“Before we set our hearts too much upon anything, let us examine how happy those are who already possess it” (François de La Rochefoucauld).
MANY OF LIFE’S REGRETS COME FROM NOT LOOKING AT THINGS CAREFULLY ENOUGH. It frequently happens that we acquire possessions or become involved in activities that bring us more grief than happiness, and it would have been relatively easy to see where they would lead if we’d examined them beforehand. That boat you thought you had to have, for example. Did you even ask anyone how much time it would take to maintain it? As La Rochefoucauld points out, before letting ourselves be disturbed by desire for something, we ought to “examine how happy those are who already possess it.” We ought, in other words, to audit our appetites.
“Fine print” is boring to read, but it’s often helpful to read it anyway. And the more important the contract, the wiser we are to read the fine print. But we don’t often do that, do we? We assume too much. We jump to too many conclusions without examining them, and then later, when we realize what we’ve gotten ourselves into, we wish we had surveyed the situation a bit more carefully.
As little as we examine some things, however, we examine others too much. For instance, most of us spend too much time inspecting and analyzing other people’s business. However, “he who passes by and meddles in a quarrel not his own is like one who takes a dog by the ears” (Proverbs 26:17). A “busybody” is a person who meddles or pries into the affairs of other people, and that’s exactly what we catch ourselves being and doing sometimes. In fact, I have a friend who, based on his observation of human nature, has formulated the following rule: our interest in any topic is inversely proportional to that topic’s bearing on our own conduct.
A more productive use of our time would be self-examination. When Socrates said that “the unexamined life is not worth living,” he wasn’t talking about examining someone else’s life to make it more worthy! The growth of our own character depends on being willing to scrutinize ourselves. The flaws are there waiting to be seen, and they are correctable — but only if we submit to self-scrutiny.
“When we see men of worth, we should think of becoming like them; when we see men of contrary character, we should turn inward and examine ourselves” (Confucius).
Gary Henry – WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com
