Eureka!

I have a strange attraction to the shows on Discovery Channel about mining for gold. I've anxiously watched men give up everything they have in search of the glimmering flakes or shiny nuggets of precious metal. The efforts and hardships they endure seem to far outweigh the final product on the scale.

Or what about the pirate movies where they pursue hidden treasures of long ago? The lust for riches carries them to the point of insanity. Like a metal detector, the crazed looks in the eyes of the miners and pirates intensify the closer they get to the buried riches.

What causes these mere humans to pursue something with such aggressiveness? Is it the riches? Or is it the hope for a better life? Perhaps it is simply the thrill of the adventure.

Have you ever prayed for wisdom? I have. And for some reason I felt like because I prayed, it should be automatically bestowed upon me. Like I'd wake up one morning and suddenly feel my brain stuffed full of great wisdom. Which can be kind of scary since the Bible tells us in Job 12:12 that I could then find myself like a character in a movie and wake up one morning instantly old.

No, I'm not going to wake up instantly old , nor will I awaken to a new super-power-brain, infused with great wisdom. I'm learning that wisdom must be sought after and pursued aggressively. Proverbs 2:4 tells us to seek it [wisdom] like a miner searches for silver or a pirate for his hidden treasure. 

The men on the Discovery Channel have mined for gold in the Alaskan rivers, dove beneath the ice in the fridged Bearing Sea, and now they are mining in the South American snake infested, muddy, jungles. They spend redonculous amounts of money and risk limb and life in pursuit of the eternally sought after gold. They are crazy addicted to their hunt and I'm embarrassed to say that I'm addicted to watching it.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom... Psalm 111:10

I should be crazy addicted to the pursuit of wisdom and understanding. I need to "fear God" in the way they fear the land. Yet they know, if they do things correctly, the land will give forth her treasure. Someday I'll walk on streets paved with pure gold, but until then I will strive to do things correctly and know that God in His infinite wisdom will give forth nuggets as I need them. 

I suppose my pursuit of wisdom-gold isn't Discovery Channel worthy, but it is a life altering process to say the least.  

How much better to get wisdom than gold, to choose understanding rather than silver. Proverbs 16:16