Tag: discernment

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Counsel Belongs to God 


“Now the son of an Israelite mother and an Egyptian father went out among the Israelites, and a fight broke out in the camp between him and an Israelite. The son of the Israelite woman blasphemed the Name with a curse; so they brought him to Moses. (His mother’s name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri the Danite.) They put him in custody until the will of the Lord should be made clear to them.” Leviticus 24:10–12,  NIV

What is your first response in decision-making? How do your emotions influence your reactions? Does worry, doubt, anxiousness, or anger cause you to make hasty decisions? In today’s Scripture, we read that a young Israelite boy curses the Name of God, which is against the Ten Commandments. It is evident that the boy has committed a sin, but the Israelites do not take action into their own hands. How the people handle the matter is essential and worth reflecting on. Verse 12 states, “They put him in custody until the Will of the Lord should be made clear to them.”

Even though the boy’s actions were against the law, Moses and the Israelites did not decide his fate until counsel from the Lord. What a profound and applicable action for our lives today. How many times do we make decisions without counsel from the Lord? How often have our thoughts and actions caused adverse results physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually, financially, or relationally for ourselves and those around us? Having discernment is very important in our Christian journey. In every situation, good or bad, we must seek God’s Will and counsel. 

“The mind of the intelligent and discerning seeks knowledge and eagerly inquires after it, But the mouth of the [stubborn] fool feeds on foolishness.” Proverbs 15:14 AMP

“First seek the counsel of the Lord.” 1 Kings 22:5, NIV

“Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.” Proverbs 15: 22, NIV

As I reflect on the original text, I’m reminded of a lesson discussed in Bible study at church. I learned the value of staying connected and up-to-date with Jesus Christ because my daily relationship and counsel with Him will decrease the number of problems in my life. Daily seeking God will help us to develop a level of wisdom and discernment to make better decisions. Meditation on just this simple verse, “They put him in custody until the Will of the Lord should be made clear to them (Leviticus 24:10–12 NIV)” helped me to recognize the value of “God’s counsel” for my present and future decisions.   

Thus, I look to the counsel of the Lord when it comes to my marriage, raising our children, family situations, work environment and associations, friendships, health, and finances. In all circumstances, we must seek to gain proper perspective and counsel from God. 

Therefore, whatever the decision or problem you are facing today, seek the counsel of the Lord first. God will always make your path straight and His Will established! 

“I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.” Isaiah 42:16 NIV

Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank you for the opportunity and ability to seek your knowledge and counsel when making decisions. I ask for your wisdom, understanding