Key events in today’s reading:

• David Makes Solomon King (1 Kings 1:28-53)
• David’s Death (1 Kings 2:10-12)
• Solomon’s Request for Wisdom (1 Kings 3)
• Solomon Builds the Temple (1 Kings 6)

Verse(s) that stood out: God said, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.” Solomon answered . . . “Give your servant a discerning heart” (1 Kings 3:5,6,9)

If God were to grant you one wish, what would you wish for (assuming you can’t wish for more wishes)? I’m not looking for a Sunday School answer here or a beauty pageant answer. You know the kind, “World Peace; for everyone to love each other; for all the lost puppies of the world to have a home.” What do you already wish for? A change of circumstances? An increase of funds? A world without pain? A world without heartache?

Solomon wished for a discerning heart. Sometimes called wisdom, he longed to be able to govern his people well, to be able to know right from wrong, to know what was best as opposed to what was simply good. While we equate decision making with the head, the ancient Hebrews believed the will was located in the heart. Solomon wanted a discerning heart.

Not everyone wants a discerning heart. Some people prefer the old cliché, “Ignorance is bliss.” To know right from wrong means you might have to change the way you live. You might have to take up the cause of the oppressed or defend the rights of the poor or act in a way that goes against your own vested interest.

Like when I learn that one of my favorite clothing stores gets its clothes from places with inhumane employment practices. My choice is either to stop shopping there, perhaps petition them to change their actions, or simply ignore the evil myself and thereby participate in it. Sometimes it’s easier not to know, isn’t it?

To really live out a life of wisdom we might have to ask God for some additional mercy. God give us discerning hearts that we might know right from wrong. Then, Lord, give us the courage to do what we know is right.

For tomorrow:

• Cover to Cover: 1 Kings 15:1-25:21
• Key Passage: 1 Kings 8:1-21
• Verse of the Day: 1 Kings 8:20