Answer That Call

Proverbs 8
1 Does not wisdom call,
And understanding lift up her voice?

I have a secret: If someone calls me and I don’t recognize the number, then I don’t answer it. Ok, I know in this age of tabloid scandal that’s a pretty lame secret, but work with me. I have a contact list setup on my phone, so if someone on my contact list calls me, it shows their name, I answer. Done. But what happens when someone calls from a new number? What if someone I know and want to talk to calls from a number I don’t recognize? Do I recognize when wisdom calls, or when God calls?

Something I’ve noticed in my walk with God is that he rarely yells. At least in my experience, but your mileage may vary. When he speaks or when he calls, it’s not loud and boisterous, it quiet and intimate. Those moments where God shows up in thunder, smoke, and lightening, and the angel chorus of heaven lets out a loud rendition of the hallelujah chorus, in my life, rarely if ever happen. Maybe that speaks more of me than God, but I think most folk’s experience is the same. Ask more than a few folks and they’d probably agree: God whispers. As a side note, I think he has to whisper to keep from killing us with the full force of his voice or scaring us to death. Seriously. That voice is the sound that caused everything to come in existence. I don’t think I could handle hearing it full blast. Moving on.

What does wisdom sound like when it calls? The verses in the rest of this chapter describe wisdom calling out. Is it loud, or does it come in unexpected ways: an unknown number, if you will? This verse and the whole book of Proverbs says wisdom is calling out, but if I don’t hear it, maybe I’ve got the TV or the Radio turned up too much and I’m drowning it out. Maybe I’m too engrossed in work, or play, and don’t see wisdom at the city gate calling to me. Maybe I don’t recognize it for what it is, and like me not answering my phone, I don’t give it a chance to impact me and make me better. Maybe it comes in the form of an ant, toiling away storing up food, but I’m too busy stepping on them or spraying them with insecticide. Lord, help me to watch close, consider my ways, turn down the noise, and help me hear when you and wisdom call out to me. Give me a call; I’ll answer this time.