The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction. Proverbs 1:7 (NKJV)
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. Proverbs 9:10 (NKJV)
While we have a concept of what wisdom is and a plan to seek and implement what we learn, we must also understand that the foundation of wisdom is knowing God. Our relationship with Him is what will form the bedrock of our foundation of wisdom. Many times, we hear of having fear of the Lord or the fear of God, but what we may have missed in translation is that a more nuanced understanding of fear would be a deep reverence for God. When we are getting to know God, we must remember that fear as we normally think of the word is not something we must do before God. He loves us and does not want us to be afraid of Him, but He is due much reverence and respect. When we accept that God is the foundation of creation, the creator of all that we are to learn, experience, and be, we can learn to trust Him further. This deeper trust and acknowledgment helps us to better understand why we are given the commands in the Bible. By getting to know God, we can make sense of His teachings and implement them better in our lives.
Today, take some time to quietly consider your relationship with God. If you have chosen to follow Him, think about how your experience as a Christian can help shape your quest for wisdom. In what ways do you think you can grow in wisdom based on your knowledge of God and how He has walked with you? If you haven’t trusted Him yet, how can you develop a relationship with God and seek to accept Him into your life? How do you think that could influence your development of wisdom?