Wise in My Own Eyes

Proverbs 26:12 "Do you see a man wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him."

Recently, I finally decided to go for a checkup on my eyes and ask about new eyeglasses.  I had been putting it off for a while.  I think I'm pretty "wise" about my own eyes.  Shouldn't I know when I need new glasses? No one else should have to tell me.  But throughout the process, I was reminded of how limited my perspective could be. Consider the following dialogues, dramatically overstated for your enjoyment:

Scene 1 : A Kitchen Table

Me:  "Hello, Loving Wife, did you know I have an eye appointment tomorrow morning?"

Loving Wife: "Finally. I've been telling you to go for months now.  Your glasses look terrible and you're always complaining about them! Can you pass the 'I Can't Believe It's Not Butter?"

Scene 2: An Eye Doctor's Dimly Lit Exam Room

Eye Doctor: "How strange. It looks like the coating of your glasses is worn away.  That's unusual.  Only alcohol can take it off."

Me: "I guess I shouldn't have refilled the lens cleaner you gave me with rubbing alcohol then."

Eye Doctor: "No, you shouldn't have.  When did you do that?

Me: "About two years ago. I've been cleaning them every night after I take them off."

Scene 3: A Room Filled With Brightly Lit, Overpriced Eyewear

Me: (Upon receiving my new glasses) "Wow! It's amazing how clear everything is! No scratches or spots! I didn't realize how bad my other lenses had gotten! I am a new man!  Hello World!"

Helpful Assistant: "Yes, and with this new coating they should stay scratch free for a long time-- just don't clean them with alcohol..."

Me: "Yeah, so I've heard."

As I sat there looking at the world through fresh eyes and thinking about whether it would be sacrilegious to sing "...was blind, but now I see...," I realized that many of us face seasons in life when we think we're wise but in reality, are fools.  We think our vision is just fine when we're actually walking around blind.  I've picked up a few bad spiritual habits over the past few months.  I am "wise in my own eyes" before God, but I should be humbled.  He is the sole source of Wisdom, not me.  Whenever we think otherwise, we're not fools (look at the verse again) we're worse off than fools.  

"See" you later

Pastor Brian

Image: coast2coastrx.com