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Would you describe yourself as a wise person? My guess is that not too many of us think of ourselves as wise, but as Christ-followers, we should aspire to be wise, to gain wisdom and to avoid mistakes. This holds true in your personal life, on your job, with your family and friends—in all walks of your life because we all need wisdom—God’s wisdom—to navigate this world we are in.
I’ve been looking at what you need to focus on if you want to be a wise person, from the book of Proverbs, and here is another one from Proverbs 9:9: “Instruct the wise and they will be wiser still; teach the righteous and they will add to their learning.” A wise person will accept instruction, even if it’s not given in the best way. Often criticisms will come your way from people who make poor word choices, or people who don’t have your best interests at heart. And if you’re like me, your first reaction is to totally resist it, throw it in the trash bin, and forget it—because you didn’t like the way it was said to you.
However, if you want to be a wise person, you need to listen to the instruction, the criticism, and consider the validity. There may be some good advice there for you that will make you wiser still, if you will accept instruction.
And one further principle from Proverbs 29:11: “Fools give full vent to their rage, but the wise bring calm in the end.” A wise person is not easily enraged, and knows how to bring calm to explosive situations.
It’s the difference in a reaction and a response. A wise person knows that her immediate reaction needs to be controlled because often that reaction is angry and vengeful. And when you react instead of responding, you usually regret it later on because it usually makes matters worse. So, learn to take deep breaths, send up an emergency prayer, and ask God to keep you from giving vent to your anger, and instead find ways to calm a situation.