Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley | Pleasant Hill Missionary Baptist 8o Year...

Discovering Nuggets of Wisdom for the New Year!

“I want those already wise to become the wiser and become leaders by exploring the depths of meaning in these nuggets of truth.” Proverbs 1:5, 6 TLB

Lady Wisdom asks, “How deeply are you thinking?”

How do we move from a position of observer in life to leader? There has to be a change in our thinking. We have to move from the surface of things into a deeper, soul searching place in our spirit. We need to go to the secret place of the spirit where Lady Wisdom resides. There nuggets of truth can be found and interpreted to bring about meaningful action.

A new year calls for new ideas and expressions of hope and faith. How we address the changes in our lives determine our success. Each action generates a reaction. My hope for this season in my journey and my desire is to encourage and uplift others. I declare that wisdom will be present in the words that I send out to the world. There is power in voice. Words carry power because they are seeds. They can be seeds of hope or seeds of discouragement. I choose to bless others now with my words.

Meditating the Word

Psalm 119:11 states, “Thy word have I hide in my heart so that I may not sin against thee.” Also Psalm 1:2 states, “But his delight is in the law of the LORD and in his law doth he meditate day and night.” To meditate the Bible the word of God, Robert J. Morgan gives some great strategies for biblical meditation. In his book entitled, Biblical Meditation, he gives a plan based on biblical meditation: pondering, personalizing and practicing God’s word. In a quiet place away from the distractions and interruptions this exercise should be done.

While meditating on the words of Lady Wisdom, I found the need to add 2 additional strategies or “P’s” to the meditation, prayer and praise. We pray to God and ask Him to guide us through the scriptures. Next, we read and ponder the word. Personalize the meaning as we interpret what the word is saying to us. Then we practice the word and determine how we will fulfill it in our daily life. Finally, we praise God for activating his word in our spirit and in our minds. We now have the 5 “P’s” which are pray, ponder, personalize, practice and praise.

Pray:

As we seek God’s will for our lives through His word, we must pray and ask Him to reveal Himself to us. We want Holy Spirit to illuminate the word before us. We desire a spirit to spirit connection. The bible tells us in 1 Corinthians 2:16 that we have the mind of Christ and know the plan, purpose and perspective of Christ. James 1:5 states that if we lack wisdom we can ask God and He will give it to us. Therefore, we can understand the plan of God for our lives.

Ponder:

 To ponder requires that we read the passage of scripture aloud. Imagine the Lord is talking to you in a personal way. Focus on each word and pay attention to the meaning and desire to understand what the passage is saying.

Personalize:

Think about what the scripture means to you. Read it thoughtfully considering what does this mean to me for my body, mind, soul and spirit. Think of this as a personal reflection letting the Holy Spirit speak to your heart. If the Holy Spirit was sitting next to you what verse, phrase, word, truth command or promise would affect you the most?

Practice:

Write down that verse, phrase, word, truth, command or promise and think about it throughout the day. When you have quiet times during the day, think about the word, that is mediate it. Think about it all day when you shower, driving the car, walking up steps, working at the desk, daydreaming in a chair. Most of all think about it when you are going to sleep. You can also share it with a friend or someone who may need a good word for the day. You can share it on your social media platform like Facebook. Finally, put it into practice by being obedient to what the word of God says for you to do. Practice it.

Praise:

When we do the will of God, we must do it with joy. The joy of the Lord will strengthen us to follow through with what the Lord has commanded us to do. It would not become a chore or a burden but rather with praise and thanksgiving, we can walk out our promises with expectation that God will answer our prayers and help us to become more like Him.

Write the Vision

 Writing your thoughts in the devotional/journal is highly recommended. It is important to journal what the Lord has revealed to you. As you write the words down, it then becomes a part of your thought process. You are able to retrieve the word and regain possession of the promise. This process will enable you to follow the plan with more accuracy and help you to bring fidelity to the series of steps in order for you to reach a positive result.