Unfiltered
These questions are meant to be a choose-your-own-adventure. That is, use what you like. Skip what you don’t. And add to it in any way you see fit.
Intro Questions
- Who do you know that is wise? What do you admire about that person?
- Have you ever watched someone else make a bad decision, and you knew ahead of time it was headed toward disaster? What clued you in? And what happened – how did it end?
Wisdom
James 1.5
If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.
- Perhaps this is a simply question, but it could be a good place to start. What is wisdom? And what makes it so desirable?
- We can find wisdom from many sources…including (and especially) listening to the Holy Spirit and by reading the Bible. In your experiences, how does that work? What does that look like?
- Our emotions and our inexperience…both often get in the way of wisdom. What’s that all about? How have you seen that play out?
Ask & Listen
Proverbs 1.5 – Let the wise listen and add to their learning, and let the discerning get guidance.
Proverbs 12.15 – The way of fools seems right to them, but the wise listen to advice.
Proverbs 15.22 – Plains fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.
Proverbs 19.20 – Listen to advice and accept discipline, and at the end you will be counted among the wise.
- How do you react to these passages in Proverbs? What does it bring to mind? And how does it make you feel?
- Think about a past decision that you had to make, one in which you absolutely needed the wisdom of others. What did you do? Good or bad, how did it turn out?
- For each of these wise statements, read them out loud and discuss as a group. What comes to mind? What situation might this be particularly relevant for you now?
- Making wise decisions requires that we are open and to be open requires us to be humble.
- We need to seek counsel from people who have nothing to lose by telling us the truth.
- When looking for wisdom, ask someone who is where you want to be in life.
- Is there a specific decision you are trying to make right now? How are you going to seek out wisdom as you make up your mind?
