When I put down on my profile that I read alot of non-fiction books with boring titles, I meant it. And I'm not sure that any of the books I read really profit me (not that they do not have valuable information, but that I am so inept at applying what I have learned). I read alot of books on communication skills, and business skills (primarily social skills). There are books on how to be a good teacher, how to be a good speaker, how to write well, how to publish, how to lead, how to manage,how to build chicken coops, how to grow gardens, how to make soap, how to bake bread, how to homeschool for brilliant children, how to be a good wife, how to be a good mom. I should be the most accomplished person in the world if book learning was all there is to it. But, alas, there is more.
I have heard my pastor say on many occasions that wisdom is knowing the right thing to do at the right time and in the right way. There is a close relationship between knowledge and wisdom, the primary difference being the ability to apply what you know in the right way. Knowledge alone satisfies the mind, and makes you feel smart, but what does it really profit if you cannot apply it. Knowledge puffs up.
One major thing that I have noticed is that all the social skills books say about the same things, and it is something that can be learned by a careful reading of the Bible. In fact, the secret to positive thinking, to winning friends and influencing people etc., all falls into a very definite "formula". Do you want to know what it is? It is to 1.) Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind, and 2.) to love your neighbor as you love yourself. It's also stated as
"do unto others as you would have them to do unto you."
Of course, even the New Testament elaborates on how to do these things. I never knew before we came to Alabama how many times the Bible says to encourage others, to receive others, to greet others, to accept others, to love others, to do for others. These are the "one another" passages, and my pastor often preaches on them (he is not liberal in his views by any means, and does take a conservative stand - he is, however, one of the greatest examples of being a friend to others that I have ever seen - he has influence because he has love).
This morning, after my bible reading, I finished up my latest book on social skills, and here is a sampling of suggestions I gleaned from that book:
-be supportive
- be able to teach
-be able to delegate well
-be able to communicate well
-give rewards and praise
-take care of others
-go to bat for others
-criticize privately
More ideas are to be constantly developing new skills, be willing to use these skills to help the organization rather than for personal advancement, have a good sense of humor, don't take yourself too seriously, but do all you can to improve yourself. But all these tips can be tied to biblical principles, and if I were not so lazy (or desiring to move on to other things today), I could tie the principles in the book to a bible principles and do no harm to either.
The reason for today's rant is that yesterday I blew it. With all my "superior wisdom from a diligent study of the scriptures" and a "righteous indignation over being misunderstood", I simply blew it. I was nothing more than a self-righteous know-it-all. And all the reading of "how to be a wonderful person" books can not make a self-righteous know-it-all someone who is respected and listened to. No one cares how much you know, until they know how much you care. I failed to show that I really do care. I failed.
