[DannyTN]

"The problem here is that not only does it appear that the cliff is entirely a product of your imagination,...

Well obviously we both can't be right. Either my seeing the cliff is a product of my conceit or your failure to see it is a product of yours. One of us is clearly wrong.

...but there are a great number of other people telling me to adjust my path in various different directions to avoid various other cliffs -- none of which appear to be any more real than the one to which you hold a claim.

There are and that's unfortunate. I would suggest you get a long stick and probe, there might just be a cliff there.

My wife tends to give me directions that are "Turn here" which is no help because it doesn't say which way. My kids tell me "Turn left", but they don't know left from right yet. Sometimes my kids tell me to turn and they don't even know where we are supposed to be going.

Life is a lot like that.

However, there are ways to discern which voices to listen to. I can tell you some things that may help.

God said, "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. " Now this requires giving God the benefit of the doubt enough to ask Him. But it's really an excellent start. This I know, God desires to give man good things. If you ask Him for wisdom, it might take Him a while to teach you, but He is not likely to leave that request unanswered.

1 Corinthians 3:2 - I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able. Sometimes you have to act on what God has already shown you, before He can teach you more. You have to crawl before you walk. You have to learn to add, before you can multiply.

He can give you wisdom, you still have to choose whether to act on it.

[Dimensio]

Well obviously we both can't be right. Either my seeing the cliff is a product of my conceit or your failure to see it is a product of yours. One of us is clearly wrong.

Maybe we're both wrong, and the Hindus are right -- in which case it's not as big a deal, because we'll get to try again later. But then, maybe the Muslims are right. Or some obscure, rarely heard-of religion.

I would suggest you get a long stick and probe, there might just be a cliff there.

The metaphor only works so far.

My wife tends to give me directions that are "Turn here" which is no help because it doesn't say which way. My kids tell me "Turn left", but they don't know left from right yet. Sometimes my kids tell me to turn and they don't even know where we are supposed to be going.

So what you're saying is that I have know way of knowing whether or not you're pointing me in the right direction, is that it? Of course, there's the possibility that you're mistaken about the need to turn altogether.

God said, "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. " Now this requires giving God the benefit of the doubt enough to ask Him. But it's really an excellent start. This I know, God desires to give man good things. If you ask Him for wisdom, it might take Him a while to teach you, but He is not likely to leave that request unanswered.

This, of course, is assuming that the God of which you speak exists and is of the nature that you claim. The problem here is that you're asking me to assume that you're correct in the first place. It's circular reasoning.