Have You Checked YouTube?

 

The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advice. The vexation of a fool is known at once, but the prudent ignores an insult. Whoever speaks the truth gives honest evidence, but a false witness utters deceit. There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing. Truthful lips endure forever, but a lying tongue is but for a moment. (Proverbs 12:15-19 ESV).

 

Remembering my age it will not come as a surprise that consulting YouTube for insight or instruction is not my first thought. Recently, I was replacing the navigational card in our SUV. My first thought was that the instructions included with the new memory card should be sufficient. However, that was not correct, especially since most of it was unillustrated for the model I was replacing. My first thought was to ask Kyle for some help. He asked, “Have you checked with YouTube yet?” Well, duh… no, not yet. He pulled it up on his phone and we watched a short video and we were set. It took less than five minutes for the entire process.

 

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. Real wisdom is quick to recognize when the help of others is essential. Commit yourself to wise counsel.