"And the survey says...." That line from Family Feud sticks in my mind. We are swamped by surveys, especially in this presidential election season. Do we vote by what the surveys say or by what our heart says? This week in the financial crisis we have seen the power of surveys. Republicans and Democrats in Congress listened to what the surveys said, and since "Main Street" was against a bail-out plan they voted that way against the advice of people in the know.

That was just an example, my entry is not about politics, but about me. Do I live my life by what the survey says, and whose survey has the most authority in the decisions that I make?

Which poll do I play to? For a lot of my life I have played to the public opinion polls. I defined my self-worth by what the polls were saying about me. When the polls were bad, I felt worthless and incompetent. But I have discovered that my thinking was not wise or helpful. My biggest discovery is about which poll really counts.

The poll that really counts is God's poll, God's opinion. My real concern should be what God thinks about things. What is God's opinion about me? What is God's opinion about things? That changes everything.