The Possibilities of Prudence

Last week I shared the first part of my thoughts and reflections on a nugget of wisdom I heard Reverend Touré Roberts share in a sermon. He shared three gifts God gives us in every new day; provision, prudence and progress. In this second part, I will unwrap the gift of prudence.

I won’t lie, the word “prudence” isn’t one I use in my everyday vocabulary. A few years ago, I used this word often, for the first time, only because we had a lady named Prudence on our staff team. When doing my digging around this topic of daily possibilities and gifts from God, I had to start with the basic definition of prudence, and this is what I found. “Prudence is the ability to govern and discipline oneself by the use of reason.” This really struck me because if prudence is a daily gift from God then to take this literally would mean that God gives me the ability to govern and discipline myself by the use of reason. In actually taking this literally the next natural question is, what reason is available for my use?

“These are the proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel, for gaining wisdom and discipline, for comprehending words of insight, and for receiving instruction in wise living and in righteousness, justice, and equity. To impart prudence to the simple and knowledge and discretion to the young.” ~ Proverbs 1:1-4 (emphasis added) Berean Study Bible

“The entrance of Your words gives light; It gives understanding to the simple.”

~ Psalm 119:130 (NKJV)

One thing I appreciate about the relationship we get to enjoy with God our Father is that we cannot separate Him from His Word. Everything we need to know about His character, we find in the pages of His words to us. His word also contains His promises and instructions to us for our daily lives. Then, if there is anywhere we are to look for ‘reason,’ with which to govern and discipline ourselves, it would be His Word.

I always joke to myself about having been young and stupid when I recall different situations from my past, especially ones from high school. Oh Lord, high school was the height of my youth-driven stupidity! Thank God for His mercy and sanctification. Anyway, I think no matter what age we are, we can still apply the notion of youthful folly when we look at situations or decisions made in days gone by. Whether it’s every year, five years or a decade, we all have areas in our lives we can point to, thankful to God for the growth and understanding we have traded in for our ignorance and inexperience.

If this is something we can agree on, then we can also agree that our Father’s determined daily outpouring of this prudence is a true testament of His heart towards us. The reality of this should propel us to constantly, all through our day, seek Him for prudence for the hours ahead. Why is this difficult sometimes? Why do we sometimes only go to God when things have already fallen apart and we have nowhere else to turn? The simple answer here is pride.

I’ve heard it said that pride is so prideful it won’t even tell you it is pride. This is so true. When I hear the word pride, I think of Satan’s attempt to place himself in the position to receive praise and honour which is only due to our God, a desire to become God. Thinking of it in this way alone makes it difficult for me to attribute my everyday behaviour to being prideful. But here’s the thing, when I step out into my day thinking that I somehow can do anything on my own, without God’s guidance, or help, that is me placing myself in a position which only God should have in my life. When I get on with everything I have to do in my day, without taking a moment to acknowledge that the reason I even have breath in my lungs is because of my God, I am somehow fooled into believing that I can be, without Him or that I even got out of bed all on my own. This stems from a prideful desire to be my own god. Whether I like to admit it or not. Unfortunately, when I posture myself in this position, I make it impossible for the flow of prudence to make its way from God’s heart to mine.

How do we counter this sneaky innate desire to run our own show, only turning to God when things appear to be falling out of our control? How do we ensure we set ourselves up to fully enjoy the benefits of the prudence God has for every one of our days? I think the answer can be found as we cultivate the habit of leaning on God. Picture yourself leaning on someone for support because without them you would topple over causing embarrassment and even injury to yourself. This is how we should lean on God. Yes, our physical body may be well able, but the truth remains, that if we do not lean on God for dear life, we will topple over, we will embarrass ourselves, and we will cause injury to ourselves and others. We need Him. In everything and in every way, we need God.

His gift of prudence is one of those packaged deals. You may experience it in many different ways, over time and as you grow closer to Him. In my personal experience, I believe this shows up in three main ways; direction, wisdom and grace.

Direction: The Lord as our Shepherd gives us such a beautiful picture of our Heavenly Father gently guiding our steps, keeping us on the path of His choosing, and all the while singing over us until the place He purposed ahead of time. What a privilege. It is quite sobering to think we ever find a reason to go a minute without actively seeking this out from God.

Wisdom: The Bible, in James, says, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.” Asking God for wisdom should be an integral part of our daily lives. Our day should be anchored by multiple occurrences where we stop to ask God for wisdom as we face that moment. He has promised to answer and He surely will.

Grace: God’s grace can be defined as the undeserved favour He gives to us His children. In this undeserved favour, there is an equipping to do what we otherwise would not be able to do. A power, that God makes available to us, to live this life and live it well, according to His Word. I put it this way because God’s grace helps us do everything. Whether it is cooking a meal for your family on a day when you feel like your brain has forgotten how to turn the stove on, or brokering the biggest deal of your career. God’s grace is available for us, to be applied to all areas of our life.

Can we say that prudence is now officially our new favourite word? Can you see areas in your life where you have been hindered by pride? Thankfully, a day is only 24 hours and when we’re off track, His mercy is available for us. I hope you will posture yourself to receive prudence from God each day, and that it will mark your life so beautifully. I hope that when others take notice of these marks, you will eagerly point them to your generous Heavenly Father who wants to mark their life too.