“So be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.”- Matthew 10:16 (NIV)
As John Ortberg continues Chapter 6 of All the Places to Go, he emphasizes that Jesus wasn’t a “well-intentioned dreamer who floated serenely above human difficulties and reality.” Jesus really was serious about getting His work done.
Pastor Ortberg notes that part of wholeheartedness is putting all of yourself in, mind and talents included. Spiritual devotion to Jesus is essential, but we also must be willing to face up to reality- thinking about strategy, tactics, and being effective in extending the kingdom of God. We need to be wise as serpents- a prevailing thought in Jesus’ day.
John adds that we must be wise as serpents in order to know what doors God might open up for us. Open doors call for a high degree of learning and awareness. To effectively discern our calling or vocation in life, vocational expert Andy Chan states we must master (a) knowing ourselves and (b) knowing the world we want to impact. Four types of people result from combinations of these factors:
- Hermit– high in self-awareness but low in world awareness; keeps thoughts and feelings to self
- Chameleon– highly aware of surrounding world but low in self-awareness; just blends in
- Clueless– low in both self-awareness and world awareness
- Change agent– deeply aware of self and deeply aware of world around him/her; wise as serpents
Today’s question: Which of the four knowledge descriptions most accurately reflect your current mind-set? Please share.
Coming Tuesday: new Short Meditation, “Till the sky spills over”
Tomorrow’s blog: “Innocent as doves”
