Proverbs 4:7 “The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom, and whatever you get, get insight.”

My first REAL crush on a girl was on Carol. In High School. She was my first kiss. She was very bright (graduated a year early) and pretty and talented and she liked me. Go figure. And the summer we started seeing each other, I had the wonderful privilege of sharing the Gospel with her and I believe seeing her come to faith in Christ. But she went off to college and I had another year of school and soon we lost contact completely.

About 15 years ago, after the notice of an upcoming high school reunion, I started searching the web for old school chums, and began wondering where Carol was and how life had gone for her. Surly she was married to some extraordinary guy. But she was nowhere to be found.

After tracking down her old best friend, she put me on to Carol’s older brother whom I had known, and was finally able to contact him. Norm was surprised to hear from me. We chatted cordially about other siblings we knew and I finally inquired about Carol. The phone got quiet. “You don’t know?” he asked. Know what? I replied. Carol passed away. 2 years out of high school.

It seems that Carol thought she had contracted the flu. She went to the hospital, and they thought the same thing and treated her accordingly. But she didn’t have the flu. She had contracted hepatitis. They caught the mistaken diagnosis too late. It claimed her life.

What has this to do with Proverbs 4? A lot. In most areas of life, making a decision without ALL the facts isn’t actually life threatening. In Carol’s case it was. And Proverbs is constantly calling us to not settle for surface information on anything – but to gain true wisdom – insight.

This is especially critical when it comes to understanding spiritual truth – where the consequences may far exceed merely life-threatening levels, but reach eternal, soul-threatening heights.

Never settle for a surface understanding of things, especially in Biblical truth. Dig. Inquire. Seek the entire story. Reserve your judgments. Hear both sides, all sides if more. Think. Consider. Turn it over and over. Pray.

As in the case before us in Proverbs – get wisdom and insight into the need to stay on course. What path to walk in life. Where am I going? Where are my steps, my actions, my attitudes and my decisions taking me? Or am I just “going” – not really giving thought to my final destination?

Do I understand how God’s economy in how this world works? And where am I in relation to it? Do I understand the true nature of sin, and of salvation? Of faith and imputed righteousness? Of the need for the cross and the substitutionary death of Christ?

The difference in such matters is not merely an issue of life and death – but of eternal life and death.

Get wisdom. And whatever you get, get insight.