Prerequisites For Purposeful Living Series

spoken of God." Foxe records of Edward VI, King of England, "That

never was he present at any sermon commonly, but would excerpt

them or note them with his own hand." He who is not attentive will

not be receptive, and he who is not receptive cannot be retentive, and

so we see how the very foundation to purposeful living is built on a

most simple truth. It amounts to this: Pay attention or you have had

it. You can go to Sunday School all your life and still wind up as so

many do-totally unaware of what God's will is for you. This can happen

by simply not turning your ear to wisdom, and not paying attention.

The second clause again strengthens the first. You must apply

your heart to understanding. In other words, listening is basic, but

mere listening with no active hunger to learn will not be effective.

Passive attention gives only momentary value. It can be interesting

and enjoyable to hear truth and wisdom, but if one inner man does not

make a deliberate effort to make those truths working factors in life

and thought, there will be no retention of what is received, and so no

treasure from which to draw in the future. Not only must the ear hear

wisdom, but the mind and heart must digest it and use it. The heart in

the Bible is the seat of reason and intellect. The brain is not used in

the Bible. A life of meaning and purpose does not just happen, but it

is gained by positive and active commitment and hard work. Next we

have-

III. AGGRESSIVE.

Verse 3 gives us the third prerequisite for purposeful living,

which approaches the same ideas from another and more aggressive

angle. The first 2 verses picture one with plenty of wisdom at hand,

and his responsibility is to be open to it, and to take full advantage of

its availability. Now we move on to greater fields, and into fathomless

depths and measureless heights where we know we can only know in

part, but where we long to expand that part. We come to a situation

here that implies the fulfillment of the first. In other words, many can

either listen or not to what is available, but this verse applies only to

those who have already opened up to receive what is available, and

there appetites are wetted to go out and search of what is not at hand.

In the first 2 verses wisdom waits to be received, while in the

second 2 verses it is hidden like treasure. The first requires that only we

open the door and let it in. The second demands that we open the

door and go out searching. Solomon is recognizing that there are

limitations to what can be gained by receiving alone. This will never

be adequate to fulfill all one's needs if they want to truly make all of

life purposeful. Some things just cannot be taught, but must be

caught. There are insights, attitudes and understandings which no one

can give you, and so you cannot just receive them. You have to go

searching for them. Life is complex and each person is unique, and so

they need distinctive insights to fit their own unique life.

We must go beyond what is general and common wisdom