Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.
James 1:22-25
Did you know that Wisdom is not the same as being smart? I believe we can have loads of wisdom, and still be pretty dumb.
Just take a look at Solomon. Solomon asked God for wisdom, and God loaded him up. He probably had more wisdom than anyone else in the Bible, or maybe ever.
Solomon also had 300 wives. You heard that right....300. Wow....I don't care who you are. That's pretty dumb! I can barely handle taking care of 1 wife. I think 2 would send me off the deep end.
How is it possible for Solomon to have more wisdom than anyone else, yet he decided to get married to 300 different women?
Wisdom, by definition, is seeing life through God's perspective. Wisdom is a perspective. It is the ability to see life the way God sees it. It is the ability to see our own life the way God sees it. That sounds incredible, doesn't it? Wouldn't you like to see life how God sees it sometimes, just to get an idea what He's thinking? It's amazing.
But, the reality is, even if we have all of that information, it's really pointless if we do nothing with it. If God gives us wisdom, the smart thing to do is use it, and apply it into our lives. If we don't apply it, the information is basically useless, isn't it?
If I am trying to lose weight, I've been trained that going to the doughnut shop is going to create a temptation that does not help me lose weight. That's a pretty good perspective, isn't it? What if, even knowing that, I still went to the doughnut shop anyway? That's not smart! That's dumb! Since I didn't apply what I learned, the information was completely useless to me.
I believe we do this as well in our Christian life. Many times we have the wisdom to know what is right and what is wrong, but we still choose to make the dumb decision, don't we? I am as guilty as anyone with this. What are we left with? Guilt? Regret? Sadness.
Today, let's purpose to continue reading the Bible so we can gain the ability to see life the way God sees it, but let's not stop there. Let's make sure we apply that wisdom into our lives. If we apply it, God promises that we will be blessed in what we do!
