Am I Willing to Pay the Price to Grow?

Meditations from Proverbs 9 on Lady Wisdom, Part 1

Give instruction to a wise man and he will be still wiser, Teach a righteous man and he will increase his learning. –Proverbs 9:9

In the first few verses in Proverbs 9, Lady Wisdom first goes into a great deal of work to create the perfect environment for relationships and learning: she goes to great effort and expense to build a beautiful house to meet in. Then she prepares a fine banquet, rivaling what would be served in a Five-Star Restaurant. She wants to be sure that anyone who comes to her place and partakes in what she has to offer will have a wonderful and amazing experience.

What is it that She is offering? “Are you confused about life, don’t know what’s going on? Come with me, oh come, have dinner with me! I’ve prepared a wonderful spread – fresh-baked bread, roast lamb, carefully selected wines. Leave your impoverished confusion and live! Walk up the street to a life with meaning.” –The Message

Who is she offering this opportunity to? Those who lack sense, are confused about life or want understanding.

The Hebrew word understanding King Solomon used in this passage is leb: inner man, mind, will, heart, understanding, soul, knowledge, resolution, determination (of will), as seat of appetites, as seat of emotions and passions, as seat of courage.

How many of us would like to have a stronger inner man, a clearer mind, a more courageous heart, better understanding, a more vibrant soul, knowledge that would make them successful, a stronger resolution to achieve their calling, more determination and more passion?

These are things that God wants us to have! He is offering them to us!

The question is, will we respond to his invitation?

“No thanks, I’m OK with being stuck. I am having a little pity party, so don’t interrupt me. I don’t have the friends I would like, they don’t care about me, my life has no real purpose; I just exist. And this personal growth stuff…it is just too much effort, thank you. I’ll just stay as I am.”

Perhaps that sounds a bit over dramatic, how true it this for my life? Perhaps more than I would like to admit….