At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon during the night in a dream, and God said, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.”

Solomon answered, “You have shown great kindness to your servant, my father David, because he was faithful to you and righteous and upright in heart.  You have continued this great kindness to him and have given him a son to sit on his throne this very day.

Now, Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David.  But I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties.  Your servant is here among the people you have chosen, a great people, too numerous to count or number. So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?

The Lord was pleased that Solomon had had asked for this.  So God said to him, “Since you have asked for this and not for long life or wealth for yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies but for discernment in administering justice, I will do what you have asked.  I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be.  Moreover, I will give you what you have not asked for-both wealth and honor-so that in your lifetime you will have no equal among kings. And if you walk in obedience to me and keep my decrees and commands as your father David did, I will give you a long life.”  1 Kings 3:5-14 NIV

This story is such an awesome lesson for us.  I love the fact that when God told Solomon that he would give him anything he asked for, Solomon asked for wisdom.  We always hear the story of the magic lamp where a genie pops out and  someone asks to be rich or for revenge against their enemies.  These are stories and we all dream of finding that magic lamp or having our wishes granted, but Solomon actually had God come to him in a dream and tell him that He would give him whatever he asked for.  How awesome is that?

Solomon asked for wisdom.  Solomon describes himself as a little child.  Research suggests that he was probably in his early 20’s.  Asking God for wisdom shows humility.  Solomon was not cocky when he became king.  He knew that this was from God and he knew that he needed wisdom from God to rule God’s chosen people. He didn’t ask God to make him wealthy, he asked God to make him wise.

So what is it that you ask God for?  I’m sure that many of us pray for other people.  I pray for healing for those who are sick, comfort for those who have lost loved ones.  I pray for my friends  to have wisdom and discernment in some situations that they face.  I have learned that I need to pray to God for wisdom and discernment for myself.  Discernment is making wise choices.

God doesn’t want us to walk around like a bunch of idiots making horrible choices.  However, He is not going to force us to be wise.  This is where that  pesky free will comes into play.  We can choose to be wise and  make wise choices or we can choose to be idiots.  Now God clearly tells Solomon that He will give him such wisdom that there will never be anyone like him before or after his reign.  Solomon is the wisest man to have ever walked this earth.  In James 4:2 the Bible tells us that we do not have because we do not ask God.  If we want to be wise, we have to ask God to give us wisdom.

We need wisdom to get through our every day life.  We need to take care of the things that God has given us.  We need to be wise in managing our finances.  We need to make wise choices in choosing friends and especially spouses.  We need wisdom to get us through this life.

Now, I don’t know about you, but I know that without God I am not so smart.  If I relied on my own wisdom I would be in a world of trouble.  I need God’s wisdom to get me through the day.

The beautiful thing about this story is that God was so pleased that Solomon asked for wisdom that he also granted him wealth and honor.  So Solomon asked for wisdom and got a very nice bonus.

If your life seems to be upside down because of poor choices that you have made, turn to God.  It’s not too late.  Ask for God’s guidance and wisdom.  Ask him to give you discernment.

The best place to start at cleaning up the mess you have made is with establishing a close relationship with your Lord and Savior.  Nothing is impossible for God.  No matter how big a mess you have made, he can help you clean it up.

My prayer for you today is that God will grant you wisdom and discernment.  Trust in God to provide wisdom for you today.

Have a great day!