Wisdom – One Prayer Bound to Be Answered

“If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.” (James 1:5)

There are two pitfalls we Christians can fall into when reading this verse.

The first—which I spent many years in—is concluding that this verse does not apply to me and simply not asking for wisdom.
The second is asking for wisdom without accepting the condition that I actually lack wisdom, and then walking away thinking I have magically gained wisdom when, in reality, I haven’t.

If neither of these describes you—if you already know for certain that you lack wisdom, in what ways you lack it, and that gaining wisdom will require you to change the way you think, listen, and observe—then I’m sorry to disappoint, but I probably won’t say anything you don’t already know.

James’ invitation is for all of us to grow in wisdom, no matter how wise we or others may think we are.

What Is Wisdom? Wise in Whose Eyes?

Part of my failure to recognize my lack of wisdom was my wrong understanding of wisdom—or rather, my acceptance of the world’s definition of it.

I believe that what we call a ‘wise’ person, the Bible might actually call a fool who is wise in their own eyes. And conversely, the person whom the Bible calls ‘wise in their own eyes’ may actually just be someone who has learned to hide their arrogance—not only from others but, most dangerously, from themselves.

Since we do not discern properly—since ‘Cultural Christianity’ has replaced biblical thinking with surface-level moralism—we tend to mistake these people for the humble and wise.

The first verse that likely comes to mind when thinking about wisdom is:

“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” (Proverbs 9:10)

That sounds nice—but what does it mean? It’s easy to repeat the verse and sound wise without actually understanding what it implies. And in doing so, we may deceive ourselves into thinking we are wise simply because we know this verse by heart.

Whatever it means, one thing is certain:

👉 It implies that I am conscious of my insignificance in comparison to God.

If I have any knowledge of the Holy One at all, then I know that He is infinitely greater than me.

“For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:9)

A practical takeaway, then, is this:

👉 An obvious sign of wisdom is recognizing that I lack wisdom.

Many considered ‘unwise’ by the world are actually relatively wise—at least in that they know they lack wisdom.
Many considered ‘wise’ by the world are actually less wise—because they cannot see that they lack wisdom.
And the worst part? The world doesn’t see it either.

How Can We Tell If Our Prayer for Wisdom Has Been Answered?

Some might say, “We don’t need to—we ask in faith, without doubting!”

Yes—but that thinking can lead straight into the second trap: believing that wisdom is some mystical substance that only God can recognize, and deceiving yourself into thinking you have received wisdom when you haven’t.

The problem?

🚨 We cannot trust our deceitful hearts (Jeremiah 17:9).
🚨 We cannot trust the world’s definition of wisdom (1 Corinthians 3:19).
🚨 We often cannot even trust our fellow believers—because we all tend to judge by appearances.

If you are already seen as the wisest in your social circle, nobody is going to tell you that you lack wisdom! And if you are relatively wise, people will simply affirm that you’re wise enough.

So how do we know if we have received wisdom?

First, we need to actually believe that we lack wisdom—not just in a vague, “Well, everyone lacks wisdom” kind of way, but in a specific, identifiable way.

👉 If I cannot pinpoint how I lack wisdom, I don’t really believe that I lack it.

Once I know exactly in what way I lack wisdom, then I can ask for it—and I will be able to tell:

Do I keep making the same mistakes?
Do I need to change the way I think, listen, observe?
Am I quick to speak and slow to listen (James 1:19)?

In short, I cannot correct my flaws if I do not see them.

A Prayer Bound to Be Answered

Why is this prayer guaranteed to be answered?

Not because God is obligated to give us wisdom, but because James 1:5 contains a hidden condition that most of us ignore:

👉 “If any of you lacks wisdom…”

The promise only applies if we genuinely recognize our need.

If you pray, “Lord, give me more wisdom, even though I’m already wise, so that I can figure things out myself,” you will not receive wisdom.
If you pray, “Lord, I don’t know what to do. Clearly, there’s something I’m missing. Show me where I’m going wrong,” then your prayer will be answered.

Why?

Because wisdom requires humility—and humility means changing how you look at everything.

👉 “Be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” (Romans 12:2)

True humility means abandoning your old way of seeing things. It is painful—because it means letting go of who you thought you were.

Wisdom Is Not a Feeling

If you pray for wisdom, you may not immediately feel wiser.

Instead, you will start noticing all the ways you were foolish before.

You may not want to accept it. Your self-esteem will take a hit. But this is good.

🚨 It will only lead to depression if you are trying to be perfect, trying to be godlike. 🚨

But if you are willing to see yourself as you really are, then God will begin to open your eyes.

Walking in True Humility

If you think you can pray this prayer and then go about your life as usual, expecting wisdom to drop into your mind, then you haven’t truly prayed it.

Because to ask for wisdom is to make a commitment—a resolve to walk in humility and be transformed in the deepest way.

It means:

✅ Letting go of the things you trusted in
✅ Changing the way you look at the world
✅ Being slower to speak, slower to get angry (James 1:19)
✅ Not leaning on your own understanding (Proverbs 3:5-6)

Jesus said:

“Whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” (Matthew 16:25)

If we want true wisdom, we must die to our old way of thinking.

True wisdom is not about being smarter.
It is not about having better strategies.
It is not about knowing more facts.

It is about seeing things the way God sees them.

And that kind of wisdom—the kind that comes from true humility—is the one prayer that is always answered.

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This post is ChatGPT’s take of my own thoughts. But I’m fine with that. If it helps get the ideas across, all the better. I am still experimenting. Click here to read what the Chinese AI’s produced given the same instructions (based on my draft).

Paul's Apprentice