Wisdom or Folly

Life is made up of a myriad of big and little decisions. Everyday there are a thousand small turning points, most of which pass by without notice. There is simply no way that we can predict how even the smallest decision will impact the course of our lives or the lives of others. There is no point in obsessing about these minute decisions or fretting over whether or not a small misstep will change our destiny. We are cared for and carried along by the Sovereign King of Glory. He controls the destiny of each man and of all men. He guides the high and mighty and the meek and lowly. We each have a role to play in His designs and we need not fear that we will miss it because we decided to go to the bank or took a day off to go to the beach.

On the other hand, there are some choices that are of consequence. Adam and Eve chose to eat the apple. Abraham chose to sacrifice his son. Moses chose to go to Egypt. Jesus chose to come to earth and to go to the cross. These are turning points of history, and yet they are also just choices in the lives of individuals. Each day we are faced with choices to follow Wisdom or Folly. Wisdom invites us to fear God and to walk the path that leads us closer to Him. Folly calls to us and invites us to join her in her frivolous amusements. These amusements may seem harmless at first, but as we walk her path we find it slowly but consistently diverging from the path of life. Each day we are faced with the path of Wisdom and life, or Folly and death.

The path of Folly is well worn. It is a wide highway boasting pleasures and entertainments to slake every thirst. The invitations to walk this path are many and varied. Sometimes they come from friends or acquaintances that have ventured down the path and assure us it is safe. Sometimes it is in the form of media or advertisements the voice of the present age beating a steady drumbeat for Folly and their own selfish corporate interests. These voices have a vested interest in the success of Folly; their stock prices rise or fall on the success of their invitation to deaden our souls. Sometimes the call comes from within, from a part ourselves.

At times I feel the call rising from my own being. Folly calls me by name and bids me to join her on the road to hell. She reminds me of the times we spent together, when time flew by and the fleeting pleasures were indeed enjoyable. There is a part of me that remembers those times fondly. The physical sensations, the abandonment of restraint resonated with a part of me. Yes, my flesh is still with me and harkens back to those days. In those moments the darkness that is still within me whispers that it will be great, that no one ever needs to know, that a quick trip down memory lane will not hurt anyone.

But then I remember the pain. I remember the pain of my own soul, the pain of others that I dragged down into my degradations. It is true that some went willingly, but we hurt each other none the less. I remember the damage, the damage to my heart and the damage done to others. My heart is still scarred by these self-inflicted wounds. I remember the warping, the way my thoughts were twisted; so much so that I am still trying to disentangle my mind from their nefarious web today. I remember that it is not worth it. Sin is sweet in the mouth, but it is an insidious and powerful poison that eats away a our inmost being.

Every day we are faced with choices to follow Wisdom or Folly, to listen to the Spirit or the Flesh. We can sow to the Spirit and reap eternal life, the eternal kind of life that starts now and lasts forever, a life of love, joy, and peace; or we can sow to the Flesh and reap a dead life, a life of guilt, dread, and anxiety, a life that will lead us to physical and spiritual death. These choices are fraught with consequence for ourselves and for others. These choices matter. Today I choose Wisdom, I choose Life, I choose Christ.