What Did I Pray for That Began to Turn My Financial “Titanic”?

This blog is written for those who desire to be debt free and financially sound.  I’m one of those people too.  And if you’re like me, perhaps you’ve been working at this thing for a while and perhaps you’ve tried a lot of things.  I don’t know about you but I’ve done some pretty unusual things to try to generate money and pay off debt.  I’ve done everything from network marketing to selling vacuum cleaners to taking on extra patients, just to name a few.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad that I’ve done most of those things.  All of them taught me something of value that I have taken forward. 

 

As I look back there is one thing that began to turn my financial Titantic.  It wasn’t a job or financial pep rally or the passing of a rich uncle, but rather something that began to work on my thinking.  It was much more foundational than employing an envelope system to track my cash or purchase a software program to help me account for my money.  It was the incorporation of 13 basic principles into my life and thinking which I later shared with others through my book, 12 Pillars and a Prayer.  Once I began to practice these principles in my life and finances, I noticed something.  I stopped praying for the big check and starting praying for something else…something that has impacted far more than just my checkbook.  What did I pray for?  One simple thing:  wisdom!

 

Now I wasn’t the first to pray for such things.  Centuries ago a man named Solomon was challenged to ask for anything, that is, anything and it would be given to him.  He chose to ask for wisdom too.  Granted, anybody with 700 wives and 1000 concubines would do well to ask for wisdom, but the big story here is that he became an extremely wealthy man.  That is to say, his financial statement was insanely skewed in the direction of riches!  So much so that even the rich people were blown away by his enormous estate (see Queen of Sheba in your concordance). 

 

So what does a man like this have to tell us about his wealth?  A lot actually.  He was the Donald Trump of the day and he knew the secret of his success.  Throughout the book of Proverbs, otherwise known as the book of Wisdom, Solomon discusses his wealth.  Like a late night infomercial, Solomon discusses the virtues of his success in Chapter 8 of Proverbs. Here are a few nuggets from that chapter:

 

Does not wisdom cry out

And understanding lift up her voice?...

Receive my instruction, and not silver,

And knowledge rather than choice gold;

For wisdom is better than rubies,

And all the things one may desire cannot be compared with her…

Riches and honor are with me,

Enduring riches and righteousness…

My fruit is better than gold, yes, than fine gold,

And my revenue than choice silver…

That I may cause those who love me to inherit wealth,

That I may fill their treasuries.

 

Wisdom.  Its value eclipses that of gold, is worth more than silver and trumps the value of rubies.  Nothing compares to having wisdom.  Its value includes both longevity and integrity.  Those who love wisdom are destined for wealth and coffers that are running over.  Sounds like a pretty sweet deal, huh?  Even the witless can wrap their cerebral processes around this concept that wisdom and wealth are joined at the hip!

 

But how does one obtain wisdom?  This is not an easy question to answer.  Next month I’m going to share some ideas taken from scripture, shake it together with life stories and answer the question.  It is key to wealth, both generating and managing it.  So until then, my prayer is always that you prosper and be in good health, even as your soul prospers…