Read James 3:17 and Proverbs 19:20

Who is your hero?

Outside of the obvious Christian answer of “Jesus”, who would you say is the person you look up to and idolize the most? Parent? Spouse? Friend? Sibling?

To me, the answer is easy…

Dad.

To many, he is “Pastor Dave”. Many choose to see him as a serious and professional perfectionist while, when he calls me, “Dad” comes across the screen of my phone along with a picture of him photobombing a family photo.

Best. Photo. Ever.

I can confidently say that I would not be the man I am today without my dad. Not even close. His patience and guidance, along with the work of Christ, helped form me into the man I am today (I am by no means a finished product). There were definitely some high and lows, but Dad’s consistency and wisdom guided me through.

When I signed up for the devo about wisdom, my mind immediately shifted to Dad. I read our scripture today about how James describes wisdom that comes from Heaven and all of those words describes the wisdom of Dad that I have grown accustomed to. As long as I can remember, he has always been the source of wisdom for our family.

I remember his gentle guidance to me when Kelly and I had a pregnancy scare when Mattie was only a few months old…we were so not ready for another child! I remember his counsel when I was contemplating huge changes in my life in high school. When I was immature, angry and overly emotional, he would calmly guide me back to Christ. Before marrying Kelly, Dad was always my first call when I didn’t know what to do. He’s now my second : )

However, there is truth that Dad’s wisdom pales in comparison to that of God. When you read James 3:17, I love how he says that wisdom that comes from Heaven is “first of all pure”. This means that it is 100% authentic, natural…perfect. When you think of your own wisdom, would you say that James 3:17 describes it?

Proverbs 19:20 describes how we can grow in our wisdom…listen to wise people. So much of my life was spent thinking that I knew everything I needed to know and I didn’t need to listen to wise and godly counsel in my life. Looking back, I see all of the value in their words and the difficulties I brought upon myself by not listening.

Do you listen to people when they talk to you? Do you let certain people into your circle? Or are you so prideful to think that you don’t need the advice of other people. Proverbs tells us that, if we listen to advice and accept discipline, we will be counted among the wise.

Will you humble yourself enough to admit that other people can speak into your life and bring a positive change? Who do you need to listen to that you’ve been ignoring?

Jake Lawson