Permit me to continue to explore a little more of Victor Frankl's thinking. Although now a well-known and highly respected psychiatrist, Frankl seems unable to accept the divine perspective. Listen to this: "The reason so many people are unhappy is because they fail to understand what human existence is all about. Until we recognize that life is not just something to be enjoyed but rather a task that each of us is assigned, we will never find meaning in our lives and we will never be truly happy." So near yet so far! So wise yet so foolish! He understands that without meaning life is drab and difficult, but he fails to go on to the next step and say that true meaning can only be found in Christ. He is both a delight and a disappointment, a delight because he says, "Life is a task," but a disappointment because he fails to bring in Christ to help perform that task. Yes, life is a task, a tough one that is sometimes well nigh unbearable. That's why we need to have the Lord at the center of our lives - we then pursue the divine task with the help of divine grace. Both the writer of the Proverbs and Victor Frankl say that life works better when we give ourselves to it with diligence, but there is much more to it than this. Why do you think God inspired the writer of Proverbs to personify wisdom? Because (as we saw) it prepares us to face the fact that true wisdom is not merely found in principles, but in a Person. And that Person is Christ.

Prayer:

O Father, how sad when the wise of this world show themselves to be so foolish. They get so close - yet pull back at the vital moment. Thank You, Father, that through Jesus I dwell in wisdom and am indwelt by it. Help me exhibit it more and more. Amen.

For Further Study

Colossians 2:1-5; John 2

1. What did the disciples testify of Jesus?

2. What did Paul declare to the Colossians?