In life, all good things come hard, but wisdom is the hardest to come by.
One of the things I learned the hard way was that it doesn’t play to get discouraged.
Lucille Ball (1911-1989) persevered through a quiet film career in the 1930s and 1940s. Television would be her gateway to stardom with her memorable sitcom “I Love Lucy.” This comedic actress earned five Emmy Awards for her television work.
Holy Father guides
Lives grow in maturity—
Walk in His wisdom
Tempting distractions
Persevere, lasting faith built—
Upon Bread of Life
Honor blessed God
Heavenly music singing—
In tune with His will
Life’s journey fills with mistakes
Wisdom’s guardrails prevent headaches
Working together as a team
Life’s active, productive sunbeam
Be available to others
Treat everyone as brothers
Come prepared for each assignment
Results in flawless alignment
Apologize for day’s misdeeds
Forgiveness sowing fertile seeds
Keep secrets to self, follow scripts
Remember now, loose lips sink ships
Checking answers, rechecking twice
Turn over each stone, good advice
Patiently molding shapeless clay
Details finished, now walk away
Stay together, through thick ‘n thin
Tight as a fist, faithful linchpin
Taking charge, bold skipper steering
Encouraging words now cheering
Sometimes, life’s outcomes say we’re wrong
Solving mistakes, newest hit song
This poem’s wisdom was gleamed from Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs on the American television drama, “NCIS.” Throughout the nearly endless episodes, Mark Harmon’s character shares his timely wisdom from “Gibbs’ Rules.”
From James 4:6: “But He gives all the more grace; therefore it says, ‘God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.'”
Our Creator’s divine plan
Offers fullest, living grace
Giving patience, just in case
When running life’s anxious race
Our Lord shares forgiveness
Relationships need healing
Forgiving sin, just in case
When each day seems freewheeling
Heaven’s Father, sharing peace
Imperfect lives needing change
Trimming each branch, just in case
When roaming lost on God’s range
God shares His timely wisdom
From Heaven, He sees us fall
Touching our hand, just in case
When we need His hope-filled call
From John 15:1-2: “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower. He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit He prunes to make it bear more fruit.”
Genius is nothing more than a greater aptitude for patience.
From 1 Thessalonians 5:14: “And we urge you, beloved, to admonish the idlers, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with all of them.”
Who is wise? He that learns from everyone.
Remember not only to say the right thing in the right place, but far more difficult still, to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment.
Much of Franklin’s wisdom was shared in his published pamphlet, “Poor Richard’s Almanack,” which appeared continually from 1732 to 1758. He adopted the pseudonym of “Poor Richard” or “Richard Saunders” as the publisher and author.
From Psalm 118:1: “O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His steadfast love endures forever!”
Rejoice and be glad in our God
His steadfast love endures forever
Giving thanks and praise to the Lord
His goodness shall reign forever
In our distress, God hears each cry
Without fear, we follow His way
His Peace driving away our fears
His Mercy filling up our hearts
His voice calls us to His refuge
Our confidence rests with the Lord
His Word comforting our sorrows
His Love healing our many wounds
From Psalm 118:24: “This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.”
His Holy Son, our cornerstone
Salvation arrives at the Cross
His Grace delivering His love
His righteousness covering sins
God, the Father, blessing Spirit
Through His beloved Son, Jesus
His Wisdom showing us the way
His Manna feeding hungry souls
God’s infinite strength, our fixed Rock
All foes challenging us . . . vanquished!
Rejoice and be glad in our Lord
His steadfast love endures forever
From Psalm 118:29: “O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, for His steadfast love endures forever.”
In wisdom gathered over time, I have found that every experience is a form of exploration.
It is horrifying that we have to fight our own government to save the environment.
An elderly man steadily works in his backyard, raking up some of autumn’s harvest of red maple leaves. The quiet, afternoon air is punctuated by angry and upset mumbling coming from the neighbor’s yard.
Walking over to the fence, the former teacher listens while a much younger man unsuccessfully tries to start up his lawn mower. The neighbor, in his late twenties, has been facing extra pressure and longer hours at the small business he operates.
Pausing and then sending some words of encouragement over the fence, the quiet man offers some advice, “Does the mower need a new spark plug?”
A quick reply comes back, “I never thought of that.”
The conversation continues back and forth for a few minutes. The young man confesses his frustration at work has brought a heavy burden on him as well as his family. He is married with a young daughter.
The wise neighbor adds some gems of wisdom before they both go back to their separate chores, “Hang in there. God’s using these difficult days to prepare you for a more successful tomorrow. He’s equipping you with tools which will help you to bear fruit.”
The young man replies back, “Thanks. I appreciate your advice as well as your testament from the Lord.”
With the rake in his hand, the elderly man prepares to step away from the fence, but he returns and offers a prayer for the young man, “God, grant Tim the serenity to accept the things he cannot change, the courage to change the things he can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”
Both men say their final words, and return to their respective yard work.
As the retired teacher continues to rake more of the stubborn leaves into a series of small piles, he hears the lawn mower start up with a roar. Obviously, the young man has changed the mower’s spark plug, and it is now running as it should.
At the same time, Tim feels the spark of God’s Word bringing him patience and encouragement for today as well as for tomorrow.
From 2 Peter 1:5-7: “For this very reason, you must make every effort to support your faith with goodness, and goodness with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with endurance, and endurance with godliness, and godliness with mutual affection, and mutual affection with love.”
From Proverbs 2:2: “Making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding.”
Pursuing God’s Holy truth
His hand keeps life’s fires burning
Fear and respect the Father
His desires always churning
Guarding life’s path of justice
His knowledge opens our minds
Preserve lasting faith and hope
God’s persistence always binds
Seeking God’s honest insight
His love preserving our hope
Witness both past and future
His view from stars’ telescope
Offering life a fresh look
His mercy brings a new day
Hear God’s blessed instructions
His dominion lights our way
Accepting God’s sacred Word
His wisdom enriching lives
Treasure Holy commandments
His teaching forever thrives
From the words of American pastor and Christian author, Charles Swindoll: “The thing we have to do in our walk with God is to listen carefully from day to day.”
Big Sky Buckeye 