WHY WISDOM WORKS LIVE IS BECOMING “STOP BEING A FOOL”

Beginning in August, we are changing the name of Wisdom Works Live to STOP BEING A FOOL, and while the name may sound stronger, the mission behind it has not changed at all; in fact, I believe the new name simply says more clearly what we have been attempting to accomplish from the beginning.

We are not studying Proverbs merely to become more knowledgeable about Proverbs.

We are studying Proverbs because FOOLISHNESS IS EXPENSIVE, and nowhere do we pay a greater price for foolishness than in our relationships.

A foolish decision can destroy years of trust. A foolish word can wound someone we love. A foolish friendship can influence the direction of our lives. A foolish marriage can produce consequences that reach into generations, and foolish ambition can cause us to begin looking at people, not as souls created in the image of God whom we are called to love wisely, but as opportunities to be USED for our own advancement.

This is why today's Proverb arrested my attention:

“He that oppresseth the poor to increase his riches, and he that giveth to the rich, shall surely come to want.”

Proverbs 22:16 KJV

At first glance, these appear to be two completely different people, because the first man TAKES from someone while the second man GIVES to someone; the first appears selfish while the second may even appear generous, yet Solomon forces us to look beneath the behavior and examine something far more revealing.

WHY are they doing what they are doing?

The first man sees someone poorer and weaker than himself and asks, perhaps without ever saying it aloud, “How can this person benefit me?”

The second man sees someone richer and more powerful than himself and essentially asks THE SAME QUESTION.

One exploits weakness.

The other courts strength.

One uses the poor because they have LESS.

The other favors the rich because they have MORE.

Different behavior, but potentially the SAME FOLLY.

This is why Relationship Wisdom requires more than learning communication techniques, resolving conflict, or getting along with difficult people. Relationship Wisdom is wise, ordered love under God, which means wisdom must govern not merely WHO I relate to, but WHY I relate to them the way that I do.

James confronts precisely this kind of disorder when he writes:

“My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons.”

James 2:1 KJV

He then describes the rich man entering the assembly and receiving preferential treatment while the poor man is treated as though his life possesses less value.

That is not merely bad manners.

That is DISORDERED LOVE.

And we should not imagine that we have escaped this temptation merely because we live two thousand years later.

We do it with titles, wealth, followers, influence, education, celebrity, business connections, church positions, social-media audiences, and increasingly in this AI age, with anyone whom we believe possesses information, access, technology, or opportunity that can advance us.

So perhaps the uncomfortable question Solomon forces us to ask is not merely:

“Do I love people?”

Almost everyone will answer yes.

The better question is:

“Do I love people differently according to what I believe they can do FOR ME?”

That question reaches much deeper.

Do I become more attentive when I discover someone's income?

Do I become more interested when I discover their influence?

Do I treat the person who can open a door for me differently from the person who seemingly has

nothing to offer me?

Do I GIVE because I genuinely desire another person's good, or have I learned how to disguise ambition as generosity?

And perhaps most painfully, are some of my relationships actually TRANSACTIONS that I have learned to call relationships?

There is a reason Scripture tells us:

“He that oppresseth the poor reproacheth his Maker: but he that honoureth him hath mercy on the poor.”

Proverbs 14:31 KJV

There it is.

There IS ALWAYS a Proverb for That.

How we treat people reveals something about how we regard the God who made them.

And THAT is why we are changing the name.

STOP BEING A FOOL is not an insult thrown at everybody else. It is a biblical summons directed FIRST toward ourselves, because wisdom begins when I become willing to recognize the folly operating in ME before becoming preoccupied with identifying the folly operating in YOU.

JOIN US TODAY AT 6:00 PM ET ON YOUTUBE:

Here is the link:

https://youtube.com/@thewisdomcoach47?si=DvdCcQlAv0jRb7vo

Today we are focused on Relationship Wisdom, and we will be opening Proverbs 22 together, examining the text carefully, looking beneath the English where necessary, allowing Scripture to interpret Scripture, and then asking how these truths should govern the way we love, lead, serve, choose, correct, forgive, trust, and relate to others.

Before we meet, READ PROVERBS 22 KJV, choose the verse that speaks most clearly to you concerning Relationship Wisdom, and come prepared to tell us WHAT you saw and WHY you believe it matters.

Bring your questions.

Bring your Bible.

But most importantly, bring a heart willing to be examined by the Word, because the purpose of wisdom is not merely that we might SEE folly more clearly.

It is that, by the grace of God, we might finally STOP BEING A FOOL.

#TheresAProverbForThat

#Proverbs12X

#StopBeingAFool

#TheWisdomCoach

#aiforkingdombuilders

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WHY WISDOM WORKS LIVE IS BECOMING “STOP BEING A FOOL”