I keenly remember first hearing about young Solomon’s prayer for wisdom when I was still a young child myself. “Wow!” I thought, “He asked God for wisdom and God gave him that abundantly and made him really rich, too!”

Devious little stinker that I was, I started praying for wisdom myself… and hoping for wealth. Ahh… sigh… what level of deliberate foolishness does it take for us to convince ourselves that we can fool God? 

God didn’t turn me into Solomon in either respect, but he did give me more than I deserved on both counts. In regard to physical property, I have more than I ever expected to have. I finished out my career making more money than I ever imagined I would make when I started teaching high school back in the Seventies at an annual salary of nine thousand dollars.

In regard to wisdom, I made it through high school without getting into any of the sorts of mischief and bad choices that often typify those years. As I progressed from young adulthood to my middle years, occasionally, older people would comment to me, “You have wisdom beyond your years.” 

I have to admit now, though, as I near seventy, I haven’t heard that in nearly thirty years! I’d like to think it’s because of all this gray hair, not because I’m getting dumber.


H. Arnett
12/2/2022