On a trip to Idaho, we had an opportunity to tour an old silver mine, and I was reminded of the lengths people are willing to go to in order to mine out precious medals. Men would perform backbreaking work underground in dangerous conditions in order to take riches from the rocks. In my own family history, one of my great-great grandfathers left his wife and young daughter to go to California during the Gold rush of the 1850s. After several years, he returned with wealth but found his wife had died while he was gone. I am blessed that he found another wife, and eventually my great-grandfather was born.
In Chapter 28 of today’s reading, Job points out how men will tunnel through rock to gain what is precious, but he asks in verse 12, where can you mine wisdom? It is more precious than all the metals and gems that come from the earth, yet it cannot be mined. God knows where wisdom comes from, and he tells us in his Word: it is the fear of God that brings wisdom. In fact, Proverbs 1:7 says the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. When wisdom is based on respect for God and his Word, it is the wisdom that is “right and just and fair,” and leads to insights that bring forth even more wisdom and discernment from learning and experience.
There is lots of knowledge, but a real shortage of wisdom in our world, and the biggest reason is that God and his Word are not being mined for it. If only people put the effort into their relationship with God that they might expend if they found a seam of gold in their back yard! What can you do to mine more of this wisdom? Spend time talking with God about the attitudes and insights of your heart, and dig deep into the Bible, for that is the source of true wisdom.
“If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him” (James 1:5, NIV).
Jim Jensen
