How to Grow Wise: One Year Bible Reading for July 5

 Today we read from these verses in the One Year Bible:

1 Chronicles 1:1-2:17
Acts 23:11-35
Psalm 3:1-8
Proverbs 18:14-15

Let's look at the proverb. It tells us something that we would all do well to learn. It says, "The heart of the discerning acquires knowledge, for the ears of the wise seek it out." Now that SEEMS very simple and straightforward, right? Well, think about what it means...

It means that we become wise by asking questions. I once had dinner with two men. One of the men had lived in another country, we'll say Switzerland, for ten years. We'll call him Frank. The other man had never been to Switzerland. We'll call him George. The entire dinner, George told Frank all about Switzerland. He shared his ideas of why they act the way they do. He told him that the Swiss were famous for their clocks and their chocolate. He said some things that sounded vaguely racist against the Swiss people. All the while, Frank patiently listened and nodded. Everything George said was nonsense, and the man who could have taught George SO MUCH about Switzerland was sitting at the same table with him for over an hour. But George thought he knew about Switzerland, so instead of learning from the expert, he spouted his half baked theories.

This is a true story.

Now, let's take another example. A friend of mine drives Uber. Every time someone gets into his car, he sees this as an opportunity to learn. He asks them questions about where they're from, about their job, about their culture. Every new person is like a book that teaches this Uber driver all about the world. 

The wise seek out knowledge. 

God, thanks for teaching us that if we are wise, we will listen - and learn.