If you travel to Greensburg, Kansas, you can pay a visit to what is billed as the “World’s Largest Hand-Dug Well.” Construction on the well began in the 1880s. As the railroads made their way across Kansas, a reliable source of water for the steam engines was essential. The work was done by teams of men using hand tools—shovels, picks, half barrels, pulleys, and rope. As they made their way downward, they lined the well shaft with limestone rock. The finished well is more than one hundred feet deep and more than thirty feet in diameter. It took enormous effort to reach the water, but it produced lasting results.

The Bible likens wise counsel to water in a deep well. Good advice is not just lying around on the surface—it takes work to find. There are plenty of people who have no idea what they are talking about but will be more than happy to give you a “piece of their mind.” And sadly there will be plenty of people to give you advice that goes directly against the authority and commandments of Scripture. Anyone who wishes to be truly wise and reap the benefits of godly counsel is going to have to reject the simple approach and put forth effort—but the effort is worth it.

“Counsel in the heart of man is like deep water; but a man of understanding will draw it out.”—Proverbs 20:5