00:00:01 The greatest honor anyone can have
00:00:05 is to be called a servant of the Most High God, Jehovah.
00:00:10 And as you’ve seen from your deep study of God’s Word,
00:00:15 servants of Jehovah also have distinct personality traits, or qualities,
00:00:20 that are called to mind when their names are mentioned.
00:00:24 For example, what qualities, or traits,
00:00:27 do you think of when we mention the following names?
00:00:32 Ruth, Gideon,
00:00:36 David, Martha
00:00:41 —yes, the name of a servant of Jehovah
00:00:44 can call to mind certain qualities, certain traits,
00:00:47 that are worthy of imitation.
00:00:51 So, what will you be called?
00:00:55 As you begin your new assignment,
00:00:58 what quality, or trait, would you like your fellow workers to think about
00:01:03 when your name is mentioned?
00:01:06 The Bible book of Proverbs provides
00:01:08 a very reachable goal in this regard.
00:01:11 Please open to Proverbs chapter 16,
00:01:15 and we’ll read together verse 21.
00:01:19 That’s Proverbs 16:21:
00:01:24 “The wise in heart will be called understanding.”
00:01:30 What a worthy goal that is
00:01:32 —to be called a person of understanding!
00:01:35 Now, from your studies, you know understanding
00:01:38 is the ability to put the facts together
00:01:40 —to grasp the full, complete picture of a matter.
00:01:44 So how is understanding demonstrated?
00:01:48 Is it revealed in a test score?
00:01:51 Or is it revealed by being the first to provide a solution
00:01:56 in a group setting or perhaps at a meeting?
00:02:01 Well, let’s keep reading verse 21:
00:02:04 “And the one kind in speech adds persuasiveness.”
00:02:11 There’s how understanding is demonstrated:
00:02:15 in kind speech or, as the footnote indicates,
00:02:18 “appealing speech,” “sweetness of lips.”
00:02:23 So a person who’s called understanding puts the facts together,
00:02:28 grasps the full picture
00:02:30 in order to find good in a matter.
00:02:33 And that is reflected through kind,
00:02:36 positive, persuasive speech.
00:02:40 Now, this is more than just being optimistic
00:02:44 or the power of positive thinking.
00:02:47 Understanding has a source.
00:02:50 Please turn to Proverbs, this time chapter 9,
00:02:53 and we’ll read verse 10.
00:02:56 That’s Proverbs 9:10:
00:03:00 “The fear of Jehovah is the beginning of wisdom,
00:03:03 and knowledge of the Most Holy One is understanding.”
00:03:09 There is the Source
00:03:12 —“the Most Holy One,” Jehovah God.
00:03:15 He’s both the Source of understanding,
00:03:18 and he’s the supreme example in how to use it.
00:03:22 Just think for a moment of what happened after the tragic,
00:03:27 painful rebellion in the garden of Eden.
00:03:30 What did Jehovah do?
00:03:32 Immediately, he put the facts together; he saw the complete picture.
00:03:36 And then he uttered the Edenic promise
00:03:39 —a positive promise— that gives us hope,
00:03:42 even right after that painful tragedy.
00:03:46 And hundreds of years later with the nation of Israel,
00:03:51 they would repeatedly abandon Jehovah.
00:03:54 What would he do?
00:03:56 He would hear their groanings,
00:03:58 he would hear their cries, he would see their changed attitude,
00:04:02 and he would raise up judges
00:04:04 to save them time after time.
00:04:08 Yes, Jehovah God shows us
00:04:10 what real understanding is.
00:04:13 And because we trust in him,
00:04:15 we too can find the good,
00:04:18 speak and act kindly and positively.
00:04:22 And how refreshing it is to see this in your class!
00:04:25 Your kind, positive speech and actions with one another
00:04:30 and with those that you come in contact with
00:04:33 have been very refreshing to see.
00:04:35 It’s a result of your deep trust in God’s Word
00:04:38 and your deep trust in Jehovah himself.
00:04:42 And your studies have just further enhanced that
00:04:45 over these past few months.
00:04:47 In contrast, much of the world’s education
00:04:50 fosters critical thinking.
00:04:53 Note what The Watchtower says about this:
00:04:55 “Do not be fooled by the mistaken notion
00:04:59 “that a cynical, critical, pessimistic attitude
00:05:03 “is the same as intelligence.
00:05:05 Actually, negative thinking demands little of the intellect.”
00:05:12 So, what a privilege to know, as you dear students do,
00:05:16 what real understanding is!
00:05:18 It’s not just the ability to identify what’s wrong with a situation.
00:05:21 It’s the ability to identify how good can address it.
00:05:26 And this will encourage your brothers and sisters.
