I am presently rewatching the amazing story of The Pacific (Netflix) which chronicles the struggle to defeat Japan in the island campaigns of World War 2. Each beach landing scene included men going from ship to shore in a craft called the “Higgins boat.” A man named Andrew Higgins built the boats, officially called LCVP (Landing Craft, Vehicle, Personnel) in military jargon. Historian Stephen Ambrose tells us that Higgins refused to hire engineers who were graduates of college programs because he believed that schools of engineering taught students to think too narrowly and turned out engineers that began their processes from what they thought could not be done in design, rather than attempting innovation. Higgins wanted people with common sense and he found them! His self-taught engineers came up with a shallow draft boat that could go right up to the beaches, drop a ramp on the front, and allow the men to disembark without having to crawl up and over the sides, a slower process that exposed them to enemy fire for a longer period of time.
Here’s a question for your thoughts - are you smart or are you wise?
Wisdom and intelligence are not necessarily one and the same. Mastering a great body of information and having the ability to recall those facts can be a valuable skill, but if learning is not matched with wisdom - which includes:
the ability to apply information to
life,
to adapt and create solutions to
problems, and
to understanding how to relate to
other people-
you could be just a smart fool! I do not intend to demean or dismiss education. Learning provides rich resources that a wise person can use to build a better world, a richer life, and with which he can make a lasting impact on the world. What we must never forget is that information, especially today, has a very short shelf life. The world changes rapidly. However, the wise person will commit to life-long learning, continuing to study, to read; seeking to understand the world in which he lives.
Wisdom makes useful in God’s work, too! The Proverb says "The
teaching of the wise is a fountain of life, turning a man from the
snares of death." (Proverbs 13:14, NIV)
So, how do we gain wisdom?
"Start with God—the first step in
learning is bowing down to God; only fools thumb their noses at such wisdom and
learning." (Proverbs 1:7, The Message) Negatively, David says it this way - "The
fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” (Psalm 14:1, NIV) Without recognizing God as the Source of all
things we cannot find true wisdom, but when our minds are open to Him, the
Spirit will help us see life clearly, that we can gain wisdom. "Who is
wise? He will realize these things. Who is discerning? He will understand them.
The ways of the LORD are right; the righteous walk in them, but the rebellious
stumble in them." (Hosea 14:9, NIV) I hasten to add this - the ability to quote
Bible texts and know the details of Biblical history is not the same as
understanding the ways of the Lord!
The second step on the road to wisdom is humility. A wise man realizes that there is much he does not know and reveals his wisdom by gathering wise counselors! "Without wise leadership, a nation falls; with many counselors, there is safety." (Proverbs 11:14, NLT) Who is on your life team? From whom are you taking advice and counsel? Are you walking with the wise?
Third, the wise will not be trapped by the need to have ‘all
the answers.’ The wiser a person
becomes the more willing she is to live with mystery and ambiguity! Seeing the world in stark black and white is
not for the wise for there are things for which have no explanation. There is
much that remains to be revealed. The wise will gladly say “I do not know that answer.”
Consider Job. When his life went from bad to
worse, at first he demanded an explanation - from others and from God. His
friends consumed day after day with tedious philosophical arguments about the
reasons for Job's suffering. In the end, the Lord swept away their musings. Job
himself rose up to demand fair answers from the Lord, to which God said "Will
the one who contends with the Almighty correct him? Let him who accuses God
answer him!" Then Job answered the LORD: "I am unworthy—how can I
reply to you? I put my hand over my mouth." (Job 40:2-4, NIV) Job
learned wisely to live with the mystery of faith.
Here's a word from the Word for your thoughts. "Do not rebuke a mocker or he will hate you; rebuke a wise man and he will love you. Instruct a wise man and he will be wiser still; teach a righteous man and he will add to his learning. "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. For through me your days will be many, and years will be added to your life. If you are wise, your wisdom will reward you; if you are a mocker, you alone will suffer." (Proverbs 9:8-12, NIV)
Lord help us to live wisely, to know Your will, to humbly
walk in Your ways. Amen.
(Video of this blog at this link)
____________________
Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart!
Naught be all else to me save that thou art.
Thou my best thought, by day or by night.
Waking or sleeping thy presence my light.
Be thou my wisdom, be Thou my true word.
I ever with thee and thou with me, Lord.
Thou my great Father, and I thy true son!
Thou in me dwelling and I with thee one.
Riches I heed not nor man's empty praise,
Thou my inheritance now and always.
Thou and thou only, first in my heart.
High King of heaven, my treasure thou art!
High King of heaven when battle is done,
Grant heaven's joy to me, Bright Heaven's Sun.
Christ of my own heart whatever befall,
Still be my vision thou ruler of all.
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