August 5

August 5

Wise Discerning

We learn best when instruction is compassionately and sensitively given.


Proverbs 16
21 The wise in heart are called discerning, and pleasant words promote instruction.
We make much of wisdom as being simply a matter of thought. However, wisdom is not formed in the cold logic of the intellect. It is formed by uniting the two aspects of our nature that are often disjointed: intellectual/ emotional maturity and a vital connection with the mind and heart of God.

We learn best when instruction is compassionately and sensitively given. When I was taking private pilot instruction I had a number of instructors. Each of them had different methods of teaching, emphasized different things and most of them expected different things regarding various tasks from me the student. Most of them were focused on getting the student to conform to their personal requirements instead of identifying the student’s weaknesses and tailoring their approach and methods to the student. Needless to say learning to fly was made more difficult for me because of the lack of uniformity and sensitivity of my instructors.
At first I thought the problem of learning was mine alone. Then a veteran pilot told me that if the student is having a difficulty a maneuver is just as much the fault of the instructor as with the student. He said, “If a student is not learning is usually because the instructor is not watching the student.”

Another pilot friend of mine introduced me to a proven instructor who studied me and not just what I was doing. When, for example, I failed repeatedly to execute a maneuver well he recognized that I was trying too hard and would make a joke, or break off in the practice of a maneuver and help me relax. Instead of just criticizing my failures or shouting at me with obvious irritation he identified my positive responses and took me back through each maneuver until I mastered them. His pleasant words and amiable, sensitive approach made all the difference.

Proverbs 16
22 Understanding is a fountain of life to those who have it, but folly brings punishment to fools.
23 A wise man's heart guides his mouth, and his lips promote instruction.