Wisdom in action

Today I have a very short story for you –

I also saw under the sun this example of wisdom that greatly impressed me: there was once a small city with only a few people in it. And a powerful king came against it, surrounded it and built huge siege works against it. Now there lived in that city a man poor but wise, and he saved the city by his wisdom. But nobody remembered that poor man. So I said, ‘Wisdom is better than strength.’ But the poor man’s wisdom is despised, and his words are no longer heeded.  Ecclesiastes 9:13-16

It’s the story of a wise man. Wise but poor. We don’t get any details. We don’t hear how he does it. But this man in his wisdom manages to save his small city from defeat by a powerful king. This is wisdom in action.

But nobody remembered this poor man. Maybe no one even knew what he had done. He gets no recognition. No praise for what he’s done. This is still wisdom in action.

The writer can observe that wisdom is greater than strength. But the people on the ground have no understanding of this. No one seems to have learnt a lesson from this. This truth has not been recognised and taken in. This is still wisdom in action.

Maybe this man went about his business quietly, doing what needed to be done, without drawing attention to himself. It was enough for him to know he was doing the right thing. He didn’t need to shout about it and flex his (intellectual) muscles and cry out ‘Look at me!’ This is still wisdom in action.

In actual fact, it was more than his wisdom being ignored. It was actually despised. People couldn’t understand what he’d done and therefore judged him and hated him for it. He was poor. He was physically nowhere near as powerful as the king. Who did he think he was? How could he possibly have played any part in the victory? This is still wisdom in action.

And moreover, wisdom does not always save the day. Humans have the ability to cause a lot of destruction. But wisdom is still wisdom. Whatever the outcome. This is still wisdom in action.

I am living this right now in one particular area of my life. We probably all are to some degree.

Sometimes, it’s really hard to be wise. Hard to be the better person. Hard not to be drawn into an argument that you know to be madness. Hard to stay quiet and resist the urge to defend yourself. Hard to be misunderstood. Hard to not even be asked your opinion in an issue that directly affects you.

Wisdom in action does the right thing.

Wisdom in action does not draw attention to itself.

Wisdom in action stands up for what is right.

Wisdom in action does not depend on reward or recognition.

Wisdom in action is wisdom in action, whatever the outcome.

TO DO: Watch out for wisdom in action today and where you see it, acknowledge it and give credit where credit is due.