Elusive Wisdom

A Reflection on the Second Reading for February 16th, 2020: Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time

1 Corinthians 2

6 Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away.  7 But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glorification.  8 None of the rulers of this age understood this; for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.  9 But, as it is written, "What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him," 10 God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God.

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Haven’t we all asked the question “What is God’s plan for me?” We will never be able to anticipate nor even pretend to understand what God’s plan is for our lives. We know that He wants us to live happily with Him, and if we strive to live our lives with that aim in mind, we will indeed make it to heaven. And this is good.

However, as we have experienced, it is not that simple. There are so many twists and turns in our lives. We are not totally in control even though we want to be. Often we cannot comprehend why things happen the way they do. We call on the Lord to help us. Our faith, our trust, and our hope in the Lord is what pulls us through trying times. 

Paul says we will never understand God’s wisdom; it is only revealed to us through the Spirit. Therefore we need to be able to “hear” God’s words to us. We need to spend more time trying to listen to God’s word through the movement of the Spirit in our lives, through His written Word, the Bible, or through the events that happen in our lives. Sometimes we have to pause, think, and ask ourselves: Is this what I should be doing at this time? Our actions have to be intentional. We must be mindful of distractions and temptations. In the end, we need to totally rely on our faith and trust that God will guide us in what we should do.

I sometimes face the difficulty of having to decide between two good things. Even if the situation is simple, I agonize over the fact that I may make the wrong decision. A simple example would be when a friend asks me to help  with a project, but I have to attend a meeting at church. My thought process would be that my friend’s job may be on the line if she does not finish the project, while the meeting involves a ministry where I am a volunteer and not the leader. My first impulse would be, without really thinking it through, to help my friend because of the consequences that she may face. Of late, I have come to consider these kinds of complex situations more fully and to ask: What does God want me to do? My commitment to ministry is also important. I have learned to keep still and pray for a decision to come to mind so that the Spirit will guide me to make the right choice.

As I was writing this reflection, an old song came to mind. The title of the song is Who Has Known by Stephen Foley, SJ. I believe it is an Advent song but the lyrics are so fitting for this reading. Here are a few lines:

O the depth of the riches of God;
And the breadth of the wisdom and knowledge of God!
For who has known the mind of God?
To Him be glory forever.



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Liz Venezuela

Photo by Shawn Ang on Unsplash

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