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Seeing hundreds of photos of local children returning to school last week, I could not help but recall teachers who impacted my own life.

Some taught students effectively due to high doses of both energy and engagement.

Others were dedicated to their particular subject and taught with a contagious intensity.

As I grew older, I came to see the power of a teacher who not only could provide correct information but who could push students to ask deeper questions. Knowledge of the correct information is key, but sharing that information in a way that causes students think more fully is a mark of our wisest teachers.

While knowledge and wisdom are at times parallel and often intertwine, the ability to apply what we know to how we live ultimately passes beyond “just the facts” and into the realm of true wisdom.

Knowledge tells us what we have in front of us, but wisdom helps us decide how to live faithfully with whatever we have.

Scripture reveals that true wisdom comes from God. We are reminded that if we lack wisdom, we should ask, and God will give it generously (James 1:5).

Often in life, we become frustrated as if attempting to put together an elaborate toy or piece of furniture. It looks simple enough, and so we race ahead soon finding ourselves lost in the complex assembly. If we keep at this task long enough, we realize (or perhaps are told by an onlooker) that we should have read the directions first.

Spiritually, we often do the same.

Rather than seeking to know God’s will and asking for the wisdom to live each day, we rush ahead and only ask for help once the trouble hits. Such an attitude may seem like independence, but our repeated refusals to ask for help only further prove our lack of godly wisdom and genuine humility.

The Bible also teaches that wisdom comes not only directly from God but from the counsel of others who have faced the trials of life before us. A foolish person believes he is the first person to ever face his particular problem, but a wise person seeks out the advice of others (Prov 12:15).

A lot of us want to go our own way and to do things according to our own understanding. In some areas of life such confidence can be a blessing, but we are foolish if we allow self-confidence to prevent us from seeking out the wisdom others have gained through time and experience.

Wisdom understands that learning from others shows strength rather than weakness.

A person without wisdom is a great waster of time.

This individual sees the future either as too immediate to change or too far away to be concerned about.

When God’s Word tells us to walk in wisdom, one aspect of a such a life is “redeeming the time” (Eph 5:15-17). One who possesses wisdom understands that time is precious and will seek to make the most of each moment.

Knowledge can give us the facts we need to act, but wisdom tells us when action is needed and what action is best.

Knowledge can be sought, processed, and quantified while wisdom is received through prayer, discerned through conversations, and demonstrated through faithful actions.

May we come to appreciate how much we need not only to know the right answers, but to ask better questions and to faithfully apply godly wisdom to our lives.