Kyle Idleman continues his discussion of denial in Chapter 6 of AHA by noting that what keeps a person in the pigpen, ala the Prodigal Son, is denial. We keep living like everything is going to be okay. While we may have had an awakening, we don’t have the courage to be brutally honest with ourselves regarding our current reality. So this is the place where so many people get stuck. We keep living in the pigpen.
Pastor Idleman goes on to list and discuss three tactics of denial. The first tactic is presented today.
1. Disagree. When we’re doing something that is blatantly wrong, eventually it becomes obvious that our disagreement with correction has less to do with the facts and more with what we want to be true. The author cites the old adage: “Don’t bother with the facts; my mind’s already made up.” Pastor Idleman adds that we tell ourselves a lie because that lie is more convenient to believe. The author cites Blasé Pascal, who is purported to have said:
“People almost invariably arrive at their beliefs not on the basis of proof but on the basis of what they find attractive.”
AHA, Pastor Idleman concludes, doesn’t happen without confession. We have to come to that place where we stop disagreeing with truth.
Today’s question (from Kyle): When we are faced with an uncomfortable truth, what are the emotions we experience that lead us to denial? How can we confront them rather than give in to them? Please share.
Tomorrow’s blog: “Defensiveness”
New addition to Crown Jewels: “Better description- Christian or disciple?”
