By Jesse Jost

There is a universal human condition known as “naïve realism.” It is the tendency to believe that what we perceive is reality. Our brain prides itself on its ability to see things clearly. Our sight is reliable, isn’t it? Our ability to observe and make sense of what we perceive is remarkable. But life is far more complex than we can comprehend. There is way too much going on for our minds to be able to take it all in. We miss details – in fact, it is impossible to not miss them.

In the center of your eye there is a blind spot that cannot receive information. We are walking around with a hole in our vision but we never know it because the brain says, “No problem, I’ll just guess at what should fill in that blank.” The brain then makes up information to complete the picture. It does an amazing job of guessing correctly most of the time, and we get along fine, until someone asks us to get something for them from the cupboard!

What our brain does with our physical blind spot is exactly what it does with our metaphorical blind spots. We have huge knowledge gaps about the world around us, but the brain makes up information to complete the picture and we smugly think we see it all. Naïve realism. Not a big deal, right? It’s a system that seems to be working well. You’ve probably heard it said that the devil is in the details. I would like to argue that the devil is in the details that get missed. Our faulty perception is the devil’s playground. I believe our enemy is very eager to help fill in the blind spots with erroneous information that is designed to deceive and destroy the body of Christ. Continue reading…

by Jesse Jost

Recently a young father in our community was suddenly taken from this life when his sprayer made contact with an over head power line. He left behind a beautiful wife and two small boys and a whole community searching for answers. How could God let this happen? How dare he break up a young couple like that? Those are tough questions. Losing your life partner ranks near the top of the list of the most painful things that can happen to a human. When God allows a spouse to die, emotions are shattered and God’s goodness is called into question. But this tragedy raised a different troubling issue for me. This same community that is in shock that God would allow a death in a marriage has seen the death of many other marriages. These other marriages were not involuntarily broken apart, rather the death was willingly chosen. No, it wasn’t murder that broke the sacred bonds of matrimony, it was divorce. 

Continue reading…

Joy
by Jesse Jost

“Always be joyful.” (1 Thess. 5:16 NLT)

           The rain beat down on the husband and wife who wept softly as they watched the casket being slowly lowered into the black hole. The wooden box contained the physical remains of their twelve-year-old daughter who had passed away in a tragic accident. The girl’s mother turned to her husband, Dr. R. A. Torrey, and quietly said, “I’m so glad Elizabeth is with the Lord and not in that box.” But even knowing this to be true did not remove the terrible sting of the moment. The next day as Dr. Torrey thought of their loneliness without her presence, he was again overwhelmed by the horrible pain of his daughter’s death.
          When I read about such intense pain and heartache, and when I see the sorrow and hollow look in the eyes of suffering friends, I wonder how the apostle Paul could have brought himself to write those divinely inspired words, “Always be joyful.” What could be meant by such an admonition? I know he didn’t mean for you to ignore the pain you are going through, put a plastic smile on your face and just be happy, happy, happy! At the same time, we can’t solve the dilemma by redefining joy until the word is stripped of all connotations of mirth and gladness. How can we be always joyful, and yet weep with those who weep? Continue reading…