Posts Tagged: wisdom

“A Very Serious Teeter-Totter!”

On August 21, 2021 by Dteb With 0 Comments - down to earth believer

A good friend of mine, in an accountability-support phone call yesterday made some intriguing comments about his core values. He spoke of courage and discipline, which are balanced by wisdom and compassion. He pictures these qualities as if they are a teeter-totter. For him, learning is the fulcrum.

I am not sure precisely what he means, but those words and the image of the teeter-totter has been marinating in my brain for the past twenty-four hours. Here is the current flavor of my thoughts about these qualities and the fulcrum.

Let me take a stab at the first two core values—courage and discipline. My first observation would be this: I don’t really know what these words mean, and I’m not sure that I want to know what they mean. Courage and discipline sound scary and costly to me.

I googled “courage” and found this definition at https://www.google.com/search?q=define+courage&rlz=1C1GCEA_enUS844US844&oq=define+courage&aqs=chrome..69i57j0i512l9.3232j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8.

“cour·age

noun

  1. the ability to do something that frightens one.

‘she called on all her courage to face the ordeal’

  • strength in the face of pain or grief.

‘he fought his illness with great courage’”

I suspect that the first step in cultivating courage is admitting that I’m afraid. And I am very much afraid to admit that. I would sooner admit that I am angry than to admit that I am afraid. (Typical man!)

Perhaps I could begin with some small fears and work my way up. Okay. Let me begin right now!

I am afraid of . . . Wow! I’m having a difficult time thinking of any little fears. All the ones that come to mind seem big. Hummm . . .

Perhaps I should just move on to discipline. To paraphrase a saying of Jesus, “If they persecute you in one word, flee to another.”

Discipline! I don’t like that word either. But perhaps, discipline is courage in the small things. Maybe discipline prepares me to develop some courage.

I use these blog posts, not just to write, but to grow. So, here is what I am going to pledge to you, myself, and God: Today, I will make disciplined choices about what I eat. I will eat only healthy foods today. That is about as much discipline as I can probably muster. I will let you know how I did tomorrow in my post.

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“THE (MIS)INFORMATION AGE?”

On August 26, 2018 by Dteb With 0 Comments - down to earth believer

I’ve tried to enter the twenty-first century.  I really have.  I have learned how to turn on a computer, and even use it a bit.  I don’t very often look up words in my print dictionary.  (Where is that dusty old thing, anyway?)  Instead, I google words.  I have a Face Book account, and occasionally look at it, though I’m not really sure how it works.  I like to find out about little-known authors, musicians, and philosophers by reading what Wikipedia has to say about them.  I even use the computer for research and teaching.  So, I am not a total luddite when it comes to the internet.

However, I wonder sometimes about this time in which I live, this “Information Age.”  Sometimes I wonder.

I encountered a man the other day, who was making a bunch of really bizarre claims, all of which he had found (I think) on the internet.  It sometimes feels to me as if we live in the “Misinformation Age.”

But I have an even deeper misgiving:  What if we’re drowning in information, even as we are dying of thirst for wisdom?

What is the difference?  Aren’t information and wisdom the same?

I think not!  I’ve known people who were cornucopias of information who were about as wise as a bucket of rocks.  Who knows: The rocks may even have been wiser than them.  By the same token, I’ve known people who were wise, but had very little information.

Wisdom has been defined in many ways.  My current working definition is this: Wisdom is the consistent determination to decide what really matters, and to live out consistently what really matters.

I encounter a lot of people these days with lots of information, but very few who are living wisely.

Now, don’t misunderstand.  Information can be very helpful.  Whether you are cooking a meal or doing brain surgery, information has its place.  Whether you are cooking me a meal or operating on my brain, I will be much happier if you know what you are doing.

But even in those areas, mere information isn’t enough.  Wise decisions can’t always be made apart from good information, but good information doesn’t necessarily lead to wise decisions.  An informed cook or a skillful brain surgeon needs to be wise in deciding whether a rich dessert or tricky brain surgery is really the best way to go.

So, how do we acquire or deepen our wisdom in the information age?  I don’t know, but I have some suspicions.

The first order of business is to become dissatisfied with mere information.  Questions must be asked.  Is this information relevant?  How important is it, really?  Is this information accurate?  How do I know it is accurate?  (The current philosophy seems to be that, if I heard it on my favorite network or internet source, it must be true, and everything else is “fake news.)

The second thing I would suggest for anyone seeking wisdom is to slow down.  Information moves fast.  Wisdom does not.  Let information pass you by.  Don’t worry!  It may well be obsolete soon anyway.  In fact, it may have always been obsolete.

Third, take the long view of things.  Information shouts, “Now!”  Wisdom whispers, “Now.”  These are very different “nows.”

 

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