I had an epiphany this past weekend as the calendar flipped to March. I’m calling it “REVERSE WISDOM.”
Here’s the bottom line: My “LIFE wisdom” may grow every year, but my goal is to expand my “GOD wisdom.” And here’s the encouraging footnote—God promises that the closer we get to Christ, the less we will rely on our own wisdom.
THE COMPARISON TRAP
Comparison fuels this battle between life wisdom and God wisdom.
People have always compared themselves to others, but today’s 24/7, hyper-connected, social media-driven world has turned comparison into an epidemic. We measure ourselves against curated highlight reels, thinking we’re either crushing it or falling behind.
And believers aren’t immune. We can fall into the same trap—thinking, I’ve got this. I’m already wise. That’s when pride creeps in. But God says STOP!
“Don’t be impressed with your own wisdom. Instead, fear the LORD and turn away from evil.” Proverbs 3:7
True wisdom comes from God. Never us.
REVERSE WISDOM
Jesus is infinitely wiser than us, and the more we recognize this, the more we should be humbled by His grace. Instead of being wise in our own eyes, we need to fear the Lord and reject evil.
Fearing the Lord means recognizing:
• Our inadequacy compared to His greatness
• Our foolishness in contrast to His wisdom
• Our frailty against His omnipotence
It means admitting this: I am not wise. I am not self-sufficient. I need God in every decision, every step, every breath.
MY PERSONAL CHALLENGE
I want my default reaction to be one of rejecting my own self-reliance and turning to God’s wisdom—immediately and instinctively.
Not just once. But again and again and again.
Why? Because fearing the Lord destroys pride, shatters self-sufficiency, and drives us away from evil (Proverbs 16:6). It’s the mark of a truly wise person (Proverbs 14:16).
These truths keep my focus locked on God’s wisdom, not my own.
WHAT ABOUT YOU?
What do you do when thoughts of being full of wisdom creep into your mind? Do you lean on your own understanding—or do you surrender to God’s perfect wisdom?
“For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding. He holds success in store for the upright, he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless, for he guards the course of the just and protects the way of his faithful ones.” Proverbs 2:6-8
Let’s make the daily choice to reject self-reliance and pursue God’s wisdom. That’s the only wisdom that lasts.
