262. WHY WE SHOULD LET GOD DIRECT OUR PATH

(The Information & Edification Series – Batch 7)

Proverbs 3:5-6 tells us:

“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Lean not on your own understanding. Acknowledge him in all your ways and he will direct your path.“

The Lord is righteous and Proverbs 12:28 states:

“In the way of righteousness is life; and in the pathway thereof there is no death.”

Whether it is a decision as to who to marry, what job to pursue or something else, there are several reasons why we should seek God for counsel when making decisions, whether we consider those decisions to be major or miniscule. Some of these reasons are as follows:-

1. We are marred by our sinful nature which can in turn mar our judgment.

It can cloud our thinking and make us make foolish decisions, which in the moment, seem right and good. Our sin nature is often manifested in selfishness and so we often make selfish decisions which may not be wise decisions because in the moment, it seems beneficial to self. Samson said of the ungodly woman he wanted to marry, “She pleaseth me well.” (Judges 14:3)

Our sin nature is also manifested in pride, feelings of self-sufficiency, self-importance and false notions that we are so super spiritual that we will never make a mistake and will never find ourselves in trouble as a result of the decisions we have made without God’s counsel and approval. When Samson’s hair had been cut by Delilah and she awakened him suddenly to the reality that he was surrounded by enemies, he shook himself as at other times, assuming in his self-sufficiency that the power that God had given him and that he had often used was still there, as on other occasions but the Word of God says that “…he wist not that the Lord was departed from him.” (Judges 16: 20)

2. We have limited knowledge.

Our intellect is not enough to rely on to make right decisions in all situations. It is woefully lacking. On the other hand, God is all-wise, omniscient. He has perfect knowledge and complete wisdom. He knows the future. He knows the hearts of all men. This was why the apostles sought the Lord’s choice when deciding on who should replace Judas as the twelfth apostle (Acts 1:23-24).

God knows who a person is and what that person will become. He knows what will await us down the road. When we seek his counsel on decisions, like the very important decision on who to spend the rest of our lives with he is able therefore, to take into consideration not just the now but the future. He is able to guide us to do what will be best not just for now but ten, twenty years down the road. He knows how we will change and how a possible love interest may change. He knows if we are truly compatible, not just for the now but twenty years into our marriage.

Why would we not seek to benefit from such wisdom that is available to us and free of charge? Why would we not seek in humility and utter dependence, the will of such a one that knows everything? Why will we not trust him and willingly (even if painful) turn our backs on whatever he tells us is not for our good or spiritual welfare?

When, in response to my continually seeking him in prayer on a matter, as to whether a young man was his choice for me in marriage, God shut the door suddenly and unexpectedly, I cried intensely and hurt immensely but I still thanked God through my tears because although I was in a lot of pain, I knew even in that moment, that my God knew best. I knew that he had my best interest at heart and I trust his decision. Despite my pain, I knew that love, true love would win in the end because my God was love.

Indeed, we do ourselves a great disservice if we don’t draw from God, the source of wisdom. He never makes a wrong decision or guides his children wrong. His ways are infallible. He is incapable of error. He is always right and his ways are always best. He guides us on the pathway of righteousness which the Word of God tells us brings life and therefore, it is in our best interest to cling to his counsel, while abandoning our own reasoning, how things appear and our intellect.

3. We have hearts that are deceitful and desperately wicked above all.

We cannot therefore trust our hearts to make right decisions. We can be self-deceived and not realise it (Jeremiah 17:9).

4. We are not so spiritual that we are incapable of making error.

Samuel was a man of God, a prophet, close to God, super spiritual and he still made a mistake in judgment. He mistakenly thought that Eliab, Jesse’s oldest son was the one that God wanted to be king over Israel (1 Samuel 16:6).

The Israelites, including a Joshua, a man who was very spiritual, got the issue of the Gibeonites wrong because they did not seek God’s counsel. They never asked him for advice on the matter, they took it for granted that by virtue of their walk with God, they would make the right decision and so they were duped by the Gibeonites into entering into a covenant that was not in their best interest (Joshua 9).

Many people who have professed Christianity, do this today and have found themselves in unhappy, unrewarding, unfulfilling marriages and business relationships as a result of thinking that they had things under control, that they could make good decisions without God’s counsel or assuming (due to pride or confidence in their intellect or spirituality) that whatever they perceived was good was bound to be seen as good in God’s eyes as well.

They went ahead and entered into marriage and business covenants with people that were not God’s perfect will for their lives and sadly, sometimes, even people that seemed saved but were not. They were commissioned by the enemy to undermine them, their testimony and their usefulness for God’s Kingdom and like Samson, they took the bait hook, line and sinker, only realizing how they had fallen into the enemy’s trap, when it was too late. This brings me to my next point.

5. There is an enemy going about seeking to devour.

We don’t live in a passive world where decisions have no consequence. We live in a world where the devil aggressively and relentlessly comes after God’s people, even in subtle ways. He is capable of disguising himself and those who belong to him as ministers of light (2 Corinthians 11:13-15). Therefore, in this world, we don’t only have to contend with the deceitfulness of our flesh and sin nature within which can trip us up but the enemy of our souls, who is going around to and fro, seeking who he may devour.

