Of Ski Slopes and Silver

Of Ski Slopes and Silver. January, 2019.

podcast: 
http://www.pastorwoman.com/…/9d456e56-d4b5-4b26-84e9-5a76d9…

This past weekend, I had the joy of skiing at Park City in Utah-it was beautiful ... and interesting. Peppered along the ski runs are old buildings from the town's silver mining days. Really interesting and certainly picturesque.

Hold that thought for a moment - did you know that the writer of Proverbs links silver with wisdom? You see, having just written that wise men still worship God, wisdom has been on my mind. Indeed the writer of the proverbs has a lot to say about wisdom, most importantly that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. In the second chapter of Proverbs, Solomon said of wisdom, "if you look for it as silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God." Proverbs 2:4-5

'If you look for it as silver...' 'huh,' I thought, 'how is silver mined?' I grabbed my i-pad which was nearby, as I had my morning time with my Lord, and just googled the question. Suffice it to say, that silver is not come by easily. My Bible cross-referenced Job chapter 28, which I looked up, and began to read, "There is a mine for silver and a place where gold is refined. Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore. Man puts an end to the darkness; he searches the farthest recesses for ore in the blackest darkness. Far from where people dwell he cuts a shaft, in places forgotten by the foot of man . . . He tunnels through the rock..." All this talk of metals, recesses and darkness, and yet of course, wisdom is found in God, not in any mine.

But what did he mean to 'look for it as silver'? I have been pondering the question.

First of all, a person only looks for silver because it is of value... so wisdom should be valued-highly. Second, one should realize that wisdom is not easily obtained. While God is its source, he gives it to his children when they ASK and have FAITH that he will supply it. (James 1.5) God gives wisdom to his children when they look to his WORD to understand and apply it, and God grants wisdom to his children when they choose to trust him through the MATURING processes of life's storms, knowing that a loving God is shaping them.

Several years ago, I took my youngest son, Danny, to Park City to visit his best friend, Cameron, who had moved to the town with his family. We drove by an old snow-covered silver mine, which drew my rapt attention. My friend told me of the time he had taken his children down into the mine on a tour. It sounded like my own personal nightmare as they took an elevator down, down, into the recesses of the earth where it was, of course, pitch black, (save for their 'miner's helmets'), and then took open railcars along the floor of the mine all over beneath the town of Park City, Utah. (I found my breathing growing shallow just listening--claustrophobia welling up in me!)

Yet, that was what Solomon was talking about - those miners of yesteryear - the ones that were drawn to this area to settle it originally-came for those silverveins, rich in the Utah mountains. Think of it, they risked a lot to tunnel down to get that silver, especially the original pioneers.

Consider:
~>Do you value wisdom enough to spend the time to mine it? ~>Do you value wisdom enough to dig for it--reading, studying and truly applying the deep treasures of God's Word? 
~>Do you value wisdom enough to read the writing of great minds who have gone places your mind has never imagined? 
~>Do you value wisdom enough to seek out the company of those who wish to be wise, of those who know and have experienced far more of life?

Oh, the treasure trove of wisdom to be found in the life lived seeking after the heart of God!

Wisdom - treasure it, look for it like silver.

Christine Todd DiGiacomo

PastorWoman.com