A Tiny Text With Powerful Applications

Without counsel plans fail, but with many advisers they succeed.  Proverbs 15:22

This verse has played such a pivotal role in my life. Especially as a young dude. For me, it started with an invitation to study the proverbs. I was sitting at Denny’s with my old youth pastor, eating a Grand Slam (which is a great deal for poor hungry college students), listening to him telling me that I could - and probably should - read through Proverbs in a month. This was his subtle way of saying, “Tom you’re an idiot. Start reading.” One chapter a day, then repeat. Wash, rinse, repeat if necessary.

I started doing that my Junior year and, since then, have reaped the rewards of sound advice.

As I learned about the importance of mentors in my life, I began to surround myself with wiser men than I who were older and more experienced in all facets of life. And I began to make mental notes on men who had specific giftings and might be good to ask for advice one day, should I need it.

This has paid itself back over and over in my life and I want to share with you some specifics I have learned about gaining wisdom through the counsel of others; men and women who have a thing or two to say about life.

Why would anyone need the counsel of others?

Well, there is a plethora of things we could use advice for. Being a student of history, I decided to look up some of the worst decisions made without any evidence of good counsel. Here is a sampling:

* Underestimating the Empire’s level of preparation for an attack on the second Death Star.
* Firing Conan and keeping that other guy with the big chin.
* Leaving Pedro Martinez in the 2004 World Series against the Yankees.
* Pickett’s Charge.
* Buddy Holly getting on that plane with Richie Valens and the Big Bopper.
* Approving the filming budget for Gigli.
* Decca turning down the Beatles.

The Bible is packed with examples of plans succeeding and failing because either God had used an older man or woman to counsel someone  or  a person had neglected to receive or pursue godly counsel.

Some good:

* The Counsel of Moses from his father in law (Exodus 18)
* Counsel From God (James 1)
* Naomi and Ruth gaining insight into life without a husband (Ruth 2)

Some bad:

* Rehoboam taking counsel from the younger men instead of the older men. (2 Chronicles 10) What a moron.
* Ananias and Sapphira, selling land and lying. (Acts 5) Bad move.
* Lot rashly choosing the more fertile land near Sodom and Gomorrah. (Genesis 13) We all know how that turned out. Need I say more?

Gaining wise counsel can be the difference between major success and disastrous failures. There have been times when I have taken the wrong advice from friends - I know it’s hard to believe. At other times, I relied either on my own thoughts or feelings and outside influences, only to encounter disastrous outcomes. But there have been times when I have taken the counsel of older men and women and it has been a good outcome, a wise one.

It is not always like that. Proverbs is not a book of guarantees.  It’s a book of reality, suggestion, observations on life around us and the reality of men and their toil.