Wisdom and the Deer Season Event

Two years ago, this devotional published online. It seemed so appropriate for it to reappear as deer season is in full-swing this week in Oklahoma. In the devotional, I simply recounted a chance brush with a couple of men who exuded the attitude, "If deer can be hunted and killed, we can do it so much better than anyone else."

An impromptu photo snapped by my
 brother-in-law recently. He, Angie, and I 
saw about three or four times more than
the ones captured in the photo.

These guys were “outsiders” hunting deer. What gave it away? A high-powered pickup towing a classy trailer loaded with two expensive all-terrain vehicles had pulled off the state highway to gas up at the only gasoline pumps in our little town. These men were not overtly rude, just dismissive and aloof in attitude. Hunting whitetail deer was preeminent in their thoughts. Never would they have guessed that the short, retired schoolteacher saw deer on a regular basis without even looking through a rifle sight. How could they have known this nondescript female could point out a meadow where she had counted 15 deer one snowy morning?

King Solomon told of a little city that was being threatened in Ecclesiates 9:16  A wise, but poor, man provided a strategy to rescue the city from certain destruction. (ESV) Yet no one recognized what a contribution the poor man’s astute plan had made to their entire population’s safety.

Many times, we discount wise people who God brings across our life’s path. An elderly person with a soft, halting voice, a middle-aged woman restricted to a wheelchair, a precious preschooler, or a battle-worn man in a soup kitchen may have learned greatly from experience in following the Lord and studying His word. Sometimes their wisdom has been gained from initially making poor choices. The wheelchair-bound individual learns from adversity thrust into her successful life. The elderly often has gained wisdom as they have proven God’s promises through life experiences, both negative and positive. The little child simply lives her life with the innocence that Jesus said we should model.

As we go through our day, may we pause and listen each time God brings wisdom from an unlikely source. May we never judge God’s use of people in our lives based on their appearance, age, societal status, or any other stereotypical categorization. God’s wisdom comes in unlikely forms. Don’t miss it!