St. Arbucks Chapel – October 8, 2025
One of my favorite hymns, “God of Grace and God of Glory,” features the following lyrics that I love to sing and pray: “Grant us courage, grant us wisdom, for the living of these days.” Over the next few weeks or so I want to explore what the Psalms and Proverbs spend so much time teaching: Pray for Wisdom. The contention of the Psalmist, with which I agree adamantly, is that wisdom is a gift from God. We should pray for wisdom and learn from wise individuals. There is a critical difference between being a person with a high intelligence quotient and those who are known to be wise. Formal education can help a person gain information, but it is only God and life experience that can make us wise. Some people have very little formal education yet possess remarkable wisdom. Others have a lot of formal education and lack wisdom and common sense.
So, would you like to grow in wisdom?
- Pray for wisdom each day.
- Read a Proverb each day. There are 31 for a reason.
- Consider purchasing the following from wherever you get your books: “Words of Wisdom: A Life Changing Journey through Psalms and Proverbs,” compiled by George M. Wilson. “Words of Wisdom” will take you through 5 Psalms and 1 Proverb each day. The Psalms and Proverbs are both from the New Living Translation, which is very readable and easier to understand.
The foreword to “Words of Wisdom,” was written by Billy Graham. This is what he wrote,
“The late Senator Everett Dirksen of Illinois once told me that one could not help but draw great inspiration from the reading of the Psalms and the Proverbs. For many years, I have made it a practice to read five Psalms and a chapter of the Book of Proverbs each day, aside from my other Bible reading and study, and it has been a great blessing to me.
By reading five Psalms and one chapter of Proverbs daily, you will be able to read them through each month. The Psalms will tell you how to get along with God, and the Proverbs will tell you how to get along with your fellow humans. In Deuteronomy 6:5 we read, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul and with all thy might.” (KJV). In Leviticus 19:18 we read, “Don’t seek vengeance. Don’t bear a grudge, but love your neighbor as yourself, for I am Jehovah.” (The Living Bible). Both of these great affirmations are underlined in the Psalms and Proverbs.
In this book you have a wonderful treat in store. May God bless you as you begin to live in its pages.”
Billy Graham
As I close, Proverbs 3:13-14 says, “Joyful is the person who finds wisdom, and the one who gains understanding. For wisdom is more profitable than silver, and her wages are better than gold.”
Let’s grow in wisdom, together!