Growing in wisdom: Wisdom is a continual spiritual discipline, not a one-time learned thing

Bryant Golden Blog

As you become more wise, you begin to understand how important it is to seek growing in wisdom. It’s a little like when you were younger, and your parents told you to eat your vegetables because they were good for you. You couldn’t see any reason for eating them at the time. But now that you’re older, you understand that there are many benefits that come with eating vegetables.

The same is true of wisdom. When we’re young, we don’t understand why it’s a good thing to be wise. But as we age, we begin to see the fruits of wisdom in our lives. You know that I love to get into specifics. So, let’s talk (in detail) about why growing in wisdom should be a priority.

Why should we be growing in wisdom?

Wisdom is not just knowledge. This may be a complex concept to understand, but it is true. Wisdom isn’t as simple as knowing a lot of information and facts. Wisdom knows what to do with that information and how to apply it to different situations.

If you want to grow in wisdom, here are six great reasons why you should:

  • You can make better decisions — Wisdom helps us make better decisions, because we can see things from a broader perspective rather than just from our own narrow point of view. We can also see the long-term consequences of our actions as well as the short-term effects.
  • You could have fewer regrets — Because wise people make better decisions, they have fewer regrets about the things they’ve done in their lives. They are also able to forgive themselves and move on when they do make mistakes instead of letting the regret fester inside themselves and cause more problems over time.
  • It helps you to be more successful — The more decisions you make on a daily basis, the more likely you are to become successful. A wise person makes better decisions, which leads to better results, which leads to success over time.
  • It leads to happiness — If you make good decisions in your life on a consistent basis, then your life will improve internally and externally, and this can lead to happiness. The opposite is also true: If you make bad decisions in your life on a consistent basis, then your life will get worse internally and externally, and this can lead to unhappiness. 
  • You’ll receive greater understanding — You can better understand yourself and others, which will help you feel more at ease around people and more loving toward them. You’ll be able to see what they’re going through and respond appropriately rather than reacting according to your own projections onto them.
  • Life feels more complete — You will have a greater sense of fulfillment because you’ll know what’s worth doing and what isn’t, based on your priorities in life and what’s most important for you to do now. There will be fewer distractions so that you can focus on what really matters most.

Tips for growing in wisdom

God never leaves us without a road map for our growth. Here are some ideas to get you going:

  • Be honest with yourself — When people are prideful, they tend to think of themselves in a better light than is accurate. They overlook their own faults and tend to only notice the marks of others. Honesty is essential for wisdom because it allows you to see things the way they really are, not the way you think they should be. This is crucial for making good decisions and solving problems effectively.
  • Learn from your mistakes — You should view every mistake as an opportunity to discover something new about life — whether it’s how you relate to other people or what’s important to you. When you learn from your mistakes, you’re taking one step closer toward being wise.
  • Choose your friends wisely — Associate yourself with individuals who inspire you and make you a better person. Build relationships with people who have ongoing good things happening in their lives. Wisely, choosing friends also means being around people who know more than you, whom you can glean from.

No matter who we are or where we come from, growing in wisdom can benefit us all. And if you’re seeking out a way to grow in wisdom yourself, let these insights serve as a starting point for you. You don’t have to worry about changing your entire life in one fell swoop. Choosing to be aware of wisdom and following through with right actions changes things over time.

Listen to Unfiltered Radio to discover what it’s like to try to be an authentic follower of Jesus in the modern world

At Unfiltered Radio, we’re all about exploring what it means to authentically follow Jesus and wrestle with the hard questions in life. Check out our podcast to listen to daily episodes about personal growth, spiritual growth, and talking about hard questions about God.