April 24

Apr 24 - Today from Proverbs 24 we consider verses 5 & 6
"A wise man has great power, and a man of knowledge increases strength; for waging war you need guidance, and for victory many advisors."

None can argue, knowledge is very helpful when executing a solo task. Knowledge strengthens one's skill. We have all been given natural talents, but they are developed and strengthened by knowledge (learning more about the different aspects of the skill) and practice (applying that knowledge). If one has a natural talent for mathematics, one gets an education in accounting, or perhaps engineering, and strengthens that ability through knowledge and application. If one has a natural talent for design and art, one gets an education in their field of art and strengthens that ability through knowledge and education. The stronger your ability, the better the opportunity for you to find employment in your field of talent. This kind of knowledge has wonderful advantages, but it also has limitations. It is helpful for solo tasks. By that we mean that the subject is the only one involved. An accountant sits with the documents, figures and spreadsheets needed to engage the task and works through the process to his or her own satisfaction. An artist gets out the pallet and mixes the colors and makes the strokes to his or her own satisfaction. Your knowledge and skill will pretty much determine the end result. But, waging war - well, that is very different!
War employs numbers of individuals and numbers of possibilities of actions. The enemy isn't interested in making obvious moves. War succeeds through surprise and stealth. One person's knowledge isn't enough, and one solid plan will not see one through to the end. It isn't necessarily the man with knowledge who wields power. He may have great strength in his area of expertise, but it is the wise man that has power in a strategic situation that involves numbers of people. A wise person is a person who seeks guidance and counsel from numbers of people who are gifted in various areas of expertise. He then places all of the accumulated information into a big picture to see what the current best course of action would be. When the enemy's plans and actions appear to be changing, the wise leader adjusts accordingly. His decisions must be based on many factors. Most of the counselors and advisors are incapable of knowing what the next move should be because they work only in their area of strength and do not see the big picture as clearly as the wise leader.
The practical lesson here? We are all involved in areas of life where our activity and decisions include and affect numbers of people. The family. Our church. Some aspects of our jobs. Service projects. Some times our position is to bring our particular area of knowledge and expertise to the group, and the leader or leaders are to use that information to make the decisions for whatever task the group is involved with. This is important to know, because sometimes our view is incomplete or skewed and we tend to become offended that our input did not guide the process as strongly as we had hoped. Take the family. Biblically speaking, a typical family consists of a husband, a wife, and one or more children. God has placed the husband as the head of the family and the wife as the helpmate. The children are to honor the parents. The children are definitely to give input into family decisions. But, children being as they are, usually feel that their input should heavily weigh the issue. They seldom see the big picture. When the decision doesn't go their way, they act childish. You can fill in the blank here, because we all have some idea of what this childish behavior is. In a typical spiritually healthy home, the father will listen to the concerns and desires of his children, will counsel with his wife, and will ultimately make the final decision. (I know there are exceptions - especially with single-parent homes. This is simply an illustration to make a point.) The father is to seek wisdom in order to see the big picture and make his decisions in the best interests of the family.
Now you can extrapolate that illustration to fit pretty much any organized group activity. Unless one has been chosen or designated as a leader in the group, one's main purpose is to gain strength in their area of talent or expertise and contribute their input to the best of their ability. The leader or leaders then utilize all areas of input to see the goals of the group met. Victory! The group succeeds. But when undesignated leaders feel that their contribution didn't carry the weight it should have and react accordingly - we witness childish behavior. Instead of victory, we see war in our own ranks. Instead of contributing their skill and strength to the greater purpose of the group, it is turned against the group by causing inner conflict. This group will achieve very little in regards to their original goals. The focus turns from anticipated victory to survival; in the family, in the church, in the work place, in the service project. Any group focused on survival is in its death-throws. It's time to back off and refocus. Repair the mistakes made. Re-educate concerning roles and responsibilities. Refresh in definition and goals. Revive the group members. Reunite and go for the victory! Make the strong stronger through education and practice. Make the wise leaders wiser by cooperating, contributing, and supporting. Make the goals into victory celebrations. And make the Lord Jesus head of all. His guidance is sure for He sees the ultimate big picture.