Everyday we are faced with important decisions to make. Our minds are bombarded with choices.
What career should I pursue? What college should I attend? What car to buy, where to live, should I buy or rent? Should I spend that money or save it? What about my endless “To Do” list?
Then there’s the nitty-gritty choices like, Should I say what I really want to say? Should I respond this way or that way? Do I blow my horn back at that guy? Will I forgive that person who offended me? Am I going to eat healthy today? Will I exercise or not? Will I make time for prayer and Bible study or just dive into my day’s work? And it goes on and on and on …
Some of these decisions are what we call “no brainers.” In other words, there are obvious answers either in the word of God or just in practical Godly wisdom.
However, as you well know, there are many decisions that are just not as clear-cut as others, especially when it comes to direction and guidance in our lives.
That’s where the Holy Spirit, Prayer and Trust come in.
First let’s look at the infamous Proverbs 3:5-6, Trust in the LORD with all your heart; don’t lean to your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths.
I like how a Bible-teacher friend of mine puts it: “God is good at directing traffic.” In other words He can give you the green lights or the red ones. He can open doors and shut them. He knows what’s best for our lives and He will direct us.
In Acts we see the Holy Spirit directing traffic in Paul’s life. Now when they had gone through Phrygia and the region of Galatia, they were forbidden by the Holy Spirit to preach the word in Asia. After they had come to Mysia, they tried to go to Bithnia, but the Spirit did not permit them. (Acts 16:6-7)
Wow! The Holy Spirit stopped them. Now that’s what I call “directing traffic!” That must’ve been SO frustrating at times – all that travelling and then not being allowed to share the Gospel!
As disappointing as it can seem, occasionally closed doors are God’s direction to bring us into a better place. Sometimes we have to abandon what we felt was His leading in order to discover His superior plan. A closed door can simply mean that the Lord has a better door for us to walk through.
In Paul’s journey, after experiencing those two closed doors, he ended up having a vision to go to Macedonia where the Lord opened a great door of ministry.
I was recently on a plane and saw a chapter heading in the airline magazine that said, “Storm Clouds With Silver Linings.” I immediately thought that even if a very difficult storm or road block comes our way, we can still look for that silver lining of God’s direction in the midst of it. He just may have something very special waiting for us on the other side.
We’ve drawn great peace from this verse in Proverbs 16:9: The mind of a man plans his way but the Lord directs his steps.
We must trust that the Lord is directing our steps. As we pray and make plans according to what we believe God is speaking to us, we then begin to walk it out, trusting Him according to Psalm 37:23, The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way.
As I look back on my life I can honestly say that I’m not sure if I made all the right turns and the right decisions. But here’s where I find consolation:
Even if you miss it, God is there to fix it!
As long as we keep our heart and eyes on HIM then God can turn a bad mistake around and get us back on track.
Recalculating. I love the GPS analogy. You know those little devices in our cars that map out directions for us and tell us how to get from one place to another. I’m sure you’ve noticed that every time you make a wrong turn, it will tell you to make a U-turn or will simply “recalculate” your journey to get you to your planned destination.
That’s the way our God is. He loves us so much that even if we make a wrong turn in life, He is faithful to redirect us and get us back on track. In Philippians 1:6, Paul said “being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.”
I was recently reading a story about David that really blessed me. At the end of 2 Samuel 14:14, it says in the NLT version, He (God) devises ways to bring us back when we have been separated from Him. I Love that! That’s how much He loves us.
God is always working on ways to bring us back to Him and get us back on track. If we have missed His direction, He will begin to work things out for us.
Romans 8:28 reminds us, And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose.
What this scripture says to me is that whatever may come my way or whatever mistake I might make, He will be there to help me and knows how to rework my situation. My part is to love Him and continue pursuing His purposes for my life. His part is to work things out for my good.
God has great plans for you and me. Let’s trust Him for guidance and have confidence that He will not let us go astray.
May we always remember this beautiful passage from Psalm 23:2-3: He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters, He restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.
Our desire is for you to see God’s plan for your life and to help you walk it out. That’s why we sing and that’s why we write: To bless you and to bless the Lord.
Following Him,
