Proverbs 1:7

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction. (NIV)

Most of the time, we think of wisdom as gaining more knowledge about something. The more we know, the more we understand, the wiser we become. And that’s one aspect of wisdom, but where do we begin? What is the first step to becoming wise?

The first step to become wise is to “fear” the Lord. The word “fear” in this sense means to have a deep respect for God with an overwhelming feeling of admiration, i.e., to be in awe of Him. There are several reasons why this is important:

• It gets our minds off of us and on to Him
• It puts us in a mindset of humility
• It makes us more receptive of instruction and correction
• It changes how we view our daily surroundings, people and the things that happen in life

It’s like a farmer who wants to have a great harvest in the fall…it all starts in early spring by tilling the ground and preparing it for planting. He has to do some “prep work” before he can expect a harvest. The same is true with godly wisdom. You’ve got to do your “prep work” first, i.e., develop a deep respect for and relationship with our Creator first. That prepares you for a great “harvest” later.

Have you done any “prep work” lately?