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- Apr 25, 2006
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Your Blind Spot (2)
'...Who can discern their own errors...?' Psalm 19:12 NIV
Sometimes trying to see the truth about yourself is like trying to see inside your own eyeballs. ‘…Who can discern their own errors…?’ the psalmist asked. Fortunately, you’re not left on your own. The Spirit is already at work in you. Your job is simply to listen and respond. Guilt isn't your enemy, sin is. God’s Spirit will often bring a sense of conviction, and, when it does, the proper response isn't to try and suppress the guilt but to deal with the issue. When you don’t, those issues can build up like cholesterol in your arteries.
At a moment of great crisis, Samson arose to exert his strength, ‘…but he did not know that the Lord had left him.’ (Judges 16:20 NIV) He’d become callous and lost his sensitivity to God. Our bodies have an amazing capacity to warn us about what ails them, if we learn to read the signs. Chest pains may indicate heart trouble and there are more subtle clues.
Many of us will have seen the TV ads or read about detecting when someone is having a stroke: (FAST) Face, Arms, Speech, Time. God will enable you to find the truth about your soul if you’re open and willing. Left to yourself, you will usually rationalise or defend yourself. You’ll ‘…call evil good and good evil…’ (Isaiah 5:20 NIV)
At the other extreme, you can become a neurotic over–analyser. Madame Guyon warned against ‘depending on the diligence of your own scrutiny rather than on God for the knowledge and discovery of our sin.’ What’s the answer? Allow your thoughts and responses to be guided by the Holy Spirit.
written by Bob Gass
'...Who can discern their own errors...?' Psalm 19:12 NIV
Sometimes trying to see the truth about yourself is like trying to see inside your own eyeballs. ‘…Who can discern their own errors…?’ the psalmist asked. Fortunately, you’re not left on your own. The Spirit is already at work in you. Your job is simply to listen and respond. Guilt isn't your enemy, sin is. God’s Spirit will often bring a sense of conviction, and, when it does, the proper response isn't to try and suppress the guilt but to deal with the issue. When you don’t, those issues can build up like cholesterol in your arteries.
At a moment of great crisis, Samson arose to exert his strength, ‘…but he did not know that the Lord had left him.’ (Judges 16:20 NIV) He’d become callous and lost his sensitivity to God. Our bodies have an amazing capacity to warn us about what ails them, if we learn to read the signs. Chest pains may indicate heart trouble and there are more subtle clues.
Many of us will have seen the TV ads or read about detecting when someone is having a stroke: (FAST) Face, Arms, Speech, Time. God will enable you to find the truth about your soul if you’re open and willing. Left to yourself, you will usually rationalise or defend yourself. You’ll ‘…call evil good and good evil…’ (Isaiah 5:20 NIV)
At the other extreme, you can become a neurotic over–analyser. Madame Guyon warned against ‘depending on the diligence of your own scrutiny rather than on God for the knowledge and discovery of our sin.’ What’s the answer? Allow your thoughts and responses to be guided by the Holy Spirit.
written by Bob Gass
