Scripture in Action

Aneel Aranha is an author, preacher, and evangelist who has spoken to hundreds of thousands of people around the world. You can find a huge selection of his reflections, articles, sermons, songs and other resources on his app.

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Scripture in Action

Day 170

August 25, 2025 • Aneel Aranha • Season 3 • Episode 170

0:00 | 11:35

Explore the contrast between God's wisdom and human understanding through Isaiah 20-22 and 1 Corinthians 2, discovering how to depend on the Holy Spirit rather than worldly strategies.

Day 170 – Looking Everywhere Except at God

Isaiah 20–22
1 Corinthians 2

You can do everything right and still miss the point completely. That's the uncomfortable truth at the center of today's readings. For three years Isaiah walks the streets of Jerusalem stripped and barefoot, a living picture of what happens to people who trust Egypt for rescue. Chapter 21 gives us a watchman straining into the darkness, and the cry when news finally comes. Babylon has fallen, has fallen. Then chapter 22 lands the sharpest blow, and it lands on Jerusalem, the city Isaiah calls the Valley of Vision. Under threat, they work hard and work well. Weapons inspected, houses counted, walls strengthened, a reservoir built for the water. Every step is sensible. Then Isaiah says the one thing that undoes it all. But you did not look to the One who made it. Paul writes to a church that loved clever speech and says he came in weakness, resolved to know nothing except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. Held together, today's readings call us to look up before we look around.

One theme runs through these passages. You can prepare well, plan wisely, and still miss the one thing that matters. Seeing what God is doing is a gift of the Spirit, not an achievement of intelligence.

What does this look like once the day begins?

First, take the decision you're working through and stop the planning. Stop long enough to ask God directly what He wants. Then wait a while before you pick it back up.

Second, ask the Holy Spirit each morning this week for eyes to see what He's doing around you. At the end of the day, name out loud one thing you noticed that you would normally have walked straight past.

Third, pick one situation where you've been running on your own competence. Tell someone you trust that you need prayer for it, instead of quietly solving it alone.

As you go through your day, remember this. You can plan for everything and still miss God. Before you take the next sensible step, look to the One who made you and ask what He sees.

Thank you for joining me today. May God give you open eyes, a dependent heart, and the wisdom His Spirit alone can give. Until tomorrow, keep your heart open to God and your confidence in His faithfulness.