Read Proverbs 8
Solomon says
let’s do a cost-benefit analysis. OK,
let’s talk about orienteering. We will
get to that later.
What should
you be willing to pay for wisdom?
Everything.
What do you
get in return?
Wisdom—that
one was obvious. But Solomon broadens the concept of wisdom to include
prudence. The original word was ormah. In basic terms it means good sense but it also means crafty.
Hold your
holy horses. Were we not just warned
about the crafty woman with evil intentions?
Yes. But you can employ craftiness with godly
intent. Wisdom equips you to match wits
with those who oppose you. You can see
the traps that are set more clearly.
Long ago and
far away I went to the Karass Negotiating seminar where I learned over a dozen
negotiation techniques, most of them manipulative. Near the end of the seminar, the instructor
said that we should never use these techniques.
Only the win-win works well in the long term.
Then why
learn the techniques? So that you have
eyes to see when someone is using them against you.
How about Prudence
in its modern application? What is
prudence? It comes from the Latin providentia
meaning seeing ahead. It’s foresight. It’s sagacity. What is sagacity?
Keen
foresight. Prudence enables us to take
careful steps because we see what lies ahead.
We have already been warned about rushing into evil. Now we are counseled on the virtue of
carefully directed steps.
Wisdom gives
us the skills to see and bypass the traps and take the best steps.
Knowledge—that’s
awareness, understanding, and practical value.
In Solomon’s earlier proverb, knowledge preceded wisdom.
Discretion.
It’s the ability to act on one’s own authority and judgment. It can lead to efficacy. Efficacy is the power to effect desired
change.
What else?
Sound
counsel and judgment.
Understanding.
Legitimate
power.
Righteousness.
Justice.
Those are
all good things, but when you seek wisdom, you also receive disdain for:
Evil.
Pride.
Arrogance.
We are
charged to love those who seek wisdom, for they are surely seeking God and his
ways.
We are
promised that if we truly seek wisdom, we will find it. God is not playing games with us. He wants us to both seek and find wisdom.
Has anyone
ever done orienteering? It’s competitive
land navigation. The best competitions
that I ran involved teams. Each team
reported to a check-in station at a given time.
Their clock started running. They
looked at a map with multiple checkpoints, usually more than most teams could
get in the allotted time.
The team
leader copied the points, developed a plan, and then went in search of these
points on the ground. Each point had a
marker of some sorts that was unique to that point. Each checkpoint was given a different
value—more points for those checkpoints that were hard to find or in difficult terrain.
Teams were
usually spaced 5 minutes apart and times were kept for each team. If two or more teams tied by points, the one
that took the least time became the winner.
There was
only one scorecard per team and it had to go to each checkpoint to get its
unique mark. Team members could scout
ahead but there was only one card.
The team had
to use its discretion, judgment, understanding of land navigation and the
terrain itself, and the team leader had to exercise sound leadership. His decisions might include input from many,
but when he made the decision, everyone sprang into action.
Orienteering
allowed team members to practice wisdom.
They took what they knew, the counsel of others, envisioned what was
ahead and how they would get there, and did what they needed to do to achieve
the desired results.
Besides
learning how to navigate better, this was fun and developed wisdom and
leadership.
God has
already done the front-end analysis. He
has given you a map and compass. Solomon expounded upon the benefits to seeking
wisdom. The real work is already
done. Seek wisdom.
Seek wisdom.
Amen.
