Dear friends
For me personally, one of the things I love most about being a CHILD OF GOD is that HE knows everything.
There is absolutely nothing GOD doesn’t know.
Because HE knows the end from the beginning and also, because HE has made everything and everyone on this planet.
I find it reassuring and comforting to be with THE ONE who knows it all, because there is no error or lies with GOD.
At the same time, I find it hard to also partake of HIS all-encompassing knowledge sometimes… do you?
Especially when I need guidance or “supernatural” advice.
I will give you an example and I am sure I am not the only one who is struggling with this one:
When you are single as a Christian and someone comes along and you believe they might be suitable – and this is the extremely early stage when you hardly know anything about them and want to look into this matter further very, very carefully – how do you know if GOD will approve of them becoming your partner?
And I mean truly approve.
Because I have been there in the past when I either didn’t even know I need GOD’s approval for a relationship to work out, OR – this is after I have been saved – I was also once too enchanted already and too much wanting for this relationship to go to the next phase and to go ahead, which made me not truly listen to GOD and not take the time to truly seek HIM about it.
I have learned from this mistake.
I have payed dearly for it.
And I asked GOD to be my matchmaker and to choose for me, as I have not been very successful with it before…
As much as this is my blog, I don’t want to go into too much detail about my own case, as I believe that we can all use some more clarity on how to seek GOD’s advice and guidance and to make it 100% sure that we are going in the direction HE will suggest.
So I thought I would give this some deeper consideration as to how we can know that this is GOD giving advice, that it is GOD speaking and that “this thing” is HIS will for us.
And I have come up with some guidelines which have helped me and hopefully, they will help others as well:
#1 It shouldn’t obviously not be HIS WILL
This may be a no-brainer, but it can actually from my experience rule out a lot, a very high percentage of our own ideas of what we think might be a good idea!
Example again from the relationship field:
if this person is not single and not a believer, they will not be sent from GOD.
Did we all hear that?
This will rule out 90% of the suitors, now, won’t it?
In the case when I fell – this was about 2 years ago and you can read about it on this blog – I even fooled myself into believing that GOD had left HIS principles in my case.
Really?
So that I could sin?
Today, I know that my flesh conspired together with the devil and I was just not vigilant enough to resist their plot.
And as much pleasure may have come out of this for a short while, it got me really, really hurt!
This is always the case when we leave GOD’s council and HIS rules.
Even if a liaison with an unbeliever or an affair with someone who is not single would end up in marriage, what foundation would this marriage have?
Could we be safe in this marriage?
And how could we even believe that a relationship, which began with unfaithfulness and hurting someone else, would NOT be going in the direction of us getting hurt next??
But this not only goes for relationships, friends.
If you have to sin or break one of GOD’s commandments, the council cannot be from GOD.
And I know that there are many people in the bible who have sinned and did exactly that.
And GOD still helped them and blessed them and did not leave them.
They also payed though.
For their sin.
Sometimes even with their life.
We have a choice.
In my understanding of GOD and his covenant and relationship with us and with me, I don’t believe that HE will repudiate me should I do something which is obviously against HIS council, HE may even use my mistake to my good in the end, which I believe HE always has done in my life, but one thing is for sure:
I will pay and it will hurt.
At least that’s my own conclusion from my experiences.
And I don’t take this as GOD punishing me, more so as the devil having a legal right to afflict me, because I have opened the door…
Don’t know if you have been there, my friend?
#2 It is good to create a “system of reference” for when we can be sure that GOD is giving us a “go”
What do I mean by that?
When we hear GOD clearly, perhaps in a matter where we tend to be “less obsessed” and willing to hear HIS voice more clearly, and the more often we do, the better we become at discerning GOD’s voice from other voices, mainly our own flesh and desires plus the enemy.
Also, I saw a pastor online recently introducing a “traffic light colour” system, asking GOD to show us a red, green or yellow light concerning a matter – I have only started to experiment with this one, but I can imagine that it may work well.
What I am trying to say is let’s do our best to not fool ourselves.
I mean, obviously, we can decide to commit a sin and to follow our own will and do what we want.
I believe we do that all the time.
So these suggestions aren’t for us when we want to make excuses, we don’t need instructions to do that.
No, this is for the occasions when we earnestly and genuinely want to follow GOD’s advice and submit to HIS will.
Which leads me to
#3 Serious soul searching prior to acting
Do we really want to do what GOD wants for us?
Or is this desire bigger than our desire to follow and obey HIM?
And I am not here to judge anyone, we are all in this together and we can all be overwhelmed by a desire we have- coming back to the topic of relationships once again:
when we are desiring a spouse so much that we are not willing to discern or wait.
Perhaps you can relate?
Me, I can.
This was the very mistake I made.
And I believe it can happen easily, especially when we are single and longing and praying for a partner, because Mr. (or Mrs.) Wrong can be disguised as Mr. (or Mrs.) Right!
The devil is no fool, nor is he a beginner!
Neither in the game of seduction, nor in knowing us.
He has been around forever and he has been with us since our birth, just like GOD, and he knows what we will fall for – he won’t try us with a bait we won’t crave!!!!!
Eve didn’t just walk around the garden and intended to sin – he tricked her, exactly the way she could be tricked, that’s his expertise…
But we CAN be victorious and side with GOD.
For our own sakes of course.
We do know that only HE has our best interest in mind.
And HE WILL bring us a good spouse!
Desiring a spouse is not unbiblical, is not a sin!
So GOD will do it for us.
IF we are willing to obey and to wait.
And HE will send us someone we can enjoy and someone who will love HIM too.
Someone who will pray with us, not tempt us to skip prayer and to leave the church and GOD.
It is similar to the other experiences and decisions we need to face in life:
Do we want to deny GOD like Peter in the night of JESUS’ arrest, or do we confess THE LORD JESUS, do we show up as Christians and risk to be rejected?
Me, I will remind myself.
Remind myself of the times when I tried to do it “my way” – and where and how I ended up.
GOD is not forcing me to let HIM help me.
It is me wanting HIM to bring me a spouse.
The one HE has for me.
Just like HE has done in other areas.
When I look at the outcome of those things I have given to HIM and let HIM handle for me, I am just utterly amazed about what HE has done and where HE has brought me.
Me, I could have never orchestrated nor imagined this path and this outcome.
And I will trust HIM that HE will do the same in the areas where I am still hoping, waiting and praying.
Let’s pray together, friends, shall we?
Dear HEAVENLY FATHER
I come before YOU today as YOUR child and I thank YOU for being MY LOVING FATHER and MY GOD.
I am grateful for all YOU have done for me, for YOUR protection, YOUR Love, YOUR guidance and YOUR council and I long for YOU to show me YOUR will in this matter which is on my heart today.
(Specify what it is)
I commit this matter into YOUR hands and help me hear YOU clearly and help me obey YOUR advice and YOUR instructions, LORD.
Please do not be subtle with me, but tell me loud and clearly, show me without a shadow of a doubt which direction YOU suggest I should take so that I will have the outcome I desire.
LORD, I trust YOU and I know YOU have my best interest in mind always and YOU will never leave me nor forsake me and also never lead me astray.
I will follow where YOU lead me and I thank YOU for granting me my heart’s desire and guiding me towards the answer to my prayers.
In JESUS’ name I have prayed.
AMEN
I hope and pray that this will inspire, encourage, bless and heal you.
And that THE LORD will bless you abundantly in all areas of your life. The HE will keep you and shine HIS face upon you and bring you PEACE. In JESUS’ name I pray. AMEN.
Witness for Jesus 