Smarty Pants
Smarty Pants
“Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.”
Proverbs 4:7
You ever meet that person that knows everything? No matter what you talk about, they’ve done that, excelled at it and know everything there is to know about that particular subject. Sometimes they are referred to as a know-it-all or when I was younger they were called a smarty pants.
I don’t mind being around that person because I usually learn more than one thing. And I’m definitely not ever that person.
In the Bible wisdom was often sought after but something that wasn’t easily obtained.
I love the verse above because it says wisdom is it. It is the thing to have. It’s that important - it’s the principal thing. But most importantly, once you get wisdom, use all your getting to get understanding.
Wisdom is having experience and knowledge about something and applying good judgement. Being smart is only having the knowledge, wether or not it is properly applied is where wisdom comes in. Understanding is being able to explain your knowledge, experience and judgement.
You can know all anyone ever needs to know about something. You can know every detail about a subject, place or thing. But unless you have experience with that subject, place or thing you won’t be able to discern good judgement or to actually understand it.
I look at it like this;
Let’s say you’re making brownies and the recipe should normally call for 4 eggs. But in this particular recipe there was a mistake and the recipe card says 10 eggs. You’ve made brownies at least a hundred times over the last twenty years. You know from experience this isn’t right. Your knowledge of ingredients tells you that if you add this many eggs it would be a disaster. A smart person can follow directions. A wise person will know when the directions are wrong and be able to use his judgement to correct the mistakes or improve the results. And not only will you use the judgement necessary to fix the problem, you understand why.
I struggle so much in this area. I know how I’m supposed to respond according to the Bible. I’m smart enough to know why. But often times I fall short because of circumstances or situations in my life where I lack applying the things I’ve learned.
Growth is a part of experience and the longer we do something the more experience we gain in the matter. This can be applied to something good or bad for us.
Driving a car takes a lot of experience and knowledge. Wearing a blindfold while driving is not wise. And even if we know it’s a bad idea, we wouldn’t try it anyway because we’ve applied good judgement. That’s a decision based on wisdom. We understand why it isn’t a good idea because of the results that might occur.
So I continue to read my Bible and apply the lessons from it to my personal life. This way I can gain experience and knowledge to use the proper judgement that would be pleasing to God.
We won’t always have wisdom and it can truly be a struggle. But don’t give up. Prayer is a great way to let God know what you need help with in your life. Reading your Bible is another way to gain the information that will help you get a better understanding of where to apply the things you’re learning.
“For the Lord giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.”
Proverbs 2:6