Trusting Myself? – Proverbs in Practice
Some proverbs shake me up, former procrastinators. This week’s group alerts me to humbly hold the Lord in higher regard than I do myself. Proverbs 3:5-6. Am I leaning on my own understanding or seeking His?
“All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the spirit.” Proverbs 16:2
Our hearts, minds, motivations are not pure, certainly not mine. “The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately sick. Who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9). Walking in these human frames, we continually stray from what is pure and constantly need the cleansing of the Lord. We’re so needy, we often don’t recognize when we stray. Our earthly being is tainted. We look at ourselves through tainted eyes as we try to discern our tainted hearts. Praise God for the gift of Jesus! Only the Lord Himself examines us accurately. And He pays for our redemption.
“There is a way that seems right to a man but its end is the way to death.” Proverbs 16:25, 14:12
Most of us have a tendency to think we’re right. That’s why we act and speak as we do. We think we’re without fault in our perceptions, decisions, opinions. We make observations and perceive things to be a certain way. However, perceptions often do not include enough information for us to draw accurate conclusions. We can operate out of what we perceive to be true – and be wrong all along. This can especially be the case with relationships. Assuming we know all there is to know is a risky and sometimes harmful position to take.
“Whoever trusts in his own mind is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom will be delivered.” Proverbs 28:6
God gave us brains to use; He has equipped us magnificently. But we are still finite humans and He is still infinite wisdom. We’re prone to error. He is not. We experience, learn, evaluate. But we remain imperfect. This brings to mind, “Train your memory but don’t trust it.” Making decisions relying on ourselves alone is a set up for problems. Wise counsel, prayer, and above all, the Word of God lead us to right thinking. Trust in Him is far wiser.
I just read our grandchild a Bible story by Ella K. Lindvall that illustrates this. Peter and his fishermen returned from a night on the lake without catching any fish. Jesus sent them out again. “Now Simon wanted to please Jesus, so he said, ‘We worked hard all night to catch fish. We didn’t catch even one. BUT – I’LL DO WHAT YOU SAY.’” We know they caught so many fish an extra boat had to come help. If Peter had relied on his knowledge, experience, and intuition, he would not have gone out again. But he wanted to please Jesus, so he obeyed and got a miracle. Wisdom listens to Jesus and obeys with a heart to please Him.
In what area are you trusting yourself to be right?
