What is wisdom?

Wisdom.  That word keeps popping up.  But what is wisdom?
According to SPLASH, our Wednesday night children's program, wisdom is knowing what God wants you to do and doing it. Easier said than done.

I was reading a children's book to my kindergartner today.  It is an African tale of a rabbit, Zomo, who goes to Sky God and asks for wisdom.  But when Sky God replies, he says that wisdom is not something to be given away at will.  No, Zomo must earn wisdom by accomplishing 3 impossible tasks.

How blessed we are that our God - the one true God of the universe - is not like the fictional god in this story.  Our God says that "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" (James 1:5)

Wow! All we have to do is ask!

Today, I am thanking God for the wisdom He has granted me in my journey toward Haiti.  Just a week ago, it seemed as though things were falling apart.  I did not have nearly as much financial support as I had thought and I wondered if I would be funded any time in the near future.  There was disappointment, yes, but more troubling was the fact that I didn't know what to do from there.  I had made all of my plans under the assumption that I would be fully funded by Christmas.  I had planned on moving home, finishing up everything that needed to be done before leaving, and then around the end of January moving to Haiti.  But without the support...what was I to do?

It's hard to know what it is that God wants you to do.  Nowhere in the Bible does it say, "Erin, I want you to buy a plane ticket to Haiti on January __."  No, that would make life far too easy. Instead God tells us to ask for wisdom with a faith that believes He will give it.  And He does.

I now have peace about my decision to move home and continue to pursue my goal of leaving at the end of January.  I'm trusting His timing and choosing to follow His path (uncertain though it may be).  And I know that He will take care of the rest.

Not a missionary

     I went to "missionary training school."  I'm considered an official church missionary.  When I told one woman about my work in Haiti, she excitedly turned to her husband and exclaimed, "Erin is going to be a missionary!"
     But I'm not.
     I'm not a missionary and I don't want to be.
     Here in America, I'm a teacher.  My life is dedicated to loving children for Christ.  I help kids with homework, teach dance, and tell people what Jesus did for them on the cross.
     In Haiti, I'll be a teacher.  My life will be dedicated to loving children for Christ.  I will help kids with homework, teach dance, and tell people what Jesus did for them on the cross.
     But I won't be a missionary.  I'll just be me.

Messy Obedience

     Messy obedience.
     I love that phrase.
     Messy obedience is the realization that I cannot just sit around and wait until I see the big picture before I act on what God has for me.  It's the understanding that I'm going to make mistakes...and that's okay.  It's the commitment to follow Christ even when I don't know what I'm doing.  It's hearing the voice of the Shepherd and pursuing it, regardless of how much I know...or don't know.  It's looking back on the things I've done and choosing to not regret, because every step - though messy and uncertain - was taken in faith.  And it brought me to here - exactly where God wants me
     God never promised that it would be easy or clean, but He did promise that it would be worth it.
     And it always is.