I've come to study human behavior these last few years. I find it amazing how people so easily mistake cleverness, intelligence and worldly wisdom from God given Wisdom. Have you noticed a difference in how each is used and applied?
On the other hand, there is a definite tendency in some Christian circles to equate lack of cleverness, lack of intelligence and lack of worldly wisdom with godliness. Cleverness, intelligence and worldly wisdom are neither godly nor ungodly in themselves.
"The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding." Proverbs 9:10 (NASB). If cleverness, intelligence and worldly wisdom are applied within this context, they are extremely beneficial. "Give instruction to a wise man and he will be still wiser." Proverbs 9:9 (NASB). Give instruction to a dolt and, well, you will have an instructed dolt.
Probably because those who lack cleverness and intelligence are pretty much stuck with the hand they've been dealt, they tend to overvalue lack of cleverness and lack of intelligence. We see it everywhere in the dumbing down of America: Becoming educated is work, but reveling in one's lack of education is way easier, dude.
Obviously, people who do not believe in God are not going to rely upon or even care about what you call "God given wisdom." I don't believe they "mistake" cleverness, intelligence and worldly wisdom for God given wisdom. They simply reject the truths of Christianity, and thus cleverness, intelligence and worldly wisdom are all they've got (if they've even got that, which most of them don't).
A perfect example is the evidence for Intelligent Design. If one begins with a fear of (respect for) the Lord, the evidence for ID is compelling; if one thinks the Lord is a silly fantasy, then cleverness, intelligence and worldly wisdom are going to lead him to a completely worldly explanation for the evidence.
