Proverbs 3:5-8 Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD, and turn away from evil. It will be a healing for your flesh and a refreshment for your body.(NRSV)
Listen: The Complete Opposite
These days, the whole self-discovery thing seems to have become all the rage. I need to know myself and not be ashamed of who I really am. Yeah, right. Look around. How well is all that introspection serving us in this increasingly self-obsessed, narcissistic world in which we live?
Back in the day, Greek philosopher Aristotle posited that knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom. Indeed, the famous maxim “Know thyself” was inscribed at the Temple of Apollo at Delphi. Socrates and Plato were also big fans.
So, what does all that ancient history have to do with us, here, today? Well, there’s a multi-billion dollar, global self-help industry that’s rooted in this whole self-discovery thing; in the notion that you are your own solution; that you already have everything you need inside you—you just need to unlock it. Endless tools, books, courses, and coaching are all designed to help you “discover your true self.”
But the further you go down this rabbit hole of introspection, the deeper you sink into a subjective self-centredness that right now is tearing this world apart, wouldn’t you agree?
God’s plan, as it turns out, is the complete opposite:
Proverbs 3:5-8 Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD, and turn away from evil. It will be a healing for your flesh and a refreshment for your body.(NRSV)
So, sure … be self-aware. Totally. But real wisdom doesn’t come from looking inward—it comes from looking upward. Don’t rely on your own insight but in all your ways acknowledge God and He will make straight your paths.
Friend, that’s His Word. Fresh … for you … today.