Today’s scripture: Proverbs 8:22-31 (NRSV) (The Message) (KJV) What might God be saying to me?
My thoughts (Keith Phillips):
As I write this, it’s a beautiful spring day, even though winter doesn’t actually end for another week. The sky is clear, and the sun’s rays are warm. It’s in the middle 70s, and I have shorts on for the first time in months. As I walked my dog, we saw lots of differently colored crocuses (croci?) and even a few daffodils; they’re yellow, you know. Spring, from my perspective, is God’s re-creation after winter’s long sleep. And I delight in it.
In this section of Proverbs, Wisdom, that feminine aspect of God [Sophia], recounts how she was with God at the first creation. Interestingly, she begins by affirming her pre-existence before creation: “God sovereignly made me — the first, the basic — before [God] did anything else. I was brought into being a long time ago, well before Earth got its start” (vv. 22f; The Message). Then, in a marvelously poetic way, Wisdom describes the process as God created our world, very similar to Genesis 1 and even like some of God’s long monologue in Job.
But the best part of all is how Wisdom concludes this account of creation: “Day after day I was there, with my joyful applause, always enjoying [God’s] company, delighted with the world of things and creatures, happily celebrating the human family” (vv 30f). I can envision Wisdom either like a giddy school girl clapping gleefully as God creates the unique, even funny parts of creation, or like an elegant sophia/sticated lady applauding with pleasure at the aesthetic beauty of it all. Then humanity bursts forth on the scene, and God with Wisdom explodes in delightful celebration.
The world which God created and in which I live is just so awesome! And the re-creation in springtime renews that awe and delight in me. But there’s another re-creation that delights God as well.
In the Following Jesus: Discipleship 101 class which I presently facilitate, we emphasize that being a disciple of Jesus is far more than believing certain theological assertions; it’s spending quality time with Jesus in order to become more like him. A couple of weeks ago we talked about prayer, and we shared prayer requests. This is not my favorite session because too many prayer requests are about Aunt Tilly’s ingrain toenail, or a friend’s addiction, or LGBTQ issues in East Africa. Now, that is important stuff, but the things that God together with us can change most effectively are things within us. Without any prompting from me, all who were present for that session requested that we pray for some aspect of their lives that would help them become more like Jesus, that would re-create them as their best selves. God and I were delighted.
Thought for today: God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the Wisdom to know the difference.
We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the suggestions on the How to Pray page.