I just dropped my youngest daughter at college last Friday. It's her second year. Each year is a challenge of figuring out how to pay for school. I'm proud of both daughters who are paying their own way through school. They couldn't do it without student loans. My older daughter is in year five of a five year/dual degree program. When she graduates this spring her student loan debt will be about $30,000. Probably not as bad as some and not as good as others.
College is expensive. Even with grants the financial burden of getting an education is severe. Pursuing a dream is always costly. Getting the tools necessary to accomplish dream exacts a cost. There is always an investment required.
Solomon talks about the cost of gaining wisdom in Proverbs 4. People spend a lot on education these days. But education alone isn't enough. You need wisdom to apply your learning. Solomon exclaims, "Get wisdom, get understanding." Later in chapter four he says that wisdom is supreme, get wisdom even if it cost you all you have, get understanding.
When Solomon talks about understanding, he's not just talking about getting information. Although information helps in discernment, he is talking about gaining the insight of wisdom here. It's the insight to know what to do with the information you have acquired. Lots of people know computer programming and understand computer technology, but Bill Gates had the insight or wisdom that very few have. There are a lot of financial investors, but few with the wisdom of Warren Buffet.
The advice that I would give all college students and truly all students of life would be to heed Solomon's words here in Proverbs 4 about getting wisdom. Wisdom adds so much more to your life. The quality of your life will improve. The hardships will decrease. The path of wisdom may seem different from that of the world's, but it's the safest, most profitable path to take.
God, in this confusing world, I need wisdom. I don't need the wisdom of man. I need your wisdom. Give me wisdom today. Give me the wisdom I need to handle today's challenges. Give me the wisdom to understand the steps I need to take today to get to where you want me to be tomorrow and on down the road.
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