“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.” – James 1:5

If there is one verse I pray more than any other, it’s this one. Rarely a day passes that I don’t beg God to help me be wise in one area or another. With a teenage daughter, I find myself asking for wisdom more times and about more situations than I ever imagined possible.

I also consistently pray for Scott to have wisdom as he leads our home and serves in our church. Together we pray to be wise as we navigate difficult situations with family. We ask God to make us wise about our finances and our future plans. In fact, there is not one area of our life where we don’t need God’s wisdom to guide us.

How do I know that? Well, we’ve tried our own wisdom before – and it always ends up in disaster. The writer of Proverbs was right when he penned words like these:

“There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.” – Proverbs 14:12

“Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.” – Proverbs 19:21

And especially this verse, right at the beginning: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.” – Proverbs 1:7

But this one is my favorite: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.” – Proverbs 9:10

Without a right understanding of God, we can never have wisdom. We can study and learn and accumulate degrees and experiences, but until we realize Who God is and who we are, wisdom will remain an elusive goal.

As much as we think we know and understand, it is God who knows all and understands the inner workings of the human heart. It is God who knit us together and God who breathed life into us. Our desire to make decisions wisely must begin with the full understanding of our own lack of wisdom, our desperate need for Him to guide us and give us direction.

Perhaps what most marriages need isn’t more date nights but more prayers for wisdom. Perhaps fewer marriages would end if the goal was godly wisdom instead of self-satisfaction. In a world that values all the wrong things, perhaps one of the greatest testimonies we can offer is a marriage that seeks His wisdom in all things.

On our one-year anniversary when Scott resigned his job without another position in place, it seemed foolish to many. But looking back, I see how that one decision laid a foundation for us – a clear choice to seek God’s path even when it wasn’t smooth and didn’t make any sense on paper. It has been that same desire to live for Him that has sustained us through every difficult season we’ve faced.

Wisdom is knowing His ways are higher and trusting His leading because He is God, and we are not.

A Prayer for Wisdom: Lord, we know how foolish we can be. We look around and think we understand, think we know what’s best.

Hold us back, Lord, when we’d rush ahead of You. May we be ever aware of the wisdom we don’t have. May we come to You for guidance in every decision before us.

Lord, give us wisdom, and give it to us generously. In Jesus’ name, Amen.