Saturday, May 10, 2014

Isaiah 5:20-21 -- On Self-Imposed Blinders

"Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!"
Isaiah 5:20-21


This is an excellent warning about perception and perspective, and how we see things in a very skewed and incorrect way sometimes.  And we don't always realize it... because, as it says, we think that we are wise and prudent.  We all have some kind of blinders on: ones that we have created through lying to ourselves.  We think that our sins aren't that big of a deal, or that we can take care of our addictions someday, but not now.  We think that no one is really taking our example to heart, or that skipping church or not reading our scriptures is just a small thing and won't affect us.  There are so many things that we avoid or ignore or talk ourselves into, and the longer we do it, the more skewed from reality our perception becomes.  We can even get to the point where we actually believe that evil is good, or good is evil.
The way to get out of this trap, or to prevent it, is to stop thinking of ourselves as the experts, even about our own lives.  God is the expert about everything, including us.  He wants more for us than we do, and he sees our potential, and the reality of our situation, more clearly than we can, especially when we are actively blinding ourselves.  Today, let's be smart enough to not believe in our own bluster.  Let's back down from the cliff of arrogance, and choose the *reality* of humility, the acknowledgement that we're stumbling around with self-imposed blinders most of the time, and let's really listen to God, and let him help us get back on track. 

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