Wise

Godly wisdom, consistent with the words of the Scriptures, is beneficial in so many areas.  And, His wisdom is superior to human wisdom.  God wants us to connect with Him in our spirits and in our
minds. In Proverbs 8, wisdom is actually personified, and we read:
12 "I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, And find out knowledge and discretion.
13 The fear of the Lord is to hate evil; Pride and arrogance and the evil way And the perverse mouth I hate.
14 Counsel is mine, and sound wisdom; I am understanding, I have strength.
15 By me kings reign, And rulers decree justice.

Listen to some of these words: prudence, knowledge, discretion, counsel, understanding, strength. These are powerful components that are available to the child of God.  As we develop the ability to think critically, we can more deeply appreciate His ways.  We can appropriate Scripture- or Spirit-infused logic in order to know Him better.  He wants us to use our minds to learn more so that we might experience spiritual growth.  A new study shows that educated Christians are just as or more devout, compared with those with lower education.  We are on a journey, an adventure, of learning, and we can approach matters of life from a Biblical worldview.

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God calls us to engage with Him in so many ways, and that includes attuning our minds to His truth, allowing His Spirit and His Word to renew our minds, or recalibrate them.  We are not called to be
mindless, but mindful of the things of God. 1st Corinthians 2 says:
12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.
13 These things we also speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.

Verse 16 tells us we have the mind of Christ.

It is unfortunate that there has been a narrative floated out there that Christianity and science, or Christianity and reason are mutually exclusive - you know: brain off, faith on.  There are some who think that the truly enlightened, the "intelligentsia," do not need to lean on religion, especially Christianity.

Well, there's a Pew survey that has just been released that appears to debunk, or at least contradict that flimsy theory. Emily McFarlan Miller at ReligionNews.com reports on this study.  First of all, among the general public, here are some findings:

Fewer than half of college graduates, or 46 percent, say religion is “very important” in their lives, compared with 53 percent of those who have completed some college and 58 percent of those with no more than a high school education, according to Pew. College grads also are less likely to say they believe in God “with absolute certainty” and pray daily.

But Miller contends, "there are exceptions."  She states, "Christians — the majority (71 percent) of American adults — don’t seem to fit the pattern at all." The study shows, according to this story, that 70 percent of Christians who are college graduates indicate a high level of religious commitment, when all factors are combined - that includes: attending services at least once a week, praying daily, saying religion is very important, and believing in God with absolute certainly.  73% of those with some college and 71% of those with a high school education or less fit in the "high level" category.

Over half - 52% - of Christians who are college graduates attend church each week. 45% of the "some college" group and 46% of those with a high school or less are in that attendance category.

And, as Miller points out: 

Fully three-quarters of college graduates still are affiliated with some religion, not much different from those with some college (76 percent) or high school (78 percent), for example, according to Pew. College graduates also report attending weekly religious services at similar rates as Americans with less education.

The study also indicates that 11 percent of college graduates identify as atheist or agnostic, vs. 8% with some college and 4% with a high school education or less.

So, again, a person who is highly educated does not necessarily throw his or her practice of Christianity out.  I would contend that there is no contradiction whatsoever between education, science, and reason and Christianity, despite what people who believe they are "enlightened" might say.

Now, I would say that what passes for higher education these days, as we hear about on college campuses, is nothing more than godless indoctrination.  And, students in these cases seem to have turned off their minds and have left critical thinking by the wayside.  But, if one is willing to think critically about matters of Scripture, which teaches morals, ethics, law, and so many other areas that are important, he or she can reach a conclusion that the Bible is certainly applicable in so many areas.

There are those who would say that believing in Jesus is illogical, that religion is something that is mythical, just giving a person something to believe in.  I think we have to recognize there is a supernatural element to our faith - walking in faith is counterintuitive to human logic.  But, God does want us to use our minds; I would say that Scripture- or Spirit-infused logic can help give us understanding about His ways that is so far beyond human comprehension.  We are not called to disengage from our minds; rather, to renew our minds to truth.  So, we can be people of faith, but also people of thought, making sure we are thinking in the right direction.