Wisdom involves the knowledge that you are not in charge of your own life. Only God has the right to set the direction and purpose of our lives. Flowing from this should be a preparedness to honour and submit to those God uses to direct us. In this chapter of Ecclesiastes, Solomon speaks about honouring the king, but we could apply this to whoever God puts over us at any point in our life. Whoever is over our life, God will use to teach us, even if it be the most corrupt person in the world. There is more to be gained in humility and respect for even the most imperfect person than there is in disregard and disrespect. These things will never bring us gain, they will only undermine the good character that God is working to create within us. In God’s providence he will allow certain people into your life at certain times, and how you respond, particularly to those in authority over you, will be the key to your growth. We might object to respecting the authority of an imperfect person let alone gaining any wisdom or knowledge from them. But isn’t everyone imperfect? We’d better get used to receiving from imperfect people because there simply are no perfect people. Don’t focus on your entitlements but on your character. The most important thing is not that you always get things the way you want, but that you grow. And growth requires tension and challenges.
Reflect on who it is that God may be calling you to respect and honour.
Read Ecclesiastes 8:1-8
