Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding
- King Solomon
Just as the title of this book suggests, we endeavour to inspire ourselves in the things that really matter in life; and as would be expected, I have been inspired by various people and oftentimes, by nature itself.
Wisdom, the principal thing
Just as King Solomon said in the Book of Proverbs (chapter 4 vs. 7), wisdom is the principal thing and we should therefore endeavour to get it alongside understanding or insight.
Wisdom has been defined by many as the correct application of knowledge, so then the starting point of all wisdom is God-given knowledge. You cannot be said to be wise if you are ignorant on the issues of life. In other words, you cannot take a wise decision on an issue if you lack knowledge on that particular matter.
Your assignment on earth
You do not need to be knowledgeable in every field in life; you only need to garner knowledge in a few specialties to be a person of impact on Mother Earth, otherwise you will become a ‘Jack of all trades and master of none’.
However, when you garner such knowledge, ensure it is relevant, complete and up-to-date, and the world will beat a path to your doorstep in search of what you have to offer. Ensure you do not offer mediocre but excellent service and you will never beg bread.
Your assignment on earth is connected with the problems you can solve and where you can solve them. The eye was created to see; the ear to hear and the mouth to speak, so these organs will never go out of relevance as long as they perform their functions satisfactorily.
The wisdom doctrine
And so it was a great delight to watch Mike Murdock being interviewed by David Cerrullo, son of that great man of God, Morris Cerullo, on the seven keys of wisdom. What follows here is what I make of Murdock’s submission on wisdom.
Mike maintained that little changes will always create big rewards and that our decisions, wise or foolish, will always create our circumstances.
Key 1: What you can tolerate, you cannot change
You can only change a circumstance when you hate it, when you abhor it and not when you can still tolerate it. Whether the situation is failure, poverty or sickness, you can only change it when you detest it enough to take requisite action for its change, not when you resign yourself to it or tolerate it.
Key 2: What you respect, you will attract
What you respect will gradually but surely gravitate towards you – be it knowledge, money, integrity or good health. What you respect is what you value enough to take positive action towards its realization and fruition. Mike emphasized that everything we see was created by things we don’t see, and that what we can’t see is greater than that which we can see. This statement reminded me of a postulation by one of my mentors, Ayo Arowolo. Ayo taught me that many men struggle with the physical things that can be touched and felt; they struggle in the physical realm. However, according to him, the physical and seen realm only represents three per cent of what really matters, and the other 97 per cent is settled in the unseen realm. In other words, 97 per cent of what matters is in the unseen, spiritual realm, which most people don’t cater to concern themselves about. “Settle the unseen 97 per cent and the other three per cent, which is seen, is easily taken care of,” Ayo said profoundly.
Now back to Mike. Mike stated that God is complete but everything he made needs a connection, a completion. For instance, a man needs a wife to be complete, etc. “Whatever is missing in your life is something you have not truly valued or respected enough and which thus you could not have attracted to yourself.
Thus, the habit of saving, for instance, is more important than what you save because it simply shows that you respect and treat money well; thus it will be attracted to you. I have also always said that many people are poor for the simple reason that they resent the rich. It thus follows that they have little they can learn from them, since you cannot learn from someone you resent or envy. This is the main reason most employees remain poor.
Till next week when we take other keys, I urge you to stay inspired in His presence.
Key 3: What you make happen for others, God will make happen for you
You may consider God as the Infinite Intelligence that ensures that each man gets back according to his deeds especially towards other men. This is the basis of the Golden Rule, as espoused by the Master; that you should do unto others as you would have them do unto you. An extension of this is His injunction on charity and almsgiving, very much like what you have in the Islamic injunction on Zakat. I must point out here, however, that you do not necessarily have to expect goodness from where you add goodness, for He did not promise that we would reap where we sow, but that we would reap what we sow. You must therefore endeavour to do good unto those that are not in any capacity to repay you in any way, for the Infinite Intelligence has put ‘things’ in place to ensure that what you make happen in other people’s lives (good or bad), He will make happen in your own life. This is a principle, which cannot be changed and the sooner we realize this and tap into it, the better for us.
Key 4: The secret of your future is hidden in your daily routine
Show me what you do typically in five of your day’s numerous minutes and I will predict largely what you will become in five years. The secret of you future is indeed hidden in your daily routine – second by second; minute by minute; hour by hour. This is profound wisdom. Mike asserts that men don’t decide their future; what they do is determine their habits, and their habits in turn create their future. So take care of your days and your future is taken care of. What you are doing daily will either create your successes or your failures. If you succeed or fail, it will be because of your habits, which are formed from day to day. Someone ago said that the chains of habits formed by men are too weak to be felt until they are too strong to be broken. Indeed successful men do daily what most failures do occasionally.
Key 5: Your rewards in life are decided by the kinds of problems you are willing and able to solve for others
The key to all success is the ability and willingness to solve other people’s problems or to add value to their lives and causes. The more people view you as a solution to their problems, the more value they willingly release into your life and cause. Joseph solved a national problem and was rewarded with a plum position. Daniel offered services of an excellent spirit to a king and was adequately rewarded. However, as would be deduced from the foregoing, you should be wary about what, when, for whom and how you solve problems. Don’t solve a problem in the wrong place or with the wrong attitude, if your value addition is to be meaningful and rewarding. Finally, just like Mike puts it, let it stick to your mind that you will be remembered in life mainly for two things; the problems you solve and the problems you create.
Key 6: If you insist in taking something God did not give you, He will take back something He gave you
God gave King David rulership over the 12 tribes of Israel, but not the pleasures of Bathsheba. Well, David wanted and insisted on the pleasures of Bathsheba so God took back 10 tribes from his descendants. God gave grandparents Adam and Eve the garden but they wanted the tree of knowledge, which He had not given them; so they had the tree and lost the garden. As believers, it is instructive to note that God has given us the income but not the tithe and offerings part of it. We must not insist on ‘eating’ the tithe (or zakat, for Muslims) alongside the income lest we lose the income and things become ‘tight’ for us. Get the pun?
Key 7: An uncommon seed will always create an uncommon harvest
A seed is anything that has value to its owner and has the capacity to grow into more of its type. God wanted a family so He planted Jesus at Calvary so as to enable Him harvest a world of little ‘Christs’. You will hardly come across any truly wealthy person who does not undertake philanthropy and other works of charity. This is not because they love ‘wasting’ their essence but rather because they are well aware of the Law of Seed and Harvest. It has worked for them – regardless of their colour, creed or sex – and they need no further prodding to do works of charity. Take a cue from this knowledgeable lot and see the principle of seed and harvest come to work for you when you truly and sacrificially give, especially to causes that would normally not be able to repay you.
