Seek Wise Counsel

From the time I was twelve and upward, I attended a small country church. The members of that church family were nurturing, caring, and loving.

Recently, I was reminiscing with a childhood friend who also attended that church. We both agree that our experiences there influenced our lives positively and were instrumental when we made major decisions. The adults from church spent time with the young people, often joining us in a variety of social activities. We never felt intimidated when approaching these adults to seek advice on some topic. We valued the perspective of wise, dependable, and informed adults above that of our peers. For this reason, I had difficulty reconciling the circumstances and decisions of King Rehoboam in 1 Kings 12. I was baffled that he would seek advice from his inexperienced peers on such an essential matter as ruling a kingdom instead of consulting those with greater depths of wisdom and experience. Also, how ironic that Rehoboam actually rejected counsel from the older men who had previously advised the wisest man who ever lived—his father, Solomon. The elders counseled Rehoboam to deal kindly with his people.

Upon the advice of his younger friends, he did just the opposite.

Rehoboam considered the advice from the inexperienced to be more valuable than that of the older men. The older men had seen the fulfillment of King Solomon’s prayer during his reign after he petitioned God for “an understanding heart to judge Your people, that I may discern between good and evil” (1 Kings 3:9, NKJV). They knew that God gave Solomon exceeding “wisdom . . . understanding, and largeness of heart” (1 Kings 4:29, NKJV).

Had King Rehoboam followed in the spiritual footsteps of his father, he would have experienced the same benefits that came from his own father’s counsel: “A wise man will hear and increase learning” (Proverbs 1:5, NKJV). Unlike Rehoboam, let us learn to seek wise counsel from the wise. Dear Lord, please help me seek and accept instruction and gain wisdom from Your Holy Word. I pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Annette L. Vaughan