Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy
Welcome to Day 1319 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.
This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom
How Do You View Success? – Meditation Monday
Wisdom – the final frontier to true knowledge. Welcome to Wisdom-Trek where our mission is to create a legacy of wisdom, to seek out discernment and insights, and to boldly grow where few have chosen to grow before.
Hello, my friend, I am Guthrie Chamberlain, your captain on our journey to increase Wisdom and Create a Living Legacy. Thank you for joining us today as we explore wisdom on our 2nd millennium of podcasts. This is Day 1319 of our trek, and it is time for Meditation Monday. Taking time to relax, refocus, and reprioritize our lives is crucial in order to create a living legacy.
For you, it may just be time alone for quiet reflection. You may utilize structured meditation practices. In my life, meditation includes reading and reflecting on God’s Word and praying. It is a time to renew my mind, refocus on what is most important, and make sure that I am nurturing my soul, mind, and body. As you come along with me on our trek each Meditation Monday, it is my hope and prayer that you, too, will experience a time for reflection and renewing of your mind.
Today we are going a little different angle in our meditation to look at an Old Testament character. We will explore one aspect of Abraham’s promised son, Isaac. I recently read one of my devotionals from the book “Men of the Bible” produced by Ann Spangler, which I found interesting as it considered Isaac’s business success. So today, let us consider…
How Do You View Success?
Let me share some background information about Isaac to refresh your memory.
His name means: “He laughs.” The reason for this is that his mother laughed when God’s messenger told her that she would have a son, considering she was over ninety years old.
His work: Isaac was an accomplished farmer and herdsman.
His character: The only son of Abraham and Sarah, Isaac, at a young age, witnessed, through the faithfulness of his father, the meaning of obedience. He was gentle and hardworking.
His sorrow: As an old and feeble man, Isaac was victimized by the deception of his son Jacob and to his later dismay, gave him the blessing that he had intended for his older son, Esau.
His triumph: Isaac is considered one of the three great patriarchs. For millennia his progeny have revered him.
Key Scriptures: Genesis 25-27
Now let’s continue on with the story of his business success. Ask yourself how you would respond to this scenario. When a man or woman is hugely successful in their work, everyone notices. Some of those people celebrate their prosperity; others hate them for it. What would your response be?
This is what Isaac experienced. He is one of the early farmers in the Scriptures with a remarkable green thumb. Genesis 26:12-13 says, “When Isaac planted his crops that year, he harvested a hundred times more grain than he planted, for the Lord blessed him. He became a very rich man, and his wealth continued to grow.” Isaac had a secret formula – something more powerful than a precise crop rotation strategy or specially formulated fertilizer: The Lord blessed him.
Godly excellence in the marketplace and the generous compensation that often follows it has been the subject of controversy among believers for centuries. Surely Christians are supposed to aspire to serving professions like physicians, missionaries, nurses, and teachers. But is there a place for successful, competitive businesspeople in God’s plan as well?
The story of Isaac and his wife Rebekah’s years in the land of the Philistines illustrates the answer to these questions – and the reason why. As Isaac and Rebekah were leaving Canaan and looking for a new home, the Lord appeared to Isaac and told him in Genesis 26:2-3, “The Lord appeared to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt, but do as I tell you. Live here as a foreigner in this land, and I will be with you and bless you. I hereby confirm that I will give all these lands to you and your descendants, just as I solemnly promised Abraham, your father.”
Isaac listened to God’s voice and obeyed. It didn’t take too long for him to see that his neighbors were envious. The first time Isaac’s servant brought word to him that one of his wells had been filled in with dirt would have been a strong indicator! Nothing specific is said about Isaac’s reaction to this act of treachery, but there is no indication that Isaac was angry or vengeful. Instead, he simply sent his servants out to re-dig the wells or to find places for new ones.
Because of his success and these conflicts, King Abimelech paid Isaac a visit. He asked Isaac to move, sounding much like an Egyptian pharaoh hundreds of years later. Genesis 26:16 says, “Finally, Abimelech ordered Isaac to leave the country. ‘Go somewhere else,’ he said, ‘for you have become too powerful for us.'”
Once again, Isaac could have been upset at such treatment. “After all I’ve done for you and your people,” Isaac could have said to Abimelech, “this is the way you treat me?” But he didn’t. Instead, Isaac and Rebekah moved on, setting up yet another successful business in a new location.
Sometime later, because he saw and was concerned about Isaac’s success in a new location Abimelech paid a visit to Isaac. Here is a snippet of the story line which is found in Genesis 26:26-29, “One day King Abimelech came from Gerar with his adviser, Ahuzzath, and also Phicol, his army commander. ‘Why have you come here?’ Isaac asked. ‘You obviously hate me, since you kicked me off your land.’
They replied, “’We can plainly see that the Lord is with you. So we want to enter into a sworn treaty with you. Let’s make a covenant. Swear that you will not harm us, just as we have never troubled you. We have always treated you well, and we sent you away from us in peace. And now look how the Lord has blessed you!'”
