Fear of the LordSample

Crying out to God

Now we will discuss the next part of Solomon's process to grow in the fear of the Lord. Solomon continues his unravelling of this process by adding another "and" in verse 3. 

1 My son, if you accept my words

and store up my commands within you,

2 turning your ear to wisdom

and applying your heart to understanding—

3 indeed, if you call out for insight

and cry aloud for understanding,

What do you think of when you hear the part of the verse that says "crying aloud"? Some of you may think of physical or emotional pain. Others may think of the feelings of misery or anguish. Here, I believe it is sincerely crying out in desperation for the fear of God and the wisdom he can offer us. It's not just asking God, "Can you please do this for me?" It is pleading with your heart and soul for God to hear your prayers and give you something. Many times, crying out can be in the unfolding of a traumatic event. An example of crying out could be if someone you are close to gets a disease that could be fatal without a miracle, and you cry out for God to heal this person you love.

This is the disposition of the heart that will inherit the fear of the Lord—to stay in a process where you desperately want more wisdom, guidance, and insight into your relationship with God. When was the last time you cried out to God? Unfortunately, rarely in our culture do we stay desperate. It's circumstantial at best. However, if we genuinely desire the fear of God and remain in a desperate place for more of God's wisdom, we can inherently expect the fear of the Lord. 

Jesus captures an important concept in Luke 6:21 when he says, "Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be satisfied."

I believe that to stay in this mindset; we must be aware that we are hungry for His love and wisdom. We must stay in need for more of Him.

We must remain in our daily disciplines. We have talked about the disciplines of storing up His Word in our hearts, turning our ears to wisdom, applying our heart to understanding, and now crying out to God for more of His mature wisdom in our lives. We need to humble ourselves so that we may stay desperate for His wisdom, revelations, and love. 

The soul that cries out for wisdom is heard. God is not holding back. He gives to those who truly want His insight and understanding. Crying out to God has so many applications in godliness, the way we behave in personal relationships, in relationships in business, or even in just being better followers of Christ. This discipline, to those that embrace it, can put you on the path to fear God.