Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house upon the rock; and the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.
-Matthew 7:24-25
Dear members and friends,
One thing that deeply surprised me after coming to the U.S. was the fact that nearly everyone talks about their hopes and dreams and nearly all children seem to have a dream. This was surprising to me because I never had such a dream! Instead, I had a goal to achieve in my life, if possible, which was to become a wise person. At first, I thought that being wise had to do with having high intelligence and vast knowledge. Thus, I devoted myself to cultivating my intelligence and reading as many books as possible. In a way, I felt like I was becoming wiser in these efforts until the time came when I realized I was not. Instead, knowing much more than others was not making me wise at all!
In English, the word “wise” is defined as “having or showing experience, knowledge, and good judgment.” In Chinese, wise person is written as 賢人, which means “caring (賢)” + “person (人).” Interestingly, both the East and West indicate in their languages that being wise has very little to do with having high intelligence or vast knowledge. Rather, being wise seems to describe an inner quality of a person who is either capable of having experienced judgment or a caring heart, or ideally both. This is precisely what Jesus teaches about wisdom in Matthew 7. After all, being wise means different things depending on the situation, time, and place. However, one strong common denominator seems to be that a wise person is present and mindful of the task at hand, contemplating a proper and practical way to conduct it.
My brothers and sisters in God, let us take a moment of meditation this week. Let us reflect on what is in our minds, and have a discerning moment. May the Creator be present in your endeavor and bless you with wisdom.
Blessings, Rev. Junchol Lee