By Helen Ackerman
It seems that people are always searching for something. They want to feel at peace, they want to know about their inner self, and they want to know more about their relationship with God.
All of this searching is part of our spiritual life. Christians often spend time in prayer, reading the Scriptures and other spiritual books. People in a variety of religions are all intent on satisfying their innermost needs.
I have been thinking about this need for searching. As a Christian, I did find in a reading from the First Book of Kings something that might be of help. I read of Solomon, to whom God addressed these words while Solomon was asleep:. “Ask something of me and I will give it to you.”
Solomon did not believe he was ready to lead the people of David. He felt he was too young to do this task. God told him that he would give him wisdom.
Solomon would have a heart so wise and understanding that he would be able to discern what is right and wrong.
In our search for meaning in our lives, maybe we should be like Solomon, ready to search for wisdom, so that we can discern what is right and what is wrong. The need we have to search is connected to our ability to find wisdom.
Often our prayer life includes asking God for a variety of things. We pray for our health and for the health and needs of others, but we are not confident to seek wisdom. If we pray for wisdom, our search to understand God will bring us closer to God. Often the way is through the parables that Jesus shared with others.
Jesus wants us to understand the God he knows. As we find this wisdom, we will come to know that often we just have to trust and believe in God’s love for us. No matter the unrest we might feel, God provides for us in marvelous ways.