According to a recent survey 13% of drivers age 18-20 involved in car accidents admitted to texting or talking on their mobile DEVICES at the time of the crash. As technology and knowledge increase, common sense has spiraled downwards and keeps sinking.
Sorry, 21st CENTURY DARLINGS, having no signals won’t BREAK THE WORLD. We’ve all run this RAT RACE for some time. We need another distraction as much as we need a backseat driver.
Eighty-two percent of Americans age 16-17 own cell phones, more than half admit to talking or texting while driving. While I’m sure many of these teens believe they are mature and smart enough to do two things at once, they lack the wisdom that comes with age for most people.
If you are an older millennial or from an older generation, you can remember when most of the stupid things people do today, like not trying to drive while not paying attention was common sense or as the hashtag goes “uncommon sense”.
We have become a society that is so educated and technically advanced that we lack common sense. If you’ve ever spent any time with me personally, you’ve heard me say, “That’s a “no-brainer”.
If I can figure something out while missing 30% of my brain due to the brain damage I sustained in college, then an average person should be able to figure it out. Sometimes it really sucks to BE ME. The brain doesn’t GROW back.
Still, through the pain, wisdom can be gained. And that is what this new series will focus on, no-brainers we should learn as we grow. This series will cover a range of topics from morals to physical health, LOVE and spirituality. But let’s start with wisdom.
Wisdom?
The dictionary defines wisdom as: knowledge that is gained by having experiences in life, the natural ability to understand things that most other people cannot understand, knowledge of what is proper or reasonable, good sense.
I was taught as a young man that wisdom begins with the fear of God and applying lessons learned to your life. This sums up the Jewish book of Shlomoh, the teachings of King Solomon, who is known as the wisest man to ever live. Both Christians and Muslims acknowledge his wisdom. He was the king who had it all and it wasn't enogh.
According to the Bible, Solomon requested wisdom from God, so that Solomon could govern God’s people (2 Chronicles 1:11) Solomon’s wisdom wasn’t for selfish gain.
I don’t believe Solomon’s wisdom just fell into his head instantly or came on like a flashlight. But was more of a continuous journey of gathering tidbits of wisdom through every-day MOMENTS.
I believe this because the book of Proverbs as we know it wasn’t even put together until after Solomon died. I look at it as a daily diary or journal of INSPIRATION and regrets jotted down for others to learn from.
Solomon begins by explaining the importance of gaining wisdom (Proverbs 1:2-19). It is worth more than silver and gold (Proverbs 3:14, 16:16). fools die for the lack of wisdom (Proverbs 10:21)
Solomon wrote three chapters warning about adulterous women (Proverbs 5, 6, 7). It is well documented that Solomon had 700 wives and 300 concubines. I can see where he acquired his expertise and wisdom on women and adultery.
But, HELLO, Ashley Morgan, that’s a no-brainer! I didn’t need to read the book of Proverbs to understand the consequences of adultery or promiscuous women. Whether you have 70% of your brain or 100%, anyone can see that nothing good can come from adultery it, is a barren wasteland.
However, I did learn a lot from Solomon about the right kind of woman to grow in love with in the most famous and final chapter in Proverbs, A Proverbs 31 woman. I’m not talking about a woman who has memorized Scripture, but one who strives to live it.
She is worth more than rubies or GOLD. A wise man knows that charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting (31:30). A BEAUTIFUL face doesn’t always have a beautiful heart. She is hard-working and has a servants’ heart.
Solomon describes how she takes care of her household and even makes her own bedding and clothes. Until the Industrial Revolution, it was common for housewives to make all of the family clothing.
The arts of sewing and embroidery have become a thing of the past in many households today. I can remember when I was younger, watching my grandmother sow into the late night.
When she died, my mother inherited her sewing machine and after her death, her cousin asked for my grandmother’s machine. But, these are a few of my childhood memories. Some are good and others bad.
Memories?
Fortunately, I can’t remember the accident that changed my life. But, I can remember those first few months after it and going through rehab. It was then that I first learned about muscle memory.
Since the left side of my face was PARALYZED from my brain injury, I had to perform facial exercises every morning to stimulate the muscles in my face, or I CAN’T FEEL MY FACE.
While my brain won’t grow back, muscle memory can be learned to compensate for the lack of feeling. It occurs over time through reputation without conscious effort.
Another known fact about me is I’m a gym rat and workout regularly. It’s not about how much I can FLEX or to FEEL GOOD, I want to grow.
A key factor in muscle growth is changing up workout routines or else THERE’LL COME A DAY muscle memory will form out of habit, which is bad. It makes it hard to stay MOTIVATED.
I see this happening a lot in the church as well, we get used to our Sunday traditions or denominational practices. We meander from one church event to another like mindless zombies looking for the next great fix.
The author of Hebrews reminds us that we should be growing in our faith, not regurgitating spiritual basics like YOU ARE LOVED and God is ALWAYS ENOUGH(Hebrews 5:12-6:2). Those are no-brainers!