Masters of Self Deception

From time to time, we all look at ourselves in the mirror in our underwear. 

Come on. Admit it. You know you all do it.

Now, what do you see?

When I look in the mirror, I see a handsome guy that’s in pretty good shape. I know what some of you are thinking – yeah, you’ve got a shape all right. 

Now, that’s not nice. 

Do you know what I see? I still see the twenty-one year old me who used to have a 30 waist and weighed 50 pounds less. Sure, now, there’s a little more padding here and there, and there’s a lot more of me than there used to be. But, in my mind, I still think I look pretty good.

But its plain as day! The reality is I now have a 38 inch waist and I weigh 50 pounds more than I used to. And I know this truth and I have all this information, but my mind and heart still sees what it wants to see.

But the thing is you see me and the mirror sees me as I really am – a short stocky Asian dude. 

Notice I didn’t say fat because I’m not fat and I don't want to talk about that anymore.

We are masters of self-deception. 

We all suffer from it. That’s why when you see a guy at Walmart with his two-year-old screaming and he yells at the kid, you think to yourself, “Boy! That guy’s got an anger problem!”

But when you’re at Walmart with your two year old and you scream at your kid, you think to yourself, “Boy! My son is out of control.”

Masters of self-deception. 

Until you and I get honest with ourselves about who we are and where we are, we’re never going to get to where God wants us to be.

Here’s how Jesus put it in John 8:32, “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.”

We’ve got to start with the truth. We’ve got to start with where we are and who we are, if we’re ever going to start figuring out how we’re going to get to where we and God want us to be.

This is how grace works. You all know the great hymn, Amazing Grace. 

Amazing grace how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost but now I’m found, was blind but now I see.

The only way we’re ever going to experience God’s grace to break free from our past failures and past undesirable outcomes and experience God’s transformation, we must first acknowledge, I’m a wretch, I’m lost, and I am blind.  

Because until we come to a point where we can acknowledge our lostness, our blindness, our wretchedness, we are not yet ready to surrender to God's plans. And surrender to God is absolutely necessary to start living life God's way. 

Are you ready to stop being deceived and ready to grow? 

Let's do it God's way.