The disciple who means to compel everyone of his thoughts to surrender in obedience to Christ would do well to test himself by asking:
1. Whose glory do I seek?
2. Is this for or against the knowledge of God?
3. Am I giving my mind to wholesome precepts?
4. Am I morbidly keen on mere verbal questions and quibbles?
5. Is it more important to me to understand or obey?
6. Is it more important to me to know than to believe?
7. Will one side of the question inconvenience me?
8. Do I reject a particular truth because it will inconvenience me?
There is no end to the sophistries we are capable of substituting for clear thinking. Pragmatism (it's right if it works for me), technical feasibility (science has found a way to do it, so let's do it), relevance (I can relate to this), comfort (I feel comfortable with this), happiness (I feel happy about this), moderation (I certainly don't want to go to extremes), obligation (I owe this to myself), responsibility (it's my life), and so on. -Elisabeth Elliot Discipline: The Glad Surrender
