If we are going to live productive and meaningful lives, we must be radically honest with ourselves. One of the most honest questions we can ask ourselves is this: what am I seeking? Our will and intentions determine how we see and interpret the world as well as how we think and feel. Valentine Tomberg writes, “The apparatus of thinking becomes thereby a compliant tool for the instructions one gives… indeed, the will drives and moves the apparatus of thinking, determining thought’s direction towards its goal.” Translation: we see what we want to see, think what we want to think, imagine what we want to imagine, and eventually, go where we want to go. For this reason, next to the knowledge of God, nothing is more important than the knowledge of ourselves. Such knowledge does not include self-criticism or shaming. Rather, it is about being transparent to our motivations so that we can take responsibility for what we have miscreated in our lives. More importantly, being honest with ourselves allows us to wrestle with a fundamental question: am I going to create my own ideals, values, and meaning out of thin air, without any light from above? Or, will I avail myself of God’s light, ideals, and life?
Guruji
Help me always to remember:
I see what I want to see
Hear what I want to hear
Think what I want to think
Imagine what I want to imagine
And go where I want to go.
