Don't Fool Yourself

Related Scripture:

“But be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.” James 1:22.

Fool me once - shame on you. Fool me twice - shame on me. Sadly, many times we are the ones fooling ourselves from the beginning. As officials, we hear and receive an immeasurable amount of information: rules, mechanics, philosophies, standards, what-ifs, when-in-doubts, etc. We have to pay attention to it, process it, and understand it. We fool ourselves when we don’t apply it.

Our walk with Christ requires us to also hear and receive a lot of information: preached sermons, taught Bible studies, exhortations, devotions, commandments, principles, etc. It’s very helpful to memorize scriptures and biblical accounts. It’s critical to understand the context of a sermon, teaching, or devotion. It’s foolish to hear, receive, and even understand, and furthermore explain it to others, but not do it yourself.

Proverbs 4:7 declares that “Wisdom is supreme—so get wisdom. And whatever else you get, get understanding.” It’s important and necessary to have knowledge and understanding of God’s Word, as we need to have it for our rules, mechanics, standards, and philosophies. Getting a 100 on every rule test is a praiseworthy accomplishment; however, not applying that “knowledge” is foolish. God wants our heart, mind, soul, and strength. The strength is for us to actively do what His Word says. Don’t let others fool you and certainly don’t fool yourself.

Questions to Ponder:

What Word have you heard and ignored?

What is your plan to be more of a doer?

Kristopher D. Loving, Sr. - Fellowship of Christian Athletes - Zionsville, IN