For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.

I was one of the first people in my family to go to college, so my parents and I didn’t have a lot of guidance with how the process worked: which scholarships to apply for (if I even had the GPA for them), which schools to consider, how to apply. And I definitely didn’t know how to navigate life as a college student. But one thing that my dad said throughout the process took a lot of pressure off of me. He said, “College exists to help you learn how to learn. You won’t find the answer to every problem there, but you’ll know how to look for the answers.”

‍

This was a huge relief for me in the moment, but it also gave me a new perspective throughout my time in college. What I realize now is that my dad was showing me the gap between knowledge and wisdom. I could have known the answer to every test I took but still lacked the wisdom to apply it to a career after graduating.

‍

Knowledge is very important. The problem is, once we learn something, it can sometimes feel good enough just to know it. We know eating healthy food will make us feel better. We know reading a book at night will give us better sleep than watching a screen. We know we should treat others with respect. But do we still sometimes get fast food on our way home to hold a screen, inches from our face in bed, just to wake up in a bad mood and say something we don’t mean to our coworker? My guess is we probably do.

‍

Now more than ever, we can feel the insatiable need to get more information. There is more access now to more information than at any point in human history, and that is such a good thing. I am in no way implying that we should stop gathering knowledge. But what if we didn’t settle for just knowing something, but instead sought to apply the things we know to our lives?

The Apostle Paul had seen the gap between knowledge and wisdom firsthand. Before becoming a follower of Jesus, discipling others, planting churches, and writing almost half of the New Testament, he spent his time as a Pharisee (or a religious leader) who knew Scripture inside and out. Oh, and he also had a well-known reputation for murdering Christians.

‍

Paul himself was someone who knew all the rules. As a Pharisee, he would have been required to memorize entire books of the Bible from a very young age, so he had plenty of knowledge. He would have read and memorized the verse, “Thou shalt not kill,” before he could walk (that’s an exaggeration, but you see what I mean). So how does someone with so much knowledge miss the mark so badly? Because he lacked spiritual wisdom.

‍

As Paul writes to the church in Ephesus, I can’t help but think he has the gap between knowledge and wisdom in mind. He writes in chapter 1 verse 17, “I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.” Paul’s knowledge created a gap between him and God, but the wisdom he received from God bridged that gap.

‍

As Paul himself experienced, the purpose of wisdom is to know God better, not just to know more about God. But that isn’t reserved for a select few; that is available to all of us. As you read the Bible, as you pray, as you spend time in these very devotionals, there is a lot to learn. But don’t settle for learning about God; spend these times with God, praying as Paul prayed for the Ephesians, God, give me the Spirit of wisdom and revelation that I may know you better.

God, thank you for being present with us. We don’t have to go searching for you because you’re already here. We pray that you would give us the Spirit of wisdom. We don’t want to settle for knowing about you, we want to know YOU. Give us wisdom that can only come from you to put our circumstances, thoughts, and desires in their proper place. You are our Father, and you have what is best for us. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.