Know It All Dads

There was an interesting article in the Denver Post on Father’s Day. Called Dads say the darndest things, it was about dads who don’t want to admit they don’t know everything; it usually comes out when they are telling their kids something.

The article talked about overheard conversations at the National Air and Space Museum. Kids are wondering about something and the dad just makes up the “fact” or maybe he cobbles together an answer from something he remembers even though it ends up not being true.

Even though I try to be a very accurate person, I know that I have fallen into the know-it-all trap on many occasions. Just the other day my son and I saw video of the space shuttle landing. I wanted to give him some idea of how big it was so I said it was as big as the building we were in. He then starting asking specific questions and thanks to having read the article I caught myself and told him we should probably look it up when we get home.

The funniest part of the article was this paragraph: “Workers had put exhibit ropes around a forklift on the floor to keep kids from climbing on it. Sure enough, Lopez said, a boy was heard asking whether it was a piece of space equipment, and his father answered that it had been to the moon.”

As I thought of the article this week the Bible came to mind. Are you familiar with a know-it-all related to spiritual issues? I’m not thinking of someone who really does know a lot but the person who makes it up as they go. How many times do we just do what we think is right. How about when we want to do something and then look for proof that God wants us to do it?

Think about these verses: Jeremiah 17:9 says, The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? We can’t listen to our heart. We need the objective standard of God’s Word. Proverbs 3:5-7 says, Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil.

The wise person admits he doesn’t know everything. How liberating it is to drop the all knowing front and to be able to say, “I don’t know.” And the truly wise doesn’t stop there but goes on to find what is true.

Now, what was your question?

Philip