Knowing what to do…with wisdom

A week of worldwide fasting and prayer for the US began April 30th and will continue through May 6th. This fast was not called by Americans. Australian believers have sent out this alarm.

Because of that, I am recycling several blog entries I wrote last year. At that time, God prompted me to shift my focus as I prayed for the nation. In short, I believe God showed me these four things for which to pray:

• Pray for people to know what to do.
• Pray for people to receive wisdom along with their knowledge.
• Pray for those people to receive the boldness to step out in what they know to do.
• Pray for those people to be filled with boldness to carry out their tasks to completion.

Originally posted last year (fifth in series):

Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding. Proverbs 4:7, KJV

Pray for people to know what to do. This is what I sensed in my heart in early April. The Lord showed me that He had been revealing insight, truth, and all kinds of information—damning stuff which had been purposely hidden by various individuals—and now was the time for people to know what to do with all of it.

Since we live in times in which knowledge is increasing exponentially (see Daniel 12:4), what the Lord told me—Pray for people to know what to do—makes sense with all the information coming at all of us from every direction. An overabundance of disclosures, revelations, and information can be overwhelming; if individuals aren’t careful, the very glut of data coming in can have two opposite but equally disastrous results: On one hand, the sheer excess of information can actually squeeze those who are supposed to do something about it into inaction. On the other hand, the flood of information can trigger other individuals into impulsive, rash, and ill-advised decisions and behaviors, creating a wake of calamity.

Pray for people to know what to do. History is a wonderful tutor; common sense is worth its weight in gold; but none of us have passed this way before, and we—as a nation and as a world—are finding ourselves in uncharted territory and shark-infested waters. People—those in authority and everyone else—flat-out need to know what to do. Therefore, as you pray for people to know what to do, also cry out for an additional ingredient—wisdom.

Wisdom is the principal thing (Proverbs 4:7, KJV). There is no one in authority, no one in the news, no one who makes key decisions who does not desperately need wisdom in this hour. Some may think they have it all together, but such thinking is not the mindset of wisdom, and therefore, they need wisdom all the more.

As you pray for those in authority, those who are making headlines, those whose decisions affect hundreds, thousands, millions, and billions of lives, ask for God to show them what to do in accordance with true wisdom. Ask boldly, confident that your God watches over His Word to perform it (see Jeremiah 1:12), and stand your ground on behalf of these leaders, movers, and shakers to receive His wisdom and to act on it.

“The beginning of wisdom is: Acquire wisdom; and with all your acquiring, get understanding” (Proverbs 4:7, NASB). Although the men and women in seats of decision-making across the nation and around the globe possess certain attributes, talents, and capacities that helped them to attain those positions, unfortunately, God’s wisdom is not something that many of them consciously hunger for. Therefore, it is imperative that you and I go to bat on their behalf to cry out for wisdom to overtake them—and for them to act accordingly.

Just as it is God’s will for none to perish (see 2 Peter 3:9), it is also His will for leaders and decision-makers to seek Him for wisdom. However, whether or not they do so, it is the job of believing people to pray to that end—that the wisdom of God would operate upon and through those who are in authority.

Does your leader appear to be deficient in wisdom? Pray for him to receive it, even if it seems that he is defiant to godly wisdom. Remember, it is written, “The king’s heart is like channels of water in the hand of the LORD (Proverbs 21:1a); not “The Lord is manipulated by the hand and the whim of the king.” God knows how to bring wisdom to even the most reluctant leader. But first, He requires believing humans to ask for it.

God’s wisdom will bring with it good fruit. First of all, He will show people what to do in their areas of authority and expertise. He will lead them step by step, and as they yield, His purposes shall be accomplished. Also, as those for whom you pray yield to wisdom from God, He will bring them to a clearer knowledge of right and wrong in general, and more specifically, the need to deal with their own areas of sin and wrongdoing, prompting a turning to God. This is the stuff of revival.

What if a decision-maker refuses to yield to wisdom from God after much prayer on his or her behalf? The Bible is full of examples of such leaders and rulers; God suffered long with many of them, but in the end, those who persisted in resistance were—after all—held accountable and overturned, deposed, or met with an unpleasant end. When you pray for leaders, remember that they will ultimately answer to the King of kings for their decisions; therefore, persist in prayer on their behalf for wisdom, for the will of God to be performed, and for their eyes to open to the truth so they can be saved.

Pray for people to know what to do; and ask God to grant them wisdom in their knowing.

Dorothy

Proverbs 4:7 in several translations:

The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding. NIV

Wisdom is supreme—so get wisdom. And whatever else you get, get understanding. Holman Christian Standard Bible

Wisdom is of utmost importance, therefore get wisdom, and with all your effort work to acquire understanding. International Standard Version

Above all and before all, do this: Get Wisdom! Write this at the top of your list: Get Understanding! Message Bible

Wisdom is supreme. Get wisdom. Yes, though it costs all your possessions, get understanding. World English Bible