There’s a shipwreck.
Three survivors end up on an island together.
They find food.
They build shelters.

But it’s not enough. Life is a struggle. They want to be back in their homes with their families and friends.

Then one day a crate washes up on shore.

They crack it open, and it’s just filled with junk.
Okay, not junk, but old items. Nothing useful.

But they had a lot of time on their hands, so they spent it fixing things up, removing dents, and polishing metal. And as one of the survivors polished a lamp, there was a noise, and smoke, and a genie appeared.

Yeah, it’s one of those stories.

The Genie grants three wishes: one for each survivor.

So the first survivor says “I wish I was back with my family – my spouse and kids.”
And then there are two survivors.

The second survivor says “I wish I was back at my church with all the people I know and love.”
And then there is one survivor.

The last one looks around at what the three of them built together,
and with a feeling of loneliness, isolation, and grief, cries out

“I miss those guys! I wish they were back here!”

Let’s go to God in prayer.
God of wisdom, may the words that I speak, and the ways they are received by each of our hearts and minds, help us to continue to grow into the people, and the church, that you have dreamed us to be.
Amen.

People dream of winning the lottery. And there are many stories of lottery winners going bankrupt.

People dream of fame. And there are many stories of famous people with anxiety, depression, and addiction.

People dream of power. And there are many stories of powerful people being brought down to earth and humbled.

How can people get what they want, and still have such negative outcomes?

Maybe we’re dreaming of the wrong things.

In our reading from the first book of Kings, Solomon doesn’t ask for prosperity, popularity, or power. He asks for discernment and wisdom. He asks to be able to tell right from wrong.

As king, power would allow Solomon to define what is right and wrong. He could be above the law, above morality, and no one could challenge him. But instead he wants a broader sense of right and wrong, a higher standard than his own.

Imagine a lottery winner with the wisdom to use the winnings in ways that are good and right.

Imagine a famous person with the wisdom to influence people to do better.

Imagine a powerful person with the wisdom to exert that power in ways that uplift people.

Imagine a castaway with the wisdom to recognize that the others may not want to be back on the island.

So what if you had one wish? Just one wish? No magic lamp, no monkey paw, just a wish. A hope. A prayer.

You probably couldn’t do better than to ask for wisdom.

If we ask for more of anything else we may not have the wisdom to use those resources in responsible ways. But wisdom helps us to use what we already have.

Regarding our readings today, I want to emphasize what they are and what they aren’t.

They’re not part of the New Testament – the writings that fourth century Christian leaders thought were important.

They’re part of the Hebrew scriptures that are chosen within Judaism.

The Hebrew scriptures are divided into three types of scrolls:
One is the Torah, or the Law, which is the first five books of the Christian version,
Another is the Nevi’im, or Prophets,

When Jesus says, regarding loving God and loving Neighbor, that on these rest the law and the prophets, these are the scrolls to which Jesus is referring.

The third section is the Ketuvim, or writings. The Ketuvim do not have instructional authority of the Torah, nor the prophetic authority of the Nevi’im. They’re considered important in other, perhaps more practical ways.

Some of these scrolls tell stories, like those in Kings an Chronicles. That’s what our first reading was today. Many of these stories are to show us good and poor choices by people and what the consequences were.

Other scrolls record sayings that may be important, like Psalms, the Wisdom of Solomon, or Ecclesiastes. Or Proverbs, from which we get our other reading today:

¹Wisdom has built her house; she has hewn her seven pillars.
²She has slaughtered her animals; she has mixed her wine; she has also set her table.
³She has sent out her female servants; she calls from the highest places in the town,
⁴“You who are simple, turn in here!” To those without sense she says,
⁵“Come, eat of my bread and drink of the wine I have mixed.
⁶Lay aside immaturity and live, and walk in the way of insight.”

Proverbs 9:1-6, NRSV

Wisdom calls to all.

I’m not saying everyone can be a brilliant mathematician, or rocket scientist, or marine biologist.

But the kind of wisdom that guides us to what is good and away from what is harmful, the kind of wisdom that leads us to better choices, the kind of wisdom that helps us do better with what we have, that kind of wisdom is available to us.

So my challenge to us this week is to see where our priorities lie:
do we want more resources with which to do things,
or do we want wisdom to do more with the resources we have.

May God grant us wisdom and grant us courage.

Amen.

• Scripture quotations are taken from the New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. https://www.friendshippress.org/pages/about-the-nrsvue