What I know to do is not to be confused with what I do!
I remember a phrase often repeated by my mother, “Ron, you should know better!” Maybe your mom said it to you sometimes. It was often spoken in reference to some silly or sometimes stupid thing I did to either get attention, get a thrill, (yes, that was my motivation sometimes) or just out of sheer boredom. When I would flesh out the idea unfolding in my head that seemed so funny, witty, exciting or even earthshattering, this will work great was the persuasive thought that was rolling through my head. History would say that it did not always prove to be as well thought out as I thought it was. Hence the phrase, often accompanied with a frown, wrinkled brow and a somewhat voice of disappointment, “Ron, you should know better!”
Here’s the thing, I did know better. But in the moment, the excitement, the boredom or the thought of taking a risk, I put aside what I knew and opted to listen to the more persuasive voice that was speaking in my head. “This will be fun…….” “I am going to go for it…..” “I know better but this time…….”
I find it still happens to many people, including myself. We know better but we lay aside our good judgement and opt to go with the spur of the moment thought, or the one that someone else spoke into our life igniting the fear, confusion, doubt, even unbelief. And then after it is all over, we say, yeah, we knew better but in the pressure of the moment we opted not to go with what we know but actually went with what we felt!
I think that may be what Paul was trying to tell us in 2 Cor 10:5-6 We use our powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ.
There are a number of things I pray for myself, almost on a daily basis. One of them is…… “Lord, give me the ability to make wise decisions!” You should pray that too!
It is always better to do what you know to do, even if it is different than you want to do. That way Jesus won’t have to say, “Ron, you know better!” Go with what you know truth to be, it will go better with you! Then what you do will come into alignment with what you know and that is a beautiful thing!
D.O.V.E.