The best way to avoid being tripped by him is to seek God in prayer, asking him for his guidance, his counsel, his will, in every decision we have to make. If this does not become our lifestyle, we will find ourselves where we did not want to be and ought not to have been. Like Samson, we will find ourselves captured, bound, our spiritual eyes put out, so-to-speak and the laughing stock of the heathen.

6. God is the one that created us so he knows best what he created us for.

He has all the answers as it pertains to our purpose, knows us better than ourselves and knows what his blueprint or agenda for our lives are. We should therefore consult him to find out if whatever we want to do or are considering doing, aligns with his plan for our lives. If we don’t, we may find ourselves as fishes without water or birds in water. We cannot thrive outside of the purpose for which we were created and redeemed.

If redeemed, we are no longer our own. Jesus did not just create us but purchased us back to himself with his blood. We are his servants and he is our Lord. We are therefore not supposed to take matters into our own hands as if we are not accountable to anyone. We belong to him, so we must bring our situations to him to decide, however he pleases and once he has made his will clear, submit to it, even if it means we must suffer or seemingly lose out or look bad and even if it attracts ridicule or criticism from others.

7. The rest that we are after is in Jesus.

Hence the reason that he invites us to come all that are heavy laden and I will give you rest. Whatever good we are after, Jesus is the one that can guide us to it and give it to us. Every good gift cometh…..

8. The Lord loves us.

In Psalm 91:4 it says of him, “He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.” In the New Testament, Jesus himself cried after wayward Jerusalem, stating:

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!” (Matthew 23:37).

The Lord truly cares for us and is rooting for our success. Whereas the enemy’s agenda is to kill, steal and destroy, the Lord’s agenda is for us to have life and more abundantly. He wants to create masterpieces out of our lives, to his glory. In light of the fact that he cares for us, his counsel is one that we can trust. In light of the fact that he loves us and cares about our welfare, he is always prepared to help and wants to do so. He is a present help in times of trouble (Psalm 46:1) and his Word invites us to come boldly to his throne of grace so that we may find help in time of need (Hebrews 4:16). He wants us to lean on HIS wisdom, not our own and to come to him, even if persistent, like the widow who came repeatedly to the earthly Judge with her request and to ask for his help, his intervention, his guidance (Luke 18:1-8).

9. We are weaklings.

Our spirit may be willing but our flesh is weak (Matthew 26:41). We therefore need the Lord’s strength daily, to succour us, to keep us, to guide us. The Apostle Paul knew this (Romans 7:24-25). Peter didn’t realize it until he had fallen.

Even Solomon, the wisest man that ever lived and who was dearly loved of God and seemingly super spiritual at one point, still fell into the trap the devil set for him, through his Achilles heel: women. The Bible tells us that he loved many strange women and though they were not able to overpower his will to serve God when he was young, when he was old, they did. They caused his heart to be turned away from God and to please them, he did what was displeasing to God (1 Kings 11:1-6).

10. God is all powerful.

He is omnipotent. There is nothing that we fighting against or will come upon in this life, that he has not conquered or is not able to conquer. He can bring to pass whatever he wishes to bring to pass because his power knows no limits. He is over all and his power trumps all. We therefore need to seek counsel from the one that is able to do whatever he pleases and who holds the entire universe and all that is in it, in his hands. He has the power to bring water out of a rock, to change a wilderness into a flourishing garden, to cause a barren woman to keep house and to change or reverse or bring about any situation. We don’t just come to the one that is able to give wise and infallible advice therefore but one who is able to orchestrate and bring about any outcome.

11. God is faithful.

He is faithful to his character and to his Word. The Bible tells us that he cannot lie. Whenever he makes a promise therefore, he fulfils it. He has given us the assurance that if we acknowledge him instead of placing reliance on our own understanding (which is limited), that he will (not may) direct our path. The Psalmist boasted, “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake“ (Psalm 23:1-3).

In his faithfulness, he told David, although he had messed up but after he (David) had repented, “I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye” (Psalm 32:8). In his faithfulness, he did not disown and abandon David after he had sinned but, once David had repented, he was ever ready to help guide him in the right way again.

(Written on 11^th October, 2022)

Dear Reader, if you found the above Article to be interesting, informative, beneficial or edifying, you may also be interested in reading the following under the ‘SINGLE Daughters’ page:

Note 12 -‘Placing God At The Wheel Of My Future Love Story’
Note 87- ‘I Lost All Control When I Asked God To Take The Wheel’
Note 137 – ‘Who To Marry?’
Note 268 – ‘Making The Wrong Decision Can Be Costly – When You Don’t Wait On God To Introduce You To Your Spouse.’
Note 274 – ‘I Being In The Way, The Lord Led Me – A Match Made In Heaven’

Additionally, under the ‘BROKEN Daughters’ page: