Wise Enough Not to Trust Yourself
09/18/2026
There are times when the biggest obstacle to hearing from God isn’t the noise around us. It’s the confidence within us. We can become so convinced that we know what we’re doing, what needs to happen, and how things ought to turn out that we leave very little room for God to correct us. Proverbs gives us a needed warning: wisdom begins when we stop assuming we’re the wisest person in the room.
“Be not wise in your own eyes;
fear the LORD, and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones.”
- Proverbs 3:7–8 (ESV)
Proverbs 3:7 comes right after one of the most familiar passages in Scripture:
“Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.”
— Proverbs 3:5
We love the part about trusting God. The harder part may be admitting why we need to.
Sometimes our own understanding is wrong.
Not because we’re foolish people. Not because we haven’t prayed. Not because we don’t love God. We can genuinely love God and still become convinced that our way is the right way.
I’ve noticed how easy it is to pray about something while already having the answer picked out.
“Lord, guide me.”
But what we really mean is:
“Lord, bless what I’ve already decided.”
There’s a difference.
Being “wise in your own eyes” doesn’t necessarily mean walking around thinking you’re smarter than everybody else. Sometimes it looks much more respectable than that. It can look like experience. Confidence. Planning. Common sense. Even past success.
I’ve done this before.
I know how this works.
I’ve thought this through.
This makes the most sense.
And maybe it does.
But God sees what we cannot see.
That’s why the fear of the Lord matters. Biblical fear isn’t living terrified that God is waiting to punish you. It’s recognizing who God is and putting His wisdom above your own.
It’s saying, “God, You know more than I know, You see farther than I see, and if what You want conflicts with what I want, I’m going with You.”
That last part is where this gets uncomfortable.
Because Proverbs doesn’t simply say, “Fear the Lord.” It adds, “turn away from evil.”
Real reverence produces obedience.
There are things we don’t need to pray about for six months because God has already spoken clearly about them. We don’t need another sign. We don’t need somebody to tell us what we want to hear. We don’t need to keep searching until we find an interpretation that gives us permission to do what we’ve already decided to do.
Sometimes wisdom is simply obeying what God has already said.
And sometimes wisdom is having enough humility to admit:
“I could be wrong.”
That’s a powerful sentence.
Imagine what might change in a marriage if both people could say it.
Imagine what might change in a business decision.
A friendship.
A disagreement.
A decision about money.
A conversation with one of your children.
Even your understanding of something God may be doing in your life.
There is tremendous freedom in not having to know everything.
You don’t have to see ten miles down the road when you’re walking with the One who does.
And notice what Solomon connects to this kind of surrender: healing and refreshment.
Maybe that’s because carrying the responsibility of having everything figured out is exhausting.
We weren’t created to be God.
Yet sometimes we carry our lives as though everything depends on our ability to make exactly the right decision, control every outcome, anticipate every problem, and keep every plate spinning.
God never asked us to carry that weight.
He asks us to trust Him.
That doesn’t mean we stop thinking. It doesn’t mean planning is wrong. It certainly doesn’t mean wisdom and experience don’t matter.
It means our wisdom gets a seat at the table, but it doesn’t get the throne.
God does.
And there may be something in your life right now where you’ve been asking God to confirm your plan when He’s asking you to surrender it.
Maybe today’s prayer needs to change from:
“God, please make this work.”
to:
“God, show me what You want, and give me the courage to follow You even if it’s different from what I want.”
That’s not weakness.
That’s wisdom.
Action Steps
* Question one assumption today. Identify something you’ve been absolutely convinced about and honestly ask God, “Is there anything I’m not seeing?”
* Check your decision against Scripture. Don’t ask only whether something makes sense. Ask whether it agrees with what God has already revealed.
* Practice three difficult words: “I could be wrong.” Especially in a relationship or situation where you’ve become defensive about your position.
Challenge for the Day
Before making an important decision today, pray this first: “Lord, don’t just bless what I want. Show me what You want, and help me obey.”
Prayer
Father, forgive me for the times I’ve trusted my own wisdom more than Yours. You see what I cannot see and know what I cannot know. Give me the humility to listen, the wisdom to recognize Your direction, and the courage to obey when Your way is different from mine. I don’t want You simply to bless my plans. I want my plans to come under Your leadership. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Pastor Jeff
#LoveGod #LovePeople #FindFreedom #FindYourDesign
There are times when the biggest obstacle to hearing from God isn’t the noise around us. It’s the confidence within us. We can become so convinced that we know what we’re doing, what needs to happen, and how things ought to turn out that we leave very little room for God to correct us. Proverbs gives us a needed warning: wisdom begins when we stop assuming we’re the wisest person in the room.
