James 3:17 But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.

It strikes me that this description of wisdom could do well to be inscribed on all institutions of “higher learning,” not to mention the halls of Congress! The contrast between this and merely intellectual “wisdom” is extreme! This is the sort of wisdom that we need to be praying for our leaders in every field, from national leaders all the way down to heads of households. The devil fights against this kind of wisdom, because it directly counters all his schemes. This kind of wisdom will lead us to God and His plans for us every time. The problem is, this sort of wisdom doesn’t come naturally to us, as is obvious from even a cursory look at society. The good news is, if we humbly seek God for this sort of wisdom, He will give it to us. James pointed that out at the beginning of this letter. “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.”(James 1:5) This description of God’s kind of wisdom is something of a check list to see if we are walking in that wisdom. However, it requires real humility to apply such a check list accurately. We tend to rank our wisdom much higher than it deserves! That said, the better we walk in God’s wisdom, the better the results will be for us in every area of our lives.

As I recall writing before, for much of my life I thought that God was much smarter than I was. It was a breakthrough for me when I realized, on a foundational level, that God’s smart and I’m not. My intellectual pride had extended that far, and that’s the height of stupidity! There is also the huge difference between intellect and wisdom. Genuine wisdom, as James describes it here, has very little if anything to do with intelligence. Facts alone do not impart wisdom. Part of God’s omniscience is that He not only has all the facts, He knows what they mean and what to do with them. We don’t have that kind of overview on our own, so we are dependent on Him to guide us. I have always loved acquiring facts, even reading the Encyclopedia Britannica for fun as a 4^th grader, and learning that facts alone are not sufficient hasn’t been the easiest of lessons for me. I need to walk in humility and love, not only understanding how much God loves me, but allowing that love to flow through me to all those around me, even those who set themselves up as my enemies. If I will do that, then His wisdom will operate in and through me, for the blessing of all and for His glory.

Father, thank You for this strong, clear reminder. Thank You for guiding each of Your appointments for me yesterday. I pray that the man who came in the morning would indeed follow through and attend our worship services, and that he would be blown away by Your presence among us. I thank You for how You encouraged and affirmed me in the other two appointments. I receive as well as give in all such encounters. May all of Your purposes for me be fulfilled, today and every day, on Your schedule for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!