Largeness of heart

And God gave Solomon wisdom and exceedingly great understanding, and largeness of heart like the sand on the seashore. Thus Solomon's wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the men of the East and all the wisdom of Egypt. – 1 Kings 4v29-30

God gave Solomon wisdom, exceeding great understanding, and largeness of heart. We usually associate wisdom with Solomon. Any one who has any awareness of the Bible would do that. In fact, most people in the west would immediately associate Solomon with wisdom.

Great understanding seems go with that. Solomon had the ability to assess a situation and understand what to do.

Both of these are tremendous assets to a leader. Being wise and understanding how to deal with situations is sure to stand a leader in good stead.

Let’s not miss the last description on the list. Solomon had ‘largeness of heart like the sand on the seashore.’ I don’t think we do that a disservice by saying that Solomon had a big heart. In fact, the Bishop’s Bible and the Geneva Bible use the phrase ‘a large heart.’

Isn’t that a great picture of a leader? Solomon was wiser than any man that lived, he had great understanding, and he had a big heart.

How big was his heart? It was like all the sand on the seashore. What has happened to big heartedness as a character trait? Everyone wants wisdom. Everyone want to understand. But how many of us really desire to have a big heart?