“Be not wise in your own eyes;
fear the LORD, and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones.”
- Proverbs 3:7–8 (ESV)
Proverbs 3:7 comes right after one of the most familiar passages in Scripture:
“Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.”
— Proverbs 3:5
We love the part about trusting God. The harder part may be admitting why we need to.
Sometimes our own understanding is wrong.
Not because we’re foolish people. Not because we haven’t prayed. Not because we don’t love God. We can genuinely love God and still become convinced that our way is the right way.
I’ve noticed how easy it is to pray about something while already having the answer picked out.
“Lord, guide me.”
But what we really mean is:
“Lord, bless what I’ve already decided.”
There’s a difference.
Being “wise in your own eyes” doesn’t necessarily mean walking around thinking you’re smarter than everybody else. Sometimes it looks much more respectable than that. It can look like experience. Confidence. Planning. Common sense. Even past success.
I’ve done this before.
I know how this works.
I’ve thought this through.
This makes the most sense.
And maybe it does.
But God sees what we cannot see.
That’s why the fear of the Lord matters. Biblical fear isn’t living terrified that God is waiting to punish you. It’s recognizing who God is and putting His wisdom above your own.
It’s saying, “God, You know more than I know, You see farther than I see, and if what You want conflicts with what I want, I’m going with You.”
That last part is where this gets uncomfortable.
Because Proverbs doesn’t simply say, “Fear the Lord.” It adds, “turn away from evil.”
Real reverence produces obedience.
There are things we don’t need to pray about for six months because God has already spoken clearly about them. We don’t need another sign. We don’t need somebody to tell us what we want to hear. We don’t need to keep searching until we find an interpretation that gives us permission to do what we’ve already decided to do.
Sometimes wisdom is simply obeying what God has already said.
And sometimes wisdom is having enough humility to admit:
“I could be wrong.”
That’s a powerful sentence.
Imagine what might change in a marriage if both people could say it.
Imagine what might change in a business decision.
A friendship.
A disagreement.
A decision about money.
A conversation with one of your children.
Even your understanding of something God may be doing in your life.
There is tremendous freedom in not having to know everything.
You don’t have to see ten miles down the road when you’re walking with the One who does.
And notice what Solomon connects to this kind of surrender: healing and refreshment.
Maybe that’s because carrying the responsibility of having everything figured out is exhausting.
We weren’t created to be God.
Yet sometimes we carry our lives as though everything depends on our ability to make exactly the right decision, control every outcome, anticipate every problem, and keep every plate spinning.
God never asked us to carry that weight.
He asks us to trust Him.
That doesn’t mean we stop thinking. It doesn’t mean planning is wrong. It certainly doesn’t mean wisdom and experience don’t matter.
It means our wisdom gets a seat at the table, but it doesn’t get the throne.
God does.
And there may be something in your life right now where you’ve been asking God to confirm your plan when He’s asking you to surrender it.
Maybe today’s prayer needs to change from:
“God, please make this work.”
to:
“God, show me what You want, and give me the courage to follow You even if it’s different from what I want.”
That’s not weakness.
That’s wisdom.
Action Steps
* Question one assumption today. Identify something you’ve been absolutely convinced about and honestly ask God, “Is there anything I’m not seeing?”
* Check your decision against Scripture. Don’t ask only whether something makes sense. Ask whether it agrees with what God has already revealed.
* Practice three difficult words: “I could be wrong.” Especially in a relationship or situation where you’ve become defensive about your position.
Challenge for the Day
Before making an important decision today, pray this first: “Lord, don’t just bless what I want. Show me what You want, and help me obey.”
Prayer
Father, forgive me for the times I’ve trusted my own wisdom more than Yours. You see what I cannot see and know what I cannot know. Give me the humility to listen, the wisdom to recognize Your direction, and the courage to obey when Your way is different from mine. I don’t want You simply to bless my plans. I want my plans to come under Your leadership. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Pastor Jeff
#LoveGod #LovePeople #FindFreedom #FindYourDesign
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