00:05:30 One Bethel family member observed understanding
00:05:34 in the assistant overseer of a department.
00:05:36 On one occasion, the department overseer
00:05:39 scheduled a meeting with several brothers
00:05:41 from other departments, but he forgot to inform his assistant.
00:05:45 Then on the day of the meeting, the overseer was away.
00:05:51 So several brothers arrived for a meeting
00:05:54 that the assistant knew nothing about.
00:05:56 What would he do?
00:05:59 It was observed that he said a brief, silent prayer;
00:06:02 came out; welcomed the group;
00:06:05 addressed the points for discussion; and at the end said:
00:06:07 “Thank you brothers for coming to this meeting
00:06:09 “and allowing me to fill in for the overseer.
00:06:12 And I’ll update him when he returns.”
00:06:14 He just covered for him —beautiful example.
00:06:17 He knew this man had shouldered responsibility for decades.
00:06:20 This was not his pattern.
00:06:22 So he just applied the good.
00:06:23 He showed understanding.
00:06:26 Now, realistically, there will be days when it will be hard
00:06:31 to be known as a person of understanding.
00:06:34 What if, though, there’s a prolonged period of time
00:06:37 where we’re finding it difficult to find the good,
00:06:41 to speak and act kindly and positively?
00:06:45 Maybe our mate or a trusted friend even speaks with us and says,
00:06:49 “Your kind, positive speech and actions are changing.”
00:06:55 What can we do?
00:06:58 Well, each person and their relationship with Jehovah is unique.
00:07:01 But let’s consider the example of the writer of Psalm 73
00:07:06 and learn a valuable principle.
00:07:08 The writer of this inspired psalm was struggling
00:07:11 with even whether or not to serve Jehovah.
00:07:14 Note the turmoil he’s in
00:07:16 at Psalm 73:14:
00:07:22 “And I was troubled all day long;
00:07:25 every morning I was chastised.”
00:07:30 Now, it can be difficult
00:07:32 to be known as a person of understanding when we’re in this frame of mind.
00:07:36 In fact, in verse 22, the psalmist honestly admits:
00:07:40 “I was unreasoning and lacked understanding.”
00:07:44 So, what would he do?
00:07:46 Could he ever be called understanding again?
00:07:51 Notice verse 15:
00:07:54 “But if I had said these things,
00:07:56 I would have betrayed your people.”
00:08:00 So first, the psalmist held back
00:08:02 from making his perplexing thoughts public.
00:08:05 He knew that that kind of negative speech would affect God’s people.
00:08:10 He likened it to a betrayal,
00:08:12 as if he were releasing the names of his fellow worshippers to the enemy.
00:08:16 That’s what he likened negative speech to.
00:08:20 Instead, he kept to his spiritual routine and waited.
00:08:26 And then a powerful moment took place in verse 26:
00:08:33 “My body and my heart may fail,
00:08:37 “but God is the rock of my heart
00:08:41 and my portion forever.”
00:08:45 There it is—understanding.
00:08:50 The psalmist knew he was not alone.
00:08:54 Jehovah God, the immovable Rock,
00:08:57 was keeping him stable in the midst of this violent windstorm
00:09:02 that he found himself in.
00:09:05 That powerful realization plugged him back into the Source of understanding,
00:09:10 and he was once again able to put the facts together,
00:09:14 find good in a matter,
00:09:16 and speak and act kindly and positively.
00:09:21 What’s the lesson?
00:09:23 When we are in turmoil and feel lacking in understanding,
00:09:27 we are in good company.
00:09:30 Many faithful servants of Jehovah have felt this way.
00:09:33 When we do like the psalmist,
00:09:36 we hold back from negative speech, which can affect those around us.
00:09:41 Instead, we speak privately with a trusted friend,
00:09:45 we keep to our spiritual routine, and we wait.
00:09:49 We wait for our powerful moment
00:09:53 —the realization that Jehovah God
00:09:56 is the Rock of our heart.
00:10:00 And one final point: Demonstrating understanding
00:10:05 includes demonstrating it with ourself.
00:10:09 You will make mistakes, and when you do,
00:10:13 your trust in Jehovah
00:10:15 will allow you to find the good in yourself,
00:10:19 as Brother Sanderson mentioned in the opening comments.
00:10:22 And that will help you to keep a positive frame of mind.
00:10:27 Well, we know Jehovah God is going to be with you in your assignments.
00:10:31 May your trust in him —the Source of understanding—
00:10:34 continue to deepen.
00:10:37 This will allow you to address situations by putting the facts together,
00:10:41 finding good in a matter,
00:10:44 and speaking and acting kindly, positively, persuasively.
00:10:48 When you do this, you’ll be showing that you are wise in heart
00:10:53 and you will be called understanding.
