Looking back through the years, I took a trip down memory lane, way back to my days in elementary (primary) school. I remember the Head-teacher of my school often picked on pupils at random to step forward and lead the assembly prayers (Her usual practice). But what fascinated me back then was this; whenever any pupil was called out to pray, they all prayed one line in common. Here it goes;
"O'Lord God, give us WISDOM, KNOWLEDGE and UNDERSTANDING"
Being the young inquisitive boy that I was, never had peace with that line, as I always wondered why we had to ask for all three. As for me, as far as I understood then, they all meant one thing; "O'Lord Let Us Score 10/10".
Obviously, this was one case of;
"A Sincere Prayer By A Novice".
Growing up into secondary school, I discovered the same line of prayer was also continually repeated there. It was then I took my inquisitiveness to another level; I decided to find out what all-3 meant.
I had a dictionary, an "Oxford Pocket Dictionary" at that time. It provided me with all-3 meanings, but believe me, I still couldn't comprehend a thing about them, they looked the more the same to me.
Today, am a better man, having understood what these 3-Giant words really mean, I mean individually and comparatively.
Hence, I thought it wise to share this piece with you. Please do well to read it up, if you can't at a glance, read and come back to finish up, not bothering how many times you'll have to come back here.
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Knowledge is a noun that refers to the information, understanding and skills that you gain through education or experience. It refers to the hard facts and the data that can be available to anyone if he has the right resources. For example, you can have practical, medical or scientific knowledge. You can also say that someone has a wide knowledge of, for example, the taxation system.
Knowledge also refers to the state of knowing about a particular fact or situation. For example, she sent the letter without my knowledge or the film was made with the King’s full knowledge and approval. Knowledge can also be used as an idiom . For example, something can be common or public knowledge implying that everyone in a particular group or community knows about it. For example, you can say someone’s dishonesty was common knowledge in the group.
Knowledge is so un-overemphasizably important. This notwithstanding, let's check "Wisdom".
Wisdom, on the other hand, is a noun that refers to the ability to make sensible decisions and give good advice because of the experience and knowledge that you have. Someone may have all the knowledge about a subject but may not have the wisdom to utilize this knowledge properly to be able to act in a sensible manner! That is why they say you can gain knowledge by educating yourself but you can gain wisdom only by experience.
Wisdom can also be used as referring to the sensibility of doing something. For example, you can say I question the wisdom of giving a child so much money. Wisdom also refers to the knowledge that a society or culture has gained over a long period of time. For example, the wisdom of the Native Akwa-Ibom people.
Wisdom when used in the phrase ‘conventional wisdom’ refers to the collective belief or view that a people or society can have.
Understanding (also called intellection) is a psychological process related to an abstract or physical object, such as a person, situation, or message whereby one is able to think about it and use concepts to deal adequately with that object. Understanding is a relation between the knower and an object of understanding. Understanding implies abilities and dispositions with respect to an object of knowledge sufficient to support intelligent behavior.
Friends, it is vivid and crystal clear that Knowledge is like a live bullet, contained in a gun (Understanding), that requires a force (Wisdom) to pull the trigger. A man with all the knowledge and understanding in the world will appear and remain a fool until he has discovered wisdom and added it to whatever it is that he's got earlier.
All the while I was praying this line, I never knew what I was praying for, nor why and if I even needed it. Without mistaking, I was ignorant, a pure novice in the field and realm of prayers I was offering, but now the story is different! And I'm pretty sure it is for many too, just as it must have gotten another step better after reading through this article.
With this I'll conclude;
"Get Knowledge, Collect Along With It Understanding, but Leave Not Without WISDOM". -TW™
The Wordsmith™
(2013).