*** The following was shared on a private email list. My man Sonny is a gifted writer and with his permission i'm posting this for all to see, consume and ponder. Thanks Sonny for being so awesome and for using your voice to help others. Keep writing man!!!***
Common sense is the enemy of faith. We might all be better Christians if we were born of ignorance over intelligence.
Let's back up...
Let's say I'm interviewing for a job I really want and I find out I didn't get it. I would first say something to myself like: "Well, its not God's will that I get this job. I know and I believe he will lead me to the right thing soon. I believe. I have faith. Chin up." That is the first voice.
Then in the instant following that a second voice (or thought) says, "You don't REALLY believe that. You know there's no such thing as God, you're on your own. That's just wishful thinking. You're doomed."
Just about every single time in my life that negative thought came in -- that second voice -- as soon as I heard it, I would tell myself that at my core I didn't REALLY believe in God, because if I did then I wouldn't have that doubting thought or feeling in the first place; a true follower of Christ would not let that thought enter their mind or that feeling invade their heart. Worse, I believed that thought to be the REAL me, or the intelligent me, the common sense me, and I'd feel my mood sink.
My whole life I've been mistaking that second voice as the "true me". When really it is the voice of my ego. And that is important to recognize and its important to celebrate! Just because I hear that second voice doesn't mean I don't believe! That voice is Satan, or my ego, working against me. He disguises himself as "common sense" and "intelligence". And Satan's been successful for a very long time making me believe that second voice is really ME, he uses my common sense against me. It's his best and easiest weapon because it's so easy to fool me. After all, my common sense and intelligence get me through each and every day successfully, its a tool of survival, so why shouldn't Satan also lead me to use it towards (mis)understanding God? My common sense tells me not to stick my hand down into a garbage disposal. My common sense tells me not to step in front of a bus. Since my common sense is pretty much always right, and it is my default thought mechanism for every day survival, I TRUST my common sense more than anything else. Satan, or my ego, uses that against me in holding me back from a relationship with God because he knows that if I can't see God, or see some kind of elaborate miracle or sign from Him then my common sense will tell me that He doesn't really exist.
The truth is (I think) every Christian hears that second voice and just because we do it shouldn't make us doubt or question our faith. Our minds and our thought processes are not our hearts. Our heart is very seperate from our mind. Our thought process is not who we are and we shouldn't identify ourselves with them. They are just thoughts.
Trust your first voice. The voice that is your hope, your faith. Don't let the mystery of life and death, or your relationship with God, begin and end with the scope of your intelligence. Recognize that the voice of your heart oftentimes loses to the voice of your intelligence only because your common sense gets more of a workout on a daily basis to survive in today's world.
Let the humble and righteous voice of your heart roar over mountain tops!
Oct 9, 2008 at 4:04 PM What is common sense anyways? If you break down the word, common means to occur, be found, or happen often where as sense, in the context that it is used means a sane and realistic attitude to situations and problems. So REALLY common senses are different for each person depending on which situations and problems they encounter each day, but there are also a set...expectation of ways that we should act when hypothetically put into certain situations. So really to have different choices of action when faced with a situation that needs a response, it could be considered normal to have different ways in which you want to respond to a different situation. Just because you THINK this is the way you should respond doesn't mean it always might be the correct one and vice versa. I think whenever we have different responses that question the existence of God when we've already witnessed the fact that God is there and God is real, we should definitely ask God why these thoughts are going through our heads. Whether it be Satan or whether it be our lack of faith, either of the two are serious, and require God's attention in our lives.
Matthew 7:7
"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you."
Oct 10, 2008 at 11:37 AM I really like this post. I too have had that sinking feeling, when a thought rushes into my head to convince me that God is not with me. It's the worst feeling. Until pretty recently, I'd just try to wrestle these thoughts and emotions myself.
Now whenever my ego or Satan tries to convince me God is not with me, I'll simply and quickly pray for God's help and forgiveness. His grace is a wonderful thing and never fails.
I think it's important to share this kind of stuff, so people know this is a common problem (I think). It such a relief when you realize the weight of the world is not on your shoulders. You're not required solve every problem, because God has everything planned out already. Keep Him at the forefront of your thoughts and efforts and He will take care of the rest.