Pray for Practical Wisdom James 1: 5 CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO

We pray for many things.  When we are working for the Lord, we are to pray for wisdom in addition to the other things for which we pray.  We need practical wisdom to accomplish the work God has given us to do.  With practical wisdom:

You work smarter, not harder – Ecc 10:10 – don’t jump into the job without praying first.  Praying for wisdom first, will allow you to work smarter.  Pastor Keck said, “I have found that I get more done through prayer than through action.”  For instance, after prayer, wisdom directs you to take time first to sharpen the ax.  Initially, it would seem that you are taking time away from completing your task by adding sharpening to the chore.  However, the sharper ax allows you to conserve strength for the next chore.  And you will likely finish the job sooner by first sharpening the ax than you would by trying to cut with a dull ax.  You get more done with wisdom than you do with mere strength.

You work within the Lord’s provision – Prov 8:10-11 – much of what we do for the Lord takes money.  Usually, a person budgets for a particular task the Lord wants him to do.  Then he tries to raise the money to do it.  He’ll write supporters, pressure church members, solicit friends, borrow money or use similar means to get the money.  However, he’d be better off to pray first and ask the Lord to give him the wisdom to work within the Lord’s provision.  He will find that the Lord will provide what’s needed so that he can do the task.  This may be very different than what he budgeted or anticipated. 

You work within the Lord’s timing – Jas 1:3-5; 1 Chr 12:32 – we must have the wisdom and patience to wait on the Lord’s timing.  We can’t assume that because the Lord directed us one way on one certain occasion, that he will direct us the same way on another [2 Sam 5:17-25].  The Lord’s timing is critical to the success of his will.  It takes wisdom to understand the timing.

You work with little and accomplish a lot – Ecc 9:13-18 – in this passage, a little city with few men is besieged by a great king with a large army.  Certainly, it would appear that the little city needed an ally stronger than the attacking army to defend itself.  Yet, the little city was delivered, instead, by the wisdom of a poor wise man.  When you pray for wisdom you often find that the Lord shows you how to accomplish what he wants in a way that other men couldn’t even imagine.  Jesus, for instance, was just one poor man.  Nevertheless, he accomplished the work of redemption for the entire world.  With wisdom, you are not stopped before you ever get started.  

Conclusion: when you pray for wisdom, then work with the wisdom you are given [Ecc 10:1-3].  It is foolish to neglect to pray for the wisdom of God.  Likewise, it is foolish to forsake the wisdom of God.