Daily Affirmations - Day 1- A Teachable Spirit: Get Wisdom

This week's Theme: A teachable spirit

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Day 1: Get Wisdom

My colleague and I were in new territory. We had done as much research as we could, but we were in an area completely new to both of us. We needed the insights, perspective, advice, and guidance of someone with the direct knowledge and experience we lacked. So we turned to Jacob*. It was a near-disaster.

He had represented himself as knowledgeable, confident, and experienced— he was not. In fact, not only did he lack the needed expertise, but he quickly jeopardized critical elements of the project as a result of questionable decisions and serious blunders. He also turned out to have quite a fluid approach to matters of integrity, ethics, and structure.

Placing so much trust in Jacob turned out to be a terrible mistake. With hindsight we realized that we had not known him well enough to stake so much trust in his character and his abilities. But we had trusted the networks, the processes and the underlying systems of connection that had brought him to us. Fortunately, we were eventually able to extricate ourselves from a mess that could have been much worse. Huge life lesson learned.

In the accounts, examples, and guiding principles of Scripture we learn much about exercising great care in selecting where to place our confidence. Often the misconception arises that these lessons are only for the young, but age and wisdom are not directly linked, and no one ever reaches the pinnacle of wisdom in this mortal life. In fact, Scripture bluntly illustrates that "There is no fool like an old fool" (especially an old fool in authority):

A poor but wise youth is better than an old but foolish king who will no longer accept correction (Ecclesiastes 4:13).

The wisdom of the Scripture shows us that nations, individuals, young, and old thrive best and avert disaster when they seek and accept wise and godly counsel. The opposite is also true.

For lack of guidance a nation falls, but victory is won through many advisers (Proverbs 11:14)

The way of fools seem right to them, but the wise listen to advice (Proverbs 12:15).

Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed (Proverbs 15:22).

But again, the volume of advice is not the only, or even the main factor in decision making. The measure of its soundness is critical— its wisdom and its integrity. We see this throughout Scripture, and two accounts in particular illustrate this point for me.

The first concerned David's son Amnon, who was drawn in horrible, twisted lust to his half-sister Tamar. The biblical account tells us that Amnon became so obsessed with his sister Tamar that he made himself ill. She was a virgin, and it seemed impossible for him to do anything to her (2 Samuel 13:2).

The story at this point takes an unbelievably cruel turn thanks to the advice of Amnon's advisor, Jonadab: Now Amnon had an adviser named Jonadab son of Shimeah, David’s brother. Jonadab was a very shrewd man. He asked Amnon, “Why do you, the king’s son, look so haggard morning after morning? Won’t you tell me?” (2 Samuel 13:3-4).

Instead of using his influence to reestablish reason and decency, Jonadab handed Amnon a twisted, diabolical plot for raping Tamar— a nasty plot that included the shameless manipulation of King David himself, and the horrific rape and victimization of Tamar through gross deception, evil exploitation, and cruel dominance.

Amnon's actions afterwards added "despicable" to already "heinous" and the consequences of his egregious behavior included not only lifelong trauma and desolation for Tamar (2 Samuel 13:20), but hatred, discord, and eventually murder in David's household (2 Samuel 13:5-38). A putrid swamp of human depravity, brokenness, and distress borne on the tide of evil, wicked advice.

Two generations later, David's grandson, Rehoboam would also listen to bad advice. When his father Solomon died, the people approached him with a request: Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but now lighten the harsh labor and the heavy yoke he put on us, and we will serve you” (1 Kings 12:4).

Rehoboam sought the advice of the elders who had served his father Solomon during his lifetime. They counseled him to do as the people had requested. But Rehoboam rejected their advice and turned instead to the young men who had grown up with him and were serving him (1 Kings 12:6, 8). And Rehoboam choice their high-handed, arrogant advice:

’ Now tell them, ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s waist. My father laid on you a heavy yoke; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions’ (1 Kings 12:10-11).

The results would be catastrophic. A split in the kingdom would lead to years of fragmentation, weakening, and gradual decline as the nation faced threats from within and without. A terrible price to pay for foolish, arrogant counsel.

Both Amnon and Rehoboam followed counsel that agreed exactly with what they desired. But a teachable spirit does not seek out only those who confirm us in our folly. A teachable spirit honestly and genuinely seeks the wise path.

No wonder Scripture urges us, "Get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding" (Proverbs 4:1). For the cost of folly is astronomical for individuals, for companies, for nations.

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*Not his real name