James 3: 13-16
That’s the estimated distance between your head and your heart. 18 inches. Opportunities of a lifetime, moments worthy of historical lore, and providential relationships all the have the potential of being missed, never happening, or not ever taking place because of a disconnect between the head and the heart. It’s possible to understand something in your head, but be disengaged at the heart level. Over-informed and under-activated.
There is an inherent danger to gathering knowledge and not providing opportunities for what has been learned. Knowledge trapped inside the mind unexpressed in real world application breeds pride, selfishness, and arrogance. We would like to think that “the more we know, the more we grow”, but normally the more we know, the more we think we know, but we need more than knowledge. We need wisdom.
Wisdom is not an elderly man with a long white beard and horn-rimmed glasses or a booming James Earl Jones-type voice. Wisdom is what you do with what you know. How one applies what they have learned will determine whether it is wisdom. When knowledge travels the 18-inches from the head to the heart and manifests itself in meekness wisdom is birthed.
Meekness rhymes with weakness, but meekness is not weak. It’s strong, but gentle. Solid, but tender. It is literally strength under control. That’s real wisdom. Knows what to do, how to do, and when to do. That’s heavenly wisdom. The wisdom of this world produces chaos because it is preoccupied with self in the spotlight and will do whatever is necessary to remain on center stage. The wisdom of heaven shares what it knows in actions that benefit all.
Photography: @titus_anthony