Insanity

Daniel 5:18-23

“O king, the Most High God gave Nebuchadnezzar your father kingship and greatness and glory and majesty . . . And you his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, though you knew all this, but you have lifted up yourself against the Lord of heaven. And the vessels of his house have been brought in before you, and you and your lords, your wives, and your concubines have drunk wine from them. And you have praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which do not see or hear or know, but the God in whose hand is your breath, and whose are all your ways, you have not honored.”

May 24, 2022

Insanity – I have heard it defined as doing things over and over again in the same way while expecting a different outcome. We think it is funny when a dog goes to bring a stick that is too long through a door and he keeps backing up and trying again and again. Yet, when a person or family gets caught in a cycle, it seems frustrating and disheartening. It is indeed almost the definition of insanity. Yet, we have such a hard time breaking out of cycles set forward by our parents, or that we have started in our own lives which are to our own detriment.

In the verses above, Daniel has been called to interpret the writing on the wall. Belshazzar has become completely terrified by the origin of this writing and wants to know what it means. Daniel’s answer to the understanding of the writing could be distilled down into, “King, you have been living in insanity. Your grandfather, Nebuchadnezzar, was humbled to the point of living like a wild animal in the wilderness for a time, because he did not honor God. Why did you not learn the lesson from his life?”

I have to wonder how often we see the mistakes of our parents, grandparents or simply another individual in our lives? We offer critiques, criticisms and solutions while not recognizing that we have some very similar failures in our own lives. It is no wonder that Jesus said, “Judge not, lest you be judged,” and “take the plank out of your own eye before you try to remove the speck from your brother’s.” (Matthew 7:1-3)

Now, having seen how one man failed to assess his own life in the light of another in his own family, are you willing to assess your own life and see your own failings, or misgivings? Will you spend some time in introspection to see how you can better serve, rather than reject, God? Or will you lead on into insanity trying to do the same things that your family or others in your life have errored, solely receiving the same result?