“If one has the answers to all the questions - that is the proof that God is not with him.”
Pope Francis
It is often said that “there are no stupid questions.” I’m not sure my own daily behavior supports that. Last week I sat in a room in which I definitely brought down the average IQ. While this is not a rare occasion, the gap was much wider than usual. Surrounded by some great academic thinkers, it didn’t help that I missed the email with the pre-reading, nor that my literary catalogue these days, and of the past decade is consumed by classic titles like Dora Goes to the Dentist or Llama Llama misses Mamma. As I sat around a conference table nodding knowingly while covertly scribing a list of words I’d have to look up later, I tried to formulate a question that wouldn’t immediately give away my ignorance. Driving home that day, I debriefed my experience with a friend, laughing at how ridiculous I probably sounded. Trying to comfort me, he said, “Dan, the only really stupid questions are the ones we don’t ask because we don’t want to know the answer.”
How often in leadership or life do I not ask the right questions because I don’t want to hear the answers? How many times is it my pride or stubbornness, not my ignorance, that enables a false bliss? God gives us this incredible gift to go deeper in our thought and reason – to discover parts of His creation we have not come to fully appreciate. How many times do I refuse to go deeper and stay on the surface in order to protect an image or maintain my comfort? Blessings on the questions in your week.
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