Observations From Powlison's Book

In his book, "Seeing With New Eyes," David Powlison writes: The words 'I feel like' often obscure our responsibility for our desire." Powlison goes on to say, "people act as if their 'feel like' are authoritative." I feel – no pun intended – this statement to be true in my life. I find that when I am tired or angry or worried, for example, I elevate my feelings for comfort above my duties to be a loyal and loving servant of the Lord Jesus Christ. "Deceptive desires determine choices" (Seeing With New Eyes pg., 214), and what foolish choices are made as a result! I found that the correlation and link made between people acting on feelings (or impulse), and people indulging in many forms of idolatry (or finding substitute refuges), to be very insightful. The deceptive nature of my own "feel like" no doubt obscures my responsibilities as a Christian, because my feelings warrant and demand my attention.

The more attention I give my feelings, the more I feel that they are legitimate. The more legitimate I feel my feelings are, the more lax I become in my defense against it. The more lax I become, the more likely I am to give into an excuse, and look for an escape – the more likely I am to run to one of the many gods I have enacted for comfort, ease, and peace. As I write this, I am reminded of a scripture in James..."But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death" (James 1:14-15).

Prior to pondering Powlison's quote, I had not made the connection between deceptive feelings begging for attention in the hopes of gaining lordship over Christian responsibilities, with what I believe to be the scriptural equivalent in James 1:14-15. When I am tempted because of the lust in my own heart, I stumble into sin. Or as Powlison puts it, " I act as if my feelings are authoritative – and that more so than the word of God in a particular time – and so have deceptive desires obscure truth and reality (that being the word of God).
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