The Way of a Fool By Paul Chappell "The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise." Proverbs 12:15 Though it doesn’t rain often in the Arizona desert, when it does rain, it tends to rain heavily, and flash floods are a common occurrence. In many places the natural washes and arroyos take the water across roadways. Often people attempt to drive through the water and find themselves trapped as the force of the current takes them off the road. Sometimes people even die trying to drive through the floodwaters. Many times they require rescue by local authorities. In an effort to combat this, Arizona passed what is officially called Section 28-910 of the Arizona Revised Statues, but more commonly known as the “Stupid Motorist Law.” This law makes it illegal for people to drive around barriers in an attempt to cross flooded streets—and provides for a $2,000 fine for anyone who does so and has to be rescued. Despite the warnings, the potential fine, and the example of those who have been injured or killed in the attempt, people still try to make their way through floodwaters with deadly results. We all have the tendency to think that we can make it through warnings that we convince ourselves only apply to others. Yet the end result of such folly is often damaging—if not worse. Our own wisdom and understanding is a poor guide to making decisions. We see an illustration of this in the Old Testament at the death of Joshua. As long as Joshua and the leaders who had known Joshua lived, the children of Israel served the Lord. Once they were gone, however, the people went their own ways. Several times in the book of Judges we find the expression: “In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes” (Judges 17:6). Rather than going by our sight, we should obey what God declares. Today’s Proverbs Precept: Rather than going by what makes sense to you, judge everything but what the Bible says.
Posted on: Wed, 17 Jul 2013 06:13:09 +0000