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Hughes, Wesley and Money

Wisdom, Money

Both of the following men have died and are experiencing their eternal reward or punishment.  Today, which would you rather be? A)  Howard Hughes, whose business wisdom  allowed him to become one of  the wealthiest man of his day, but so thoroughly ignored God and His ways that anyone who got close to him learned to thoroughly despise him?   Or,  B) John Wesley, who gave away most of the money he didn?t need to live on,  and used his energy and wisdom to touch as many lives for Christ as he could in his generation?

The answer is obvious.  But the way people live, we can tell that many are missing it. That?s why our next signpost on the road to wisdom is so important that God places it first.

"The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom;
	all who follow his precepts have good understanding.
	To him belongs eternal praise." (Ps. 111:10, cr. Pr. 1:7; 9:10)

?The beginning of wisdom.? Has it ever occurred to you that when you're taking a trip, the first turn is probably the most important?  If you take a wrong turn once you get close to your destination, you can simply turn back around and you're still close.  But if you begin on a main road going North instead of South, you can end up in the wrong country quick.  So when God speaks of ?the beginning of wisdom,? He seems to be saying, ?If you miss everything else about wisdom, don?t miss this.  Here is where you start.?

Have you ever finished an assigned project in Math class, only to look around and discover that everyone else is still working?  You?re thinking, ?I never finish first.?  And as you casually glance at the nearby desktops, your worst fears are confirmed.  Nobody else is working on the page you worked on. A sinking feeling overwhelms you as you realize that for entire class period, you?ve been working on the wrong page. How many have ever had this happen to you?  Do you remember the feeling?

Perhaps it?s the same sinking feeling, only intensified many times, that many of the world?s greatest successes will experience when they meet God on judgment day.  At that time God will expose, not only what they?ve done, but also their motives.  And many people will realize that for their entire lives, they knocked themselves out to complete the wrong page.

What Would Get Me Into Heaven?

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