“If any of you is without wisdom, ask for it from God who gives generously and ungrudgingly to all, and it will be given.” James 1:5
There is an old story of an elderly man sitting next to a younger man on a plane during a long flight.
Growing bored, the younger man asked the older man if he wanted to play a game to pass the time. The older man really just wanted to rest during the flight and passed. But after much persisting and pleading from the younger man, the older man finally gave in and asked what the other had in mind.
The young man said, “This is a fun game: If I ask you a question you don’t know the answer to, you have to give me $5. But if you ask me a question, and I don’t know the answer, I will pay you $500.”
The older man figured it was a way to keep the passenger beside him quiet, so he agreed.
The younger man asked the first question. “What’s the distance from the Earth to the Moon?”
Without saying a word, the older man reached into his pocket and pulled out a five-dollar bill and handed it to the younger man.
The younger man nodded, proud of himself.
Next it was the older man’s turn. He asked, “’What goes up a hill with three legs, and comes down with four?”
The younger man got on his laptop and searched everything he could think of, but nothing came up.
Then he sent e-mails to all the smart people he knew, but no one could answer.
At last he gave up.
By now, the older man had fallen asleep.
The confused younger man woke him up and handed him $500.
The old man put the money in his pocket and went back to sleep.
The younger one couldn’t wait any longer. He woke the older man up. “So, what goes up a hill with three legs and comes down with four?”
The old man reached into his pocket, handed the younger man $5 and went back to sleep.
While this story shows us to never underestimate our older generation, it also makes another valid point.
Life is full of questions –some easier to answer than others. But where do you go to find the answers to your toughest questions?
Do you rely on yourself and your own intelligence the most? Do you seek out friends? The internet? All those places have answers, but do you remember to also seek the answers from God? And when you do seek God’s discernment, do you wait to hear God’s response?
If we go too fast through life, not turning to our heavenly Father for answers, in the end we could find ourselves paying a price that could be very high indeed.
Watering the Seeds
Whom do you turn to first, when you have a question in life?
How do you make your questions known to God?
