Denial is a universal survival mechanism. It's crude, the survival it affords is an illusion, and it can consume a lot of energy, but given one's inability to effect change, it's kinda hard to cast aspersions at. It's emotional duct tape.
I am suspicious of everything and everybody these days including my own behavior. I think my 52 years a widow is a masterclass in suspicion. I suspect a man is cheating on me before I even know who he is. I am working on my OSD, obsessive suspicion disorder, but progresses is slow. Just when I think I am gaining more trust in others, Mr. Risk calls me on the phone. I mean, come on man, with a first name like Spam, who wouldn't be a bit suspicious?
In this day and time, many of us are overly cautious or suspicious, with good reason. My by line is still- trust but verify. I have learned over the years that instead of paying so much attention to what a person says, focusing on what they are not saying is closer to the truth. Just ponder on that a bit, until you get the meaning .
I have written many times before that other than my wife, there is a degree of mistrust I have with everyone. That said, even when Yvonne smiles and says Honey, I am highly suspicious that those actions will lead to “can you do”(?) and not something far more preferable.
If someone says anything negative about me or my family, I become suspicious of their motives and ask myself three questions: 1. Why are they telling me this? 2. What do they have to gain by telling me this? 3. Do they have my best interests at heart in telling me this?
For me, the issue of who to trust is super important. Here is my way to decide: 1. Do I trust this person’s heart? 2. Do I trust this person’s judgment?
I kinda lean toward the summation given in Jer. 17:9. The heart is deceitful above all else and terribly wicked. Who can know it?
I think Jeremiah makes a good point here. The heart in some people may be all that he says. But I lean toward using my intuition about someone's heart and judgment before I trust them on some issue.
LOL My husband got me a surprise present, delivered from amazon, yesterday. A sobakawa pillow. I tried it out and it was perfect! Normally he doesn't get me presents because, his taste and mine are quite different. But I had mentioned that I thought I needed this. So I got up and said, "Come 'ere!" and started walking to him to give him a hug. He didn't move. Not sure if he was having balance issues or if he remembered my cane....
Okay, I've done my research. Sobakawa pillows are filled with buckwheat hulls, but when I research buckwheat hulls, I come up with this.
These pillows are a bit like sleeping on a solid surface--not a fluffy pillow. But you can arrange the hulls to fit your head, neck, ear...and it stays till you change the arrangement. You either love them or hate them.