【双语灵修】寻求劝教 Seeking Counsel

音频

“愚妄人所行的，在自己眼中看为正直。惟智慧人，肯听人的劝教。” - 箴 12:15

作为孩子，我们学会了在遇到不确定的事情时寻求帮助。我们在课堂上举手发言；我们把问题带给可能有答案的成年人。我们想学东西，所以我们在需要时寻求帮助、信息和建议。

对我们许多人来说，随着年龄的增长，这种情况往往会发生变化。我们开始相信，独立和自己想出办法才是最重要的。我们变得不太愿意寻求帮助或建议，因为我们不想显得软弱。

很多时候，我们自己的经验或专业知识可能已经足够了。而且并非所有的建议都是好的建议，这是我们许多人一路走来所学到的。

但是今天的箴言经文给了我们一个有益的提醒：在我们自己眼中显得聪明，以为我们总是知道什么是最好的，或者认为我们的方法总是正确的——这是愚蠢的。

征求意见或寻求帮助并不会使我们变得软弱，它扩展了我们辨别复杂情况的能力。通常，一个更聪明或更有经验的人可以比我们更好地看到或了解情况。有时，神专门为此在我们的生活中安排了一些人。

耶稣本人并不害怕寻求建议或智慧——特别是在向祂的天父祈祷时。我们会效法祂的榜样吗？

祷告

父啊，让我不要以为我总是知道什么是最好的。赐给我谦卑，向你寻求智慧，并向比我智慧的人寻求建议。阿们。

箴言 12:15

15愚妄人所行的在自己眼中看为正直，唯智慧人肯听人的劝教。

Seeking Counsel

"The way of fools seems right to them, but the wise listen to advice." - Proverbs 12:15

As children, we learn to ask for help if there's something we aren't sure about. We raise a hand in the classroom; we bring questions to adults who might have answers for us. We want to learn things, so we ask for help, information, and advice as we need it.

For many of us, this tends to change as we grow older. We start believing that being independent and figuring things out on our own is most important. We become less inclined to ask for help or advice because we don't want to seem weak.

Oftentimes our own experience or expertise may be enough. And not all advice is good advice, as many of us learn along the way.

But our verse from Proverbs today gives a helpful reminder that it is foolish to become wise in our own eyes, to believe that we always know what's best, or to assume that our way is always right.

Asking for advice or for help does not make us weak. It expands our ability to discern complicated situations. Often someone who is wiser or more experienced can see or understand the situation better than we can. And sometimes God puts people in our lives specifically for that reason.

Jesus himself was not afraid to ask for advice or wisdom—particularly in prayer to his Father in heaven. Will we follow his example?

Prayer

Father, keep me from thinking I always know what is best. Give me the humility to ask you for wisdom and to seek advice from others who are wiser than I am. Amen.