Dr Phil, hot sauce mom and your nosey friends [Part 2]

Ever met someone that admitted they were currently deceiving themselves?

I haven’t.

Self deceit is incredibly hard to see in the mirror because well, that's the point. We choose to see what we only wanna see.

Hopefully the last post at least sparked a desire in your heart to be honest with yourself. I’m hoping today's post is a lighthouse that helps us navigate through the murky muddy waters of decision making.

Below are 10 red flags on the journey of heart. They might be blunt and in your face but that's because you don’t need a hug when you’re driving off a cliff. Here we go....

You are probably having a 'hot sauce mom' moment [deceiving yourself] if:

1. You argue with everything on this list.
It’s not the 10 commandments and I’m sure there are exceptions to some of them. But if you find yourself constantly arguing as you read through, can I kindly suggest you’re probably trying to hide something from yourself?

2. All your ‘nosey’ friends see something you don’t see.
I know you think you know something everyone else doesn’t know but unless you’re Jesus, you’re not that special. If most people around you see something, chances are its true. Even Peter the Apostle was rebuked by Paul. Don’t be so arrogant.

3. Your situation is so unique you have to dig up a highly unusual treasure chest story to defend it.
A smoker friend once justified smoking by telling the story of a guy who smoked 5 packs/day and lived to be 99. Yea, I once heard of a guy who won the lottery too. Possible? Yes. Likely? No.

Stop. fooling. yourself.

4. You can’t answer this question with a resounding yes:
In light of your past experience, your present circumstances/struggles and your future hopes and dreams, is doing ______ wise? Not is it right or wrong or is there some verse in the bible against it. No. Is it wise?

5. You feel a peace about it.
This might be one of the biggest myths of making decisions. I’m not sure if you noticed but Jesus didn’t feel a peace about the cross. And again, the verse says the way seems right to you. I don’t remember the last time i lost sleep for something I thought was right. Of course you feel a peace about it. Feeling peace is not enough reason to go all in.

6. It contradicts Gods word.
I know you heard God say yes but here’s a nugget that will do you plenty of good: The Holy Spirit won’t ever contradict Gods word. EVER. Gods word commands us to act wisely and to use wisdom. It doesn’t matter how much you prayed about it if its unwise, its unbiblical and if its unbiblical, its not Gods will.

7. You see a sign.
I’m not a big fan of signs. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with praying for a sign, I just think its important to note that if your sign is always a green light every time u really want something, then that's a sign something is wrong.

8. You are hesitant to seek wisdom or talk openly about _____ without being defensive.
or if you only talk to select people u already know will support you. The way I see it, if you truly have nothing to hide, then what do u have to lose seeking wisdom? Don’t let your cheering section be mostly people who don’t really know you or specifics of your situation.
Also, getting tons of face-book 'likes' does not count as affirmation. 

9. You say it out loud and it sounds stupid then it probably is.

10. It involves relationships.
Nothing gives us giant blind spots like relationships. If there is ever an area u need people to speak into your life, its relationships. If David slipped up cause of a woman and Samson lost his power for love then how arrogant are you to think u can beat this on your own? You can’t. Hear me. You can’t and won’t. It is essential before/during a relationship to seek wisdom from older, wiser people who will be completely honest with you [see comments from last post for more on this].

Do you have anything to add to the list? Which one(s) have you been guilty of? Be honest, which one stuck out to you most?

Any surprises? Also, feel free to share any life stories that highlight any of the above red flags.

You guys did great yesterday. Check out the great dialogue if you missed it. Please dive in again today AND share on face-book. It does make a difference.