Prefer Wisdom Products not Knowledge Products

UV 1423/10,000 Wisdom Products
Wisdom strengtheneth the wise more than ten mighty men which are in the city
Ecclesiastes 7 v 19
I looked at the iphone in the palm of my hand and said to myself, “ What an amazing product!” At the time, the Spirit of the Lord told me that it is a knowledge product that only enhances connectivity and communication. Google and all the babble on the internet is only a new Tower of Babel built with human ingenuity and enterprise. It is neither the source of our salvation nor of wisdom. What we need to look for and treasure are genuine wisdom products that improve the content of our communication, the very quality of our relationships and of life. First of all, it takes divine wisdom and insight to identify what is a genuine wisdom product and what is only fake or counterfeit. Wisdom is increasing in the knowledge of God and His will. Wisdom through all of scripture is equated with strength for it places at our assistance the omnipotence and omnicompetence of God Almighty. The word “ strengtheneth” in the uni-verse shows that wisdom is a process and not a given attribute. We can opt in and out of the process. Our ‘unwise’ or ‘non wise’ streaks emerge when we opt out.

Wisdom is God’s knowledge and know how made available to those who truly know Him. Our “know-Who” is more vital than our know how. When we have “Know Who” made us, we will also have “know why”. We will live, think, speak and do in alignment with our larger or more long term or eternal purpose. Sight is so important but insight is even more vital for effective living. Wisdom will help us chose correctly, judge justly and act discreetly. It will increase our inner strength to face life’s challenges. It will give us the attitudes to face vicissitudes as also to accept success with humility and equanimity. Wisdom is a force multiplier and a grace multiplier. It wins us the favour of the Lord. It will reduce the kind of hostility we face such that even our enemies, foes and rivals will have a grudging admiration and envy of our inner qualities. They will not be able to speak or think much ill against us. Wisdom strengthens our inner defences and increases our endurance. It deepens our understanding of the things we need to change and those we need to bear. It erases the creases of sorrow, pain and worry on our foreheads and replaces it with a quiet joy, assurance, peace and hope. Wisdom teaches us meekness and forgiveness is better than violence, aggression, grudges and revenge. Wisdom makes us a permanent learner and a universal learner in that one can always learn from anything and everything spoken to us or any experience we have undergone or from the errors and mistakes we as well as others have committed. Learning from the experience of others is low cost and high yield learning.

Wisdom is a 10 x multiplier. No wonder Daniel was found to be ten times better than all the other rulers in the empire of Nebuchadnezzar. Any quality, resource, talent, ability that we possess will be multiplied ten times. It is induced or initiated by the fear or respect and reverence for God and His Word. It keeps us from faulty decision-making and in a constant quest for improvement or excellence. It reduces our load and increases our power. Wisdom believes that character is more significant than competence. Wisdom will enable a person to take a whole city, to scale its walls. Wisdom offsets the strength and resources of the mighty. God –given wisdom enabled David to develop certain skills that were literally handy when he faced the challenge of Goliath. It enabled him to reject the weapons King Saul proffered and chose his own preferred weapons. Wisdom is better than weapons of warfare. It is more powerful than a nuclear arsenal. Yet scripture warns us not to be even “ over wise”. It warns against taking pride in wisdom or outwardly wise. Wisdom is always accompanied by gentleness and humility. This is the reason Jesus said, “ Learn from Me for I am humble and gentle.”

Prateep V Philip