If this was the last thing you wrote, what words of wisdom would you share?

This is a question that came this week from Storyworth. The question might also be asked this way : “ If you were at the end of your life, what words of wisdom would you share?” This week’s question seems very timely when you consider that last week I wrote about the fear of dying.

I have written about wisdom a little over the past three years in a few of my other stories. I am always in pursuit of more wisdom in my life, especially as I grow older. But as I begin to write about this subject, I think it would be wise to define wisdom, both as used in the secular world and the spiritual/religious world.

A secular definition of wisdom I researched says: “wisdom is the ABILITY to make sound judgments and decisions based on knowledge, experience, and deep understanding.” It goes on further to say that knowledge is the accumulation of information while wisdom is the practical application of that knowledge.

As I thought a little more about the above it struck me that, even if one has all the facts and has accumulated all the information, it doesn’t necessarily compute that one is wise. Having good, accurate information and knowledge is certainly important but it’s the when, how and why of applying all that knowledge that’s the key to the wisdom we share. And often times the wise person will discern to say nothing at all.

A biblical/ spiritual definition I read says: “ Wisdom is more than mere intelligence or knowledge. It is the practical SKILL of living a godly, righteous and purposeful life.” Further, wisdom is the ability to perceive the true nature of a situation and apply God’s truth to it. (I suspect I could dwell on the last part of that sentence, specifically “ apply God’s truth” for a long while and not be able to completely understand all of what that means. Perhaps there’s a story for me to write somewhere in there!)

So it seems from all of the above that secular wisdom starts with knowledge whereas biblical wisdom, as noted in Proverbs 1:7, starts with fear, or reverence, for God.

But back to the question and what my words of wisdom would be. As I thought about this the past few days there seems to be a lot I could offer as final words of wisdom. One thought, though, came out of the “blue” while I was enjoying my daily walk yesterday and that is : Treat others in equal measure as you would treat yourself. In other words, put yourself in others’ shoes and offer the same patience and support you would want. I sincerely hope that I have lived by that rule, at least most of the time.

    In my business life, I often spoke of the need for integrity in dealing with others. I defined integrity as having the appropriate level, or balance, of self-interest that recognized that the other party must also get something of equal measure or value. If that didn’t happen, it wouldn’t take long for the person who was “shorted” to understand that.

    In the biblical sense if you serve others (Proverbs 11:25) who NEED your help you will also be serving yourself in equal measure. However, one needs to be careful to be sure their help is not contingent upon their getting something in return other than God’s Grace and blessing.

A final thought. Many times what we need in our life is to be forgiven by another. Unfortunately, I have seen too many families and friends torn apart due to the inability of people to forgive. I consider myself one of the luckiest people in the world to have been forgiven first by God, and then my family and friends for my far too many transgressions. And I hope I possess the courage and God’s Grace to forgive others in equal measure.