wisdom | itsawonderfilledlife

Posts Tagged ‘wisdom’

Irritated

Posted in GOD, life, Nature/Creation, WONDER, tagged #beautyfromirritation, #irritated, #pearlsareperfect, #pearlsofwisdom, wisdom on May 4, 2018| 3 Comments »

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I was feeling let down, disappointed, upset … irritated to my core.

The situation was irritating myself and those who I love most (who may or may not know what it was that was causing the irritation) … and it was that, the irritation of those I love, that was really getting under my skin. I was full of why questions, and tempted to pick up the phone and take matters into my own hands.

and then someone did a devotion on pearls.

Pearls are my most favourite precious gems. I have more (faux) pearls than any other gem, stone or metal. I love that they can be worn with everything from the most formal of gowns to a pair of jeans. I love their uniform uniqueness. I love the gentle way they catch ones eye.

To me, pearls are the perfect gem.

But, their beauty did not come easily.

According to the American Museum of Natural History “a pearl forms when an irritant such as a wayward food particle becomes trapped in the mollusk. The animal senses the object and coats it with layers of aragonite (“ah-RAG-uh-nite”) and conchiolin ( “KON-kee-uh-lin”). These two materials are the same substances the animal uses to build its shell.”

So, I guess we could say that the oyster gets something irritating under it’s ~~skin~~ shell, and, rather than just fuming about it, the oyster takes that irritant and focuses it’s energies on converting the irritant into something … less irritating (and more beautiful).

Beauty from irritation …

We like to think that our lives are “blessed” if we are healthy and happy. Yet wisdom does not come from a life experience of “easy street”, it comes from the hard stuff, the tough stuff … a life’s experiences with irritants. It is that which makes us uncomfortable, saddened and heartbroken that polishes our sharp edges, that makes us beautiful in wisdom.

“the price of wisdom is above pearls.”
Job 28:18

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A Wise Choice with Wise Words

Posted in WONDER, tagged ashton kutcher, being smart, hard work, live life, steve jobs movie, teen choice awards, wisdom, wise choice with wise words on August 16, 2013| Leave a Comment »

I have to say, I am not, nor ever have been, a celebrity follower. I feel that every word they say, every thing they do in public cannot be taken as reality for those of us observing and hearing, for (I feel) the media ‘creates’ them to be what the media chooses. My feeling is that the fishbowl that a celebrity lives in is an impossible one … and they are to be prayed for, not on.

The other night my daughter, knowing my views on celebrities, asked me to watch a video. It was a video from the Teen Choice Awards that were handed out on Sunday night. It was a video of the recipient of the Ultimate Choice Award winner, Ashton Kutcher.

I rolled my eyes.

She set up the video.

When I saw the the recipient was Ashton Kutcher (of Two and a Half Men fame … a female-degrading, inappropriate, finger-down-my-throat sort of TV program … just sayin’), I rolled my eyes again.

ashton-kutcher-teen-choice-awards

She adjusted the video to full screen, and upped the volume.

It started as I would have predicted, with ‘simple’ self-deprecating humor … I rolled my eyes.

Then, about 1:40 into the video, Mr. Kutcher’s words, and message became uncharacteristic for celebrities. His words, his message, seemed to ooze sincerity. He shares three things he learned up until he was nineteen and changed his name from Chris to Ashton:

1. opportunity

2. being sexy

3. living life

I am not sure if working on the Steve Jobs movie (opening today in theatres) has given Mr. Kutcher these epiphanies or if the depth of his character has been hiding in the shadows when the bright lights are shining on him. What I do know is that he presented a fantastic message to the group in society who needs most to be encouraged in this way.

After listening to his speech, I too would have to say he was a wise choice.

In case you missed it, or do not have the time to watch, here are the three things he shared”

1. “opportunity looks alot like hard work”

2. “the sexiest thing in the entire world is being really smart, and being thoughtful, and being generous. Everything else is crap … I promise you”

3. “build a life, don’t live one”

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A Father’s Teaching

Posted in WONDER, tagged Children, example, James 5:16, modeling, Parenting, Proverbs 4, rich teaching, wisdom on April 2, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Months ago, I was reading Proverbs 4, and I was struck by the rich teaching in that one chapter.

This weekend I viewed a video called, “When I Became a Man” and I thought the two went together so well.

Below you will find the video, followed by the passage from Proverbs.

May we, as parents (not just father to son, but simply parent to child) provide good teaching, good modeling, to our children of how to live. And if you or I have grown up with a parent who provided a poor example of what it is to become a man (or a woman), may we have the wisdom to know that we still have the choice, to live differently!

“Confess, pray and heal my heart.”
James 5:16

“Pick up the gospel,
and put the toys away!”

