Walking Wisely

May I quote a verse from Proverbs for you. In Prov. 13:20 we are told, “He who walks with wise men will be wise.” If you want to be wise, find someone who already is wise and associate with him.

I have received many cards, emails and letters in my lifetime and one that comes to mind right now was given to me by a young man whom I mentor. It is a picture of a little boy walking with an older man, probably his father. Inside the card is reference to this verse. He considers me to be wise. What a great compliment.

Shamefully, I remember my youth, and how stubborn and foolish I was. Rebellion and prideful are two words that come to mind when I consider how I reacted to older men whom God put in my path. Young men especially have always been filled with the need and determination to be their own man. We had to do it our own way. Remember the words of Frank Sinatra, “I did it my way.” Foolish, foolish, foolish.

I am now an older man, and I hope a much wiser man than I once was. I look for wiser men than I with whom to associate. Considering my situation, for the most part I have to rely on authors and the books they write. Some of the men that I consider worth walking with are Dr. James Dobson, Dr. Mark Rutland, Dr. Les Parrott, Dr. Paul E. Paino, and Stu Weber. There are others, of course, but these are very prominent in my life. Wait a minute, there are some women, also. At the top of the list is my wife, Karen. I also receive from Joyce Meyer and a few individuals whose names you would not recognize.

However, there are some men who have written things that minister greatly to me who spoke to us a long time ago, but their words are timeless: The Apostle Paul, Solomon and most of all, Jesus.

What about you, reader? Who do you allow to speak into your life? Are you teachable, are you open for counsel; do you even want to be wiser? A wise man once said that the beginning of wisdom is to acquire wisdom. How true, how true.

Admitting that you need help and asking for it, and listening to others who know more than you do are not bad things. It is wisdom. I want to close this with a quote from Proverbs 9:8a-9:

Reprove a wise man, and he will love you.
Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser,
Teach a righteous man, and he will increase his learning.