I Was Wrong

In a world where we are all trying to make a name for ourselves, to find success, and from a Christian perspective, trying to ultimately please God and be close to him, we do according to what we think is best, and if we are diligent in our pursuit, we hope we never have to admit we are wrong.

It hurts our pride, affects how people see us, and changes us. We have to be thoroughly convinced to change our thinking, especially when it comes to spiritual things. Things that we have become comfortable with over time, things that have served us well and no one has ever questioned.

The ultimate authority on right and wrong is not our experiences, but God's word. Experiences, even spiritual or God-driven ones, can be tainted by feelings and emotions and can skew what we view as right or wrong. Because we are fallen people, saved by the grace of God alone, and yes, sometimes we are led by our emotions and don't even realize it. Sometimes our focus gets shifted from God to ourselves, if even by 1%, and we miss the mark.

When we are faced with a change that rubs us the wrong way, it is normal to defend what we are used to as truth rather than take that opportunity to go back to our standard, God's word. Because we think we know the truth, not realizing we've overlooked passages to justify our experiences.

That is exactly what I had done and I was wrong. I wanted so badly to defend what we've always done, but I had to go seek out God's word for myself. When I let God open my eyes, rather than explaining away the inconsistencies between my experiences and God's word, it was as clear as day. I felt stupid for letting my emotions (under the guise of being led by the Spirit) dictate truth for me. I am not discounting being led by the Spirit at all, but God's word will never change so we have to let that be our authority and realize there must be balance between the Holy Spirit's leading and God's word. If our actions or habits don't line up, we need to seek God and make changes on our part until there is unity between the two.

In Pentacostal circles especially, we let the Holy Spirit trump God's word. Or maybe we use that as an excuse to not seek God's word to find what he is saying. There has to be balance and if there are inconsistencies, it isn't because the Word is wrong. It's because we have been led by our emotions and called it the Holy Spirit. Whenever there is a human element, there is opportunity to error on our part. I don't think it is intentional, I just think we've never looked at it that way before.

I want to live according to God's word as best as I can and not be a stumbling block for others, so if I have to be wrong and change my thinking, so be it. I'm so grateful for a loving forgiving Father God who continues to draw us to himself, showing us where we fall short so we can change and be closer to him. Not rebuking us, but helping us through it, loving us even when we are wrong.