“4 O sons, hear the teaching of a father. Listen so you may get understanding. ²For I give you good teaching. Do not turn away from it. ³When I was a much loved and only son of my mother and father, ⁴he taught me, saying, “Hold my words close to your heart. Keep my teachings and live. ⁵Get wisdom and understanding. Do not forget or turn away from the words of my mouth. ⁶Do not leave her alone, and she will keep you safe. Love her, and she will watch over you. ⁷The beginning of wisdom is: Get wisdom! And with all you have gotten, get understanding. ⁸Honor her and she will honor you. She will honor you if you hold her to your heart. ⁹She will put on your head a crown of loving-favor and beauty.”

¹⁰Hear, my son, and receive my sayings, and the years of your life will be many. ¹¹I have taught you in the way of wisdom. I have led you on the right paths. ¹²When you walk, your steps will not be stopped. If you run, you will not trip. ¹³Take hold of teaching. Do not let go. Watch over her, for she is your life. ¹⁴Do not go on the path of the sinful. Do not walk in the way of bad men. ¹⁵Stay away from it. Do not pass by it. Turn from it, and pass on. ¹⁶For they cannot sleep unless they do wrong. They are robbed of sleep unless they make someone fall. ¹⁷For they eat the bread of sin, and drink the wine of wrong-doing. ¹⁸But the way of those who are right is like the early morning light. It shines brighter and brighter until the perfect day. ¹⁹The way of the sinful is like darkness. They do not know what they trip over.

²⁰My son, listen to my words. Turn your ear to my sayings. ²¹Do not let them leave your eyes. Keep them in the center of your heart. ²²For they are life to those who find them, and healing to their whole body. ²³Keep your heart pure for out of it are the important things of life. ²⁴Put false speaking away from you. Put bad talk far from you. ²⁵Let your eyes look straight in front of you, and keep looking at what is in front of you. ²⁶Watch the path of your feet, and all your ways will be sure. ²⁷Do not turn to the right or to the left. Turn your foot away from sin.”

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Wise Girls

Posted in GOD, life, The Kids, women, WONDER, tagged Boys, communication, Girls, GOD, Little Women, Purpose, sex, Teens, wisdom on August 24, 2012| 4 Comments »

A conversation a long while back still haunts me.

My daughter had the look of one who wanted to spill information that she knew, so we did some errands where we would be driving (nothing like the wheels of a vehicle moving to get a teenager to talk) a significant amount.

It took no time for the story to enfold.

She told me about her friend. Her friend, at the time, was a girl of just fourteen. She had a boyfriend. According to what my daughter said (because she is a question ‘asker’ and she had asked her friend what the two of them talk about together), her friend and the boyfriend didn’t spend much time talking, because there was not much for them to talk about to each other. The two had discussed the details (I guess they found a topic that they wanted to talk about), of when and where they would have sex for the first time. And so, when mom was out, and the house empty, they did IT.

The story does not end there. The next day the daughter asked her mother for oral birth control (I am not sure if she fessed up to mom about her recent sexual explorations). Her mother grounded her for two weeks.

So, now we have a young girl, who is dating a guy who she has nothing to talk about with, who is having sex, who is wise enough to know that birth control is a good idea, whose mother chooses to not only say no to, but, rather than sit down and have an exploratory conversation, grounds her. Yikes! It is the perfect storm of situations!

How is it that, in this day and age, a mother could be so uncommunicative with her daughter? How is it that, in this day and age, a girl could think that having sex with someone who she has nothing to talk about with (other than sex) is a good idea? I keep hearing the voice of the Virginia Slims cigarette ads saying “you’ve come a long way baby” and thinking … really? I keep thinking of the book by Laura Schlessinger “10 Stupid Things Women Do To Mess Up Their Lives” and thinking … will it ever end?

There is a line that I frequently quote to my daughters, that comes from the classic Louisa May Alcott book, Little Women, “I will not have my daughters being silly about boys.” Although they are fully human young women, I greatly desire that they grow up knowing that their value is not in temporary pursuits (and especially when it comes to young men), but in who God has created them to be, and the purpose and intent He has for their lives, apart from romantic or sexual relationships. They are, indeed, sexual beings, but oh, they are so much more! I truly believe that they must seek God’s best for them, as individuals, before they begin down the path of life with another person, and their life’s direction.

It is with fear and trepidation that I co-parent these two precious ladies … fear and trepidation that brings me to my knees! And that is a good place to be.

While on my knees I pray for openness of communication, and for wisdom to help them grow to be wise.

“I want my daughters to be beautiful, accomplished, and good.
To be admired, loved, and respected.
To have a happy youth, to be well and wisely married,
and to lead useful, pleasant lives,
with as little care and sorrow to try them as God sees fit to send.”
Little Women

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