“It’s a dangerous thing to refuse to continue learning and knowing.” – Oswald Chambers
When Michelangelo was in his eighties he is reported to have said, “ancora imparo” which means, “still I am learning.” In the 1500s living into your eighties was not an easy task. He was drawing and sculpting at that age as well. I want to be a life long learner like Michelangelo.
“The fear of the LORD is the instruction for wisdom, And before honor comes humility.” Proverbs 15:33 NASB. http://bible.com/100/pro.15.33.nasb
In other places in Scripture it says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of Wisdom.” Psalms 111:10
When we keep learning, we place ourselves in the hands of humility. We realize we don’t know everything, and moreover, even that we don’t know much at all. If we aren’t learning, we limit our ability to change and to grow. Haughty people live like they know more than they really do. Humble people realize how much they don’t know. They remain curious and can wonder about things.
In addiction, if a person won’t learn, they can’t change. Old habits not only die hard, they need to be replaced with new ones. Being open to new learning is a key to this process. That’s why it’s dangerous to refuse to learn or to know new things. Without an openness to learning, we get stuck in our old ways of thinking. And since knowing is so closely linked to doing, we aren’t able to do those things that will move us out of our old addictive behaviors.
A Recovery Pilgrim 