So now back to the basis of our meditation. Why would a man pursue excellence in business? The story of Isaac clearly gives us the answer: God had called (and gifted) Isaac for this work, and he was obedient. Isaac had shown respect for those in authority over him. He worked hard, and his efforts were productive. And Isaac did not allow the sabotage of his enemies to discourage or distract him.
What was the result of Isaac’s faithfulness? God received the glory, and his name was honored among those who previously did not know or revere him.
That is a wrap for today’s meditation. Next week, we will continue our trek on Meditation Monday as we take time to reflect on what is most important in creating our living legacy.
On tomorrow’s trek, we will explore another wisdom quote. This 3-minute wisdom supplement will assist you in becoming healthy, wealthy, and wise each day. Thank you for joining me on this trek called life. Encourage your friends and family to join us and then come along tomorrow for another day of our Wisdom-Trek, Creating a Legacy.
If you would like to listen to any of the past 1318 daily treks or read the daily journal, they are available at Wisdom-Trek.com. I encourage you to subscribe to Wisdom-Trek on your favorite podcast player, so each day will be downloaded to you automatically.
Thank you for allowing me to be your guide, mentor, and most importantly, I am your friend as I serve you through this Wisdom-Trek podcast and journal.
As we take this trek together, let us always:
- Live Abundantly (Fully)
- Love Unconditionally
- Listen Intentionally
- Learn Continuously
- Lend to others Generously
- Lead with Integrity
- Leave a Living Legacy Each Day
I am Guthrie Chamberlain reminding you to Keep Moving Forward, Enjoy Your Journey, and Create a Great Day Everyday! See you tomorrow!
Young Deacon Jones was ushering one Sunday morning when he noticed an elderly woman walking towards the front door of Crossroads Country Church. The front steps of the church were quite steep and long, so Deacon Jones rushed out to help the older lady. He greeted her warmly and asked her name as he assisted up the stairs. She responded a bit curtly, just call me Maggie, but she said little else.
Taken back a bit, Deacon Jones replied, “well, no.”
If you would like to listen to any of our past 1316 treks or read the Wisdom Journal, they are all available at Wisdom-Trek.com. I encourage you to subscribe to Wisdom-Trek on your favorite podcast player, so each day will be downloaded to you automatically.
Most Bible students will know that Israel’s first three kings were Saul, David, and Solomon. They were the only three kings to rule over all twelve tribes, what scholars call the united monarchy. The complete kingdom was known in the Old Testament as Israel, since the twelve tribes of Israel swore allegiance to the same king. Solomon’s reign ends in l Kings 11. That means the united monarchy – the lives of Saul, David, and Solomon – are covered in 1-2 Samuel and l Kings 1-10.
To make things more complicated, the ten-tribe nation of “Israel” also went by other names. The central hill country of the land was dominated by the territory of the tribe of Ephraim. Jereboam, the first king of the renegade ten tribes, built his capital, Shechem, in Ephraim. However, Ephraim’s own capital had been Samaria. After the time of Jereboam, Samaria became the capital of the northern kingdom. Consequently, the ten-tribe northern kingdom of “Israel” was also known as Ephraim and Samaria.
In English Bibles, the books of 1&2 Chronicles are grouped with the historical books: Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1&2 Samuel, and 1&2 Kings. The reason is that the content of 1&2 Chronicles overlaps with the books of Samuel and Kings. The books of 1&2 Chronicles present the story of the Israelite monarchy, both in the days when it was united over all twelve tribes and afterward when it was divided into two kingdoms.
If you would like to listen to any of our past 1315 treks or read the Wisdom Journal, they are available at Wisdom-Trek.com. I encourage you to subscribe to Wisdom-Trek on your favorite podcast player so that each day’s trek will be downloaded automatically.
We should always express our gratitude each time that someone does something for us, not just a one-time acknowledgment of it. It is great to verbally express our gratitude, but if it becomes just redundant platitudes without living a life of gratitude, it will not mean nearly as much. The best way to continually show gratitude is to live in a manner that reflects true gratitude. Let me give an example from my childhood. As I mentioned last week, I was one of ten children and grew up poor on an apple orchard. We lived in an old farmhouse with only one bathroom. This was quite a challenge. Although it was difficult at times to show our appreciation for each other and our parents. We learned throughout our lives that we needed to express our gratitude in word and deed. We didn’t always get along, but it was instilled in us from an early age that we also needed to show our gratitude by helping and assisting each other with all of the farm duties, and household tasks. To survive, it was vitally important for each of us to pitch in our do our part. Our love for and helping each other was a priority that our parents instilled in us throughout our lives. Although my dad is now in a nursing home, with severe dementia, and very acute hearing loss, the nurses frequently make comments on how pleasant and appreciative dad is to everyone there as they care for him. Both verbally expressing and living a life of gratitude is part of the very fabric of dad’s life. We need to make sure that we make it part of the very fabric of our lives also.
As Christ taught us in the New Testament, which is referred to as the Golden rule, 
If you would like to listen to any of our past 1314 treks or read the Wisdom Journal, they are available at Wisdom-Trek.com. I encourage you to subscribe to Wisdom-Trek on your favorite podcast player so that each day’s trek will be downloaded automatically.