WISDOM

Experience comes from what we have done. Wisdom comes from what we have done badly. 

Theodore Levitt, Harvard Business School.

An angel appears at a faculty meeting and tells the dean that in return for his unselfish and exemplary behavior, the Lord will reward him with his choice of infinite wealth, wisdom or beauty. Without hesitating, the dean selects infinite wisdom.

"Done!" says the angel, and disappears in a cloud of smoke and a bolt of lightning. Now, all heads turn toward the dean, who sits surrounded by a faint halo of light. At length, one of his colleagues whispers, "Say something."

The dean looks at them and says, "I should have taken the money." 

Betsy Devine and Joel E. Cohen, Absolute Zero Gravity, Simon & Schuster.

A colleague of mine at NASA was assigned to prepare a presentation on lessons learned from our bad experiences with the Hubble Space Telescope. On his chart at the briefing, lesson No.1 read: "In naming your mission, never us a word that rhymes with trouble."

Reader's Digest, March 1993, Page 128.

Wisdom is the power to see and the inclination to choose the best and highest goal, together with the surest means of attaining it.

J.I. Packer, Knowing God, p. 80.

Wisdom is the reward you get for a lifetime of listening when you would have preferred to talk.

Doug Larson.

Automaker Henry Ford asked electrical genius Charlie Steinmetz to build the generators for his factory. One day the generators ground to a halt, and the repairmen couldn't find the problem.  So Ford called Steinmetz, who tinkered with the machines for a few hours and then threw the switch. The generators whirred to life--but Ford got a bill for $10,000 from Steinmetz.  Flabbergasted, the rather tightfisted car maker inquired why the bill was so high. 

Steinmetz's reply: For tinkering with the  generators, $10. For knowing where to tinker, $9,990. Ford paid the bill. 

Today in the Word, MBI, April 1990, p. 27.

A wise man learns from the mistakes of others. Nobody lives long enough to make them all himself.

Source Unknown.

There's a story about a proud young man who came to Socrates asking for knowledge. He walked up to the muscular philosopher and said, "O great Socrates, I come to you for knowledge."

Socrates recognized a pompous numbskull when he saw one. He led the young man through the streets, to the sea, and chest deep into water. Then he asked, "What do you want?" 

"Knowledge, O wise Socrates," said the young man with a smile. 

Socrates put his strong hands on the man's shoulders and pushed him under. Thirty seconds later Socrates let him up. "What do you want?" he asked again. 

"Wisdom," the young man sputtered, "O great and wise Socrates." 

Socrates crunched him under again. Thirty seconds passed, thirty-five. Forty. Socrates let him up. The man was gasping. "What do you want, young man?" 

Between heavy, heaving breaths the fellow wheezed, "Knowledge, O wise and wonderful..." 

Socrates jammed him under again Forty seconds passed. Fifty. "What do you want?" 

"Air!" the young man screeched. "I need air!"

 "When you want knowledge as you have just wanted air, then you will have knowledge." 

M. Littleton, Moody Monthly, June 1989, p. 29.

Spiritual requirements for gaining the following: Reverence (Proverbs 9:10), Humility (Proverbs 11:2, 15:33), Willingness and Ability to be Taught (Proverbs 9:9, 15:31, 19:20), Diligence (Proverbs 8:17, 2:4-5), Uprightness (Proverbs 2:7), Faith (James 1:5-8).

Decision Making and the Will of God, p. 192.

You don't have to be listed in Who's Who to know what's what.

Source Unknown.

Wisdom is spiritually opportunistic. 

Source Unknown.

A wise man learns by the experience of others. An ordinary man learns by his own experience. A fool learns by nobody's experience.

Source Unknown.