- Bias and Blind Spots — An Invitation to Awareness
- How Cognitive Bias Creeps Into Code
- Search Me, O God: Naming Our Blind Spots (Ps 139:23–24)
There is something deeply unsettling about being truly seen.
Most of us are comfortable with partial visibility — being known in ways we can manage, understood on our own terms, seen when we are prepared. What we resist is exposure: the uncovering of what we have not noticed, what we have avoided, or what we would rather not name.
And yet, Scripture repeatedly invites us into precisely this vulnerability.
Try me and know my thoughts!
And see if there be any grievous way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting!
“Search me, O God, and know my heart;test me and know my anxious thoughts.See if there is any wicked way in me,and lead me in the way everlasting.”— Psalm 139:23–24
This prayer is not defensive. It is courageous. It does not ask God to confirm the psalmist’s goodness, but to reveal what the psalmist cannot see.
Blind spots, by definition, are hidden from us. We do not choose them. We do not usually intend them. They arise from habit, familiarity, fear, and limitation. And because they are invisible to us, they are often the most formative parts of our lives.
The Illusion of Self-Knowledge
We like to think we know ourselves well. We can list our strengths and weaknesses. We have a sense of our values. We may even pride ourselves on being self-aware.
But Scripture offers a humbler assessment of human insight.
Again and again, we are reminded that our self-knowledge is partial. We are capable of great honesty — and profound self-deception. Not because we are malicious, but because we are finite.
Blind spots form where attention does not reach.
They develop in the spaces between intention and action, between belief and practice. We may sincerely affirm justice, kindness, and humility, while remaining unaware of the ways we benefit from systems that disadvantage others. We may value truth, while avoiding conversations that threaten our sense of being right.
Psalm 139 does not condemn this reality. It acknowledges it — and then places it before God.
Being Known Without Being Condemned
One of the reasons we resist naming blind spots is fear.
What if what is revealed is too uncomfortable?What if it challenges how we see ourselves?What if it demands change?
The psalmist’s prayer rests on a crucial foundation: God’s knowledge is loving.
Earlier in the psalm, we are told that God knows us completely — our thoughts, our movements, our words before they are spoken. This knowledge is not presented as surveillance, but as care.
behold, O LORD, you know it altogether.
To ask God to search us is not to invite accusation. It is to trust that truth, when revealed by love, heals rather than destroys.
This distinction matters. Self-examination without grace leads to shame. Self-examination rooted in God’s faithfulness leads to freedom.
Blind Spots in the Life of Faith
Blind spots often appear in our faith where belief becomes habitual rather than attentive.
We may pray regularly but avoid silence.We may read Scripture but resist passages that unsettle us.We may serve faithfully while neglecting rest or honesty.
Over time, these patterns solidify. They begin to feel normal. And because they are normal, they stop being questioned.
Jesus consistently confronts this kind of blindness — not in those far from faith, but in those closest to it. Religious leaders who know Scripture well are often the least able to recognise what God is doing in front of them.
This is not because they are insincere. It is because familiarity can dull perception.
The Gift of Discomfort
Naming blind spots is rarely comfortable. It disrupts our sense of coherence. It reveals inconsistencies between who we believe we are and how we actually live.
But discomfort is not always a sign of danger. Sometimes, it is a sign of growth.
The psalmist does not ask to be searched once. This is a posture, not a moment. It is a willingness to remain open to correction — to allow God to reshape us gradually.
This posture requires humility. It acknowledges that we are not finished products. That faithfulness is a journey, not an achievement.
Letting Others Help Us See
While Psalm 139 is a prayer addressed to God, Scripture also affirms the role of community in revealing blind spots.
Others see what we cannot. They notice patterns we overlook. They reflect back to us truths we may not want to hear.
This is why isolation is dangerous for spiritual growth. Alone, our blind spots remain unchallenged. In community, they can be named — gently, lovingly, and truthfully.
This requires trust. It requires relationships where honesty is safe and defensiveness is not rewarded. Such communities are rare — but they are precious.
Being Led in the Everlasting Way
The psalm does not end with exposure. It ends with guidance.
“Lead me in the way everlasting.”
The goal of being searched is not self-improvement for its own sake. It is alignment — being led into a way of life that endures.
God does not reveal blind spots to shame us. He reveals them to free us. To remove what distorts our vision. To help us walk more truthfully, more lovingly, more attentively.
This is slow work. It unfolds over years rather than moments. But it is faithful work.
Practising This Prayer
As this month continues, bias and blind spots will surface — in your thinking, your work, your relationships. The temptation will be to defend yourself or turn away.
Instead, you are invited to pray.
Not, Show me how right I am.But, Search me, O God.
This prayer requires courage. But it rests on trust — trust that God’s truth is always joined to mercy, and that being known fully is not a threat, but a gift.
Prayer
Searching God,
you know us more deeply than we know ourselves.
Give us courage to invite your truth,
even when it unsettles us.
Reveal the blind spots we cannot see,
not to condemn us, but to heal us.
Lead us gently in the way everlasting,
and teach us to walk humbly in your light.
Amen.
Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®). Copyright © Crossway.
