given us Your Spirit of Truth to guide [us] into all truth (John 16:13).
As with Your people of old, You desire to teach us what is best for us, to direct us in the way we should go (Isaiah 48:17). And You desire that we teach others, and share with them Your good news of grace and hope, meaning and purpose.
You desire to give us a well-instructed tongue, to know the word that sustains the weary... to waken [us] morning by morning, waken our ear to listen like one being instructed (Isaiah 50:4). Teach us to listen. Teach us to pray like the psalmist, Never take your word of truth from my mouth, for I have put my hope in your laws (Psalm 119:4
Teach our hearts to meditate on Your truth—truth that springs up from Your deep wells of understanding. Equip us to speak Your sustaining words of wisdom into the weary, the fearful, and the perturbed. Give us the compassion, the courage, and the boldness to share hope as the evil days come when wicked deceivers surround us (Psalm 49:5).
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