Cognitive Bias sounds like a single mistake that people make and in one sense it is, however a search will show that it is in fact well over a hundred identifiable approaches that people adopt to impose their own concept of reality on the facts. Knowledge of these is more relevant to people who interpret statistics but I find the same problems apply to general behaviour. It is one thing to reduce the amount of input to our minds so that we can manage, but it is dangerous to filter the facts to suit our concept of reality so that what is relevant is only what suits our comfort.
People Discount Evidence
If you want to feel small you can take a look at this List_of_cognitive_biases from Wikipedia 2017-09-01
Why is it that two people recall the same event differently? As far as the winner is concerned it was perfect but the loser recognises all of the built-in impediments.
Why does someone's behaviour (good or bad) on one specific occasion define their life and character as far as another person is concerned?
Why do people say 'I told you so' when what they actually said was ambiguous at best?
Why is a situation serious only when your friend is at risk, when in reality your friend belongs to a whole group of people who are all at risk all of the time?
Why is every mother's son 'a good boy'?
Why did the opera take too long for one person and finish too soon for another?
When evaluating information our beliefs are just as important to the results as the evidence itself. Our proclivity towards certain behaviours is also fact and all of the facts are neccessary to generate a correct result.
These are people who had the evidence and discounted it. If we do not learn to appreciate God and what He has given; if we allow ourselves to become ungrateful and not look to see that life itself is a wonderful gift; if we minimise the sacrifice of those who love us and the hope of living in a perfect society with wonderful friends, then we can lose it all. Being ungrateful is deadly.
We need to counteract it deliberately. Get the facts. The Bereans checked out things to see if the evidence was there. Don't assume that you already have the answer if you have not checked the evidence.
Actually there is a whole process that the Bible reveals to those who are already trying to serve the Lord. These are the facts and all must be included in our lives. If we ignore them we do it at our own risk:
Love Gods way. Do things Gods way and contemplate the benefits. The right way to dress, the right songs to sing, the right people to be with. Lots of people who are not even Christians see Gods way of doing things and love it. I sing in my head so I know that a positive song or hymn can make a lot of difference. Another example is God wants us to polite. We can rejoice in being polite especially when we see how impolite people bring unnecessary trouble on themselves. Do things Gods way, look for the benefits and rejoice. God wants us to respect our parents. Rejoice in that when you see how some parents and children demolish each other.
Notice that it says that we should not 'despise' preaching. Despise is actually used to mean that we ascribe little value to it, not that we hate it with a passion. Now if you check out the matter and it is fraudulent then that is another matter, but we should not reach the point where we turn off once the Bible is spoken of.
If the rain sets up and you might get wet, pray. If the sun is too hot, pray. If you made a mistake or forgot something, pray.
Nothing is too small. If you want to go out and dont have the resources, pray. Dont take anything for granted, pray. God cares.
When confronted with facts or information which contradicts what we believe we need to repent but rather than change we want to attack the evidence.