The ´plague´ has been with us for a year now. I have decided to stop giving it too much credit. Fearing it or ignoring its a decision each of us have to make on our own. Life, in itself, is a lesson, lets decide to learn from that instead.
Joel 3:14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision.
Working with hundreds of children, the poorest of the poor, forces Winnie and I to make hard decisions every day. We decide what the kids will eat that’s within our budget. How to deal with unruly parents. How to deal with unruly kids (not as much). How to best serve, teach and help the children, their families and our staff of ten. What will lead people into the arms of Jesus, and what won´t. What needs to be fixed in the ministry, what can wait. Who to help out with benevolence monies and who to turn away (That´s always the biggest shocker!) Whether to get health insurance or not. With our finances, we always ask God to choose what to buy and what not to buy. When to take something on, and when to walk away. All our decisions are guided inside of us, by the Lord through His Word and prayer.
God guides New Testament believers through their inner-man. The Spirit in us guides us internally not externally. Satan can use external things to throw you off course. That´s why we don’t leave ‘fleeces’ or ask for signs or confirmations. The Old Testament guys didn’t have the Holy Spirit. They needed signs, we don’t. Nor do we ever ask others to make decisions for us, nor permit them. Our necks are on the line for our own decisions (Down here,that´s speaking literally!) No one else gets into trouble if we make the wrong decision, only us and the kids we serve.
Romans 8:16 The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God
It’s interesting, but there is never an easy decision,that´s why we have to go to God for everything. It doesn´t take weeks of prayer to get an answer from God like a lot of people think it would. For me, I ask God, and He replies with peace or a feeling of certainty. Then I do it, immediately. If I get nothing, I do nothing. The whole process takes 30 seconds. Winnie and I both need to pray, every day, and pray a lot. I don’t think I go more than 15 minutes without praying. I do that because I am always shocked by what God shows me to do. Sometimes He shows me to buy the most expensive thing or do what is really the most convenient thing to do. He sometimes shows me to talk to someone I really don’t have the time to get to know, and at the same time not meet with someone who could really benefit the ministry. God has showed me through prayer not to receive certain missionary groups. I’ve even been led to refuse a donation from someone. Sometimes I look back and see the reason, but most times I don’t. I am clueless about what to do without the Lord’s leading. I know we wouldn’t be here today if we didn’t saturate our ministry and day to day activities in prayer. God guides, provides and equips us as we plug along. Going on ten years straight now that we have been back! Over 3 decades in all on the mission field. What a ride!
Decisions decide your direction in life. Even deciding not to decide is a decision. I thought I could go through life in neutral once I made the decision to follow Jesus 100% with the rest of my life . Not making decisions about worldly choices while living in this world is impossible!
Politics, diets, exercise, acceptance, tolerance, health insurance, masks, vaccines, congregating, family, relationships all require forming opinions and decisions. Even if you chose not to, you will offend someone. If someone is offended because you followed God, that’s perfectly ok. They’ll probably be offended no matter what you do either way, so who cares? Follow your heart, if you are a Christian. Don´t follow your heart if you aren´t a Christian.
The ‘heart’ isn’t your blood pump. Nor is it earthly desires of the flesh. It’s your inner being, your inner spirit. An oak tree has a heart (center) just like a watermelon has one. We do too! Keep your heart clear and clean. Keeping a good conscience and not procrastinating when God guides you to do something will keep your heart from cluttering up. Let God be the flashlight in your inner being. In the old days, candles were flashlights.
Proverbs 20:27 The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord, searching all the inward parts of the belly.
The issue is, if your’re an adult, you must be the only one making the decision for yourself. You may ask for advice of course, but the final responsibility of the decision lies entirely on you. Pastors, teachers,spouses, parents, friends can not make your decisions for you. You must make you own decisions, without any other human doing it for you. Being guided by the Holy Spirit as He guides your inner spirit will never disappoint you.
A lady, in a recent Christian documentary, basically accused her pastor for ruining her credit and her career. He said to the congregation, ‘I feel that the Lord is saying that someone needs to quit their job’, so she did. A few months later she was broke and unemployed. She said she let her ‘pastor’ make a decision for her. She was at fault probably for not praying and checking her inner spirit first.
As a pastor, lots of people like to ask me ‘what should I do?’ I am learning more and more not to make decisions for others, or give unsolicited advice, except for ´repent of your sins and believe on Jesus´. I try to not boss around anyone, not even my grown son. If asked to help with a decision, or advice, I try my best to help them, always trying to ultimately steer them to God’s Word and prayer. I’ll pray with them and for them. But I have learned that my opinions are worthless in someone else’s life. I am only obligated to love them and point them to Jesus. God is a gentleman, not a gossip. If He has something to say to you, He’ll say it to you personally, through your inner man.
Here’s 2 reasons why I stay out of making decisions for others.
- It’s not my job. It’s not anyone’s job to make a personal decision for another adult. God gives His children marching orders every day IF we ask Him, and IF we are His. A saved person has the same Holy Spirit to lead them. Teach them to listen. If they aren’t saved, the only decision or advice that is worthwhile is to get repent and believe! Get saved today. Jesus is coming back soon! It’s your choice.
Deuteronomy 30:15 See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil;
- No one knows what God has planned for someone else. God has the path designed and ordained for each of us. If we are saved, God’s Spirit will guide us. It’s like turning on the light so we can see clearly where we should go. Start the day in the Word. Ask God for direction. If you are His, He’ll show you. God will never steer you down a path that will make you broke, sick or hurt. We end up in those situations because we didn’t take the time to listen. I don’t think God spanks us to teach us things.
Psalm 119:105 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.
If you are a son of God you are guided by the Spirit of God. He communicates with your spirit, your inner man. I am convinced that in my life, every bad decision (direction) I took, God first tried to warn me about. I knew it in my spirit. Paul called it ´kicking against the goads´(a goad was a sharp pointed stick to keep a cow moving, if they kicked it, it hurt! I knew I was making a wrong turn before I even made it, it hurt me deep in my soul, but I pushed through and suffered the consequences. I believe every Christian can attest to that.
I got into problems by trying to save a few dollars (being guided by money instead of the Spirit of God), to ease my mind (being guided by worry instead of the Spirit of God), because something scared me (being guided by fear instead of the Spirit of God), asking for signs ‘fleeces’ (being guided by the external instead of the internal witness of Spirit of God), guided by common sense, or sage advice (being guided by man’s intelligence instead of the Spirit of God) or when I got offended (being guided by pride instead of the Spirit of God).
God saved my soul and life. He loves me and He guides me daily. It astounds me how few believers really believe the last part, about being personally guided daily by the Creator of the Universe (yet they claim to have a personal relationship with Him)
Romans 8:14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
There is only one decision one can make that is worthwhile if he or she is not saved. A decision to believe in their heart the Lord Jesús, and confess with their mouths that God raised Him from the dead. To repent of their sins and surrender their lives completely to Him. That is the only worthwhile decision and the best decision an unbeliever can make. A beautiful bonus is that their kids, and many others, will be blessed as well.
Joshua 24:15. And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve,,,,,, But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
WhatIsTheLoveOfGod.com
Dean and Winnie Peters
Joyfully serving the ‘least of these’ in Nicaragua for the glory of God
www.whatistheloveofGod.com www.pureheartchildren.org https://www.facebook.com/winnie.pureheart/
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