Riches are the least worthy of gifts which God can give a man. What are they to God's word, to bodily gifts, such as beauty and health, or to the gifts of the mind, such as understanding, skill, wisdom! Yet men toil for them day and night, and take no rest. Therefore God commonly gives riches to foolish people, to whom he gives nothing else.

If Any of You Lacks Wisdom, Let Him Pray

"But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. - James 1:5-8

Do we truly realize the importance of prayer or do we think we can be wise without a deep and consistent communion with God?  Wisdom is much more than a simple quest for knowledge.  It is more than an effort to gain and store the right information.  I do not mean to say that knowledge is unimportant.  The amount of intimacy a relationship enjoys is directly related to how much knowledge one individual has of another.  The greater the knowledge, the greater the level of potential intimacy to be enjoyed.  However, we must be careful to remember that, while knowledge is necessary for intimacy, it does not guarantee it.  That is why we must pray for wisdom.

It seems that there is a way of attaining knowledge that increases our self-love ("Knowledge puffs up."-1 Cor. 8:1).  And there is a way of attaining knowledge that increases our zeal (or passion or affection) for God.  It is the foolish man who has zeal without knowledge.  And it is the obstinate man who has knowledge without zeal.  The wise man or woman has zeal that flows out of knowledge.  Wisdom is knowledge in action; it is belief that responds in worship.  That is why we must pray for wisdom.

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