“No great wisdom can be reached without sacrifice.” – C.S. Lewis from The Magician’s Nephew

In a recent post, we discussed the need to distinguish between data, information, knowledge, and wisdom. As it happens from time to time, I hit “Publish” only to find some additional notes on the subject — you could call this what I wish I’d said about wisdom, or what else I should have said about wisdom. You can send me your votes via email if you like.

Walk with the wise and go to the head of the class

So here’s the recap: there are more data — more facts — and more domains of knowledge than ever in history. In so many ways, this is a good thing. Just take medicine as one example. If you’re born prematurely,  diagnosed with a dread disease, or wounded in battle, there’s never been a better time to be alive. Survival rates for certain types of cancer, preemies, and combat wounded are increasing with increased knowledge.

Conversely, our expanded capabilities often enable us to drive faster than our moral headlights. Our technological prowess enables us to do amazing things but it also distracts us and dulls our impulse to ask whether those are things one ought to do.

Build a wall

If you lived in a flood prone area, you’d need to ensure that your property wouldn’t be inundated the next time the river rose. One way you could address this would be by creating a barrier between you and the potential flood. You see temporary walls made of sandbags for just such a purpose. If your moral faculties are in danger of being sundered because of the flood of new information, you can establish a levee for your mind. Here are a few ideas to get your started:

Go on a data diet – No more FOMO for you. Try to pre-screen and be more discerning about what you feed your mind and your spirit. Positive psychologists — yes, there really are such people — say that it’s a bad idea to watch TV news before going to bed. This is because their unofficial motto is, “If it bleeds, it leads.” Given that the entire point of television is to get you to watch and act on the sponsors’ ads, it’s no wonder it’s called television programming — you’re being groomed to respond to the sales pitches. Less really can be more.

Go to bed – You’ll integrate what’s important and eliminate what’s not if you build in adequate time for rest. In a future post, I’ll give you some of what I’ve learned from my years in the mattress industry about sleep and why you don’t just love it — you need it.

Start a news fast  – A famous evangelist once said a Christian should go through life with a Bible in one hand and a newspaper in the other.  He meant that we should be present in the world and attentive to the needs around us — hearing and doing what the word of God says. This was the antidote to the church’s being “so Heavenly minded that it’s no earthly good.”

I stand by that idea, but you have to recognize that journalists seem to get paid by the column inch (that is, by how many words they write). And many if not most present their opinions disguised as objective journalism. If you want to know what’s going on without having to slog through the sea of gray, skip straight to the opinion pages and read the editorials and op eds. You’ll get a summary of the major issues and hear the arguments for and against. Much easier to make up your own mind — and opinion presented as such isn’t pretending to be unbiased.

Use speed reading – I took a course many years ago, and I recommend the multi-pass approach to help you gain familiarity with a lot of material and then decide what’s worth the investment of your valuable time. The instructor taught us that each successive pass was like a different more of transportation. High-level skimming was akin to flying over the territory in a helicopter. The next, more detailed pass was like riding through town on a double-decker bus. The next level of engagement was like riding through on a bicycle, while the highest level of detailed reading was like walking

Defrag your mental hard drive – Develop the spiritual discipline of solitude and contemplation. Yes, many faith traditions teach meditation in one form or another, but this isn’t so much about emptying the mind, as it is about allowing it to be filled with the Right Stuff. Be still and quiet and process it all.

Develop a biblical worldview – We’ve discussed this before. Viewing the foundational questions of Creation, Fall, Redemption, and Restoration through the lens of Scripture will help you understand and evaluate how new knowledge rates according to a transcendent moral scale. Even better, you’ll be able to articulate for your children and your friends how and why you get there.

Cultivate friendships with wise people – It’s been a while since I last encouraged you to find a mentor. Find a mentor.

Understand that wisdom takes time — more like a lifetime — to acquire. It isn’t something you can download. As King Solomon taught, “He who walks with the wise will become wise.” Note that he didn’t say, “He who stands next to the wise in line at Starbucks will become wise.” It’s a transfer that takes place in the context of relationships.

If God has already placed you in proximity to wise people, understand that this is another way he is showing love to you. And if you are not hanging with wise people, ask God for new friends.

I believe that all truth is God’s property. Genuine Wisdom has to be true in order to be wisdom. Therefore Wisdom is God’s property — His to give to whomever He chooses. But God is generous and will give wisdom to anyone who asks.

So how about you? In what ways are you seeking wisdom? Add your comments below.

NOTE: I’m going to do my part to help lighten the information load. Starting this week, I’m revising my publishing schedule to one post per week. Of course, if events demand it, or if I feel inspired, I will reserve the right to post more frequently. In the meantime, please subscribe by providing your email address in the popup or at the top of the page, and I’ll send you a weekly recap every Saturday. I’m going to revise the email format to provide more opportunities to weigh in on more topics. Thanks for reading — please don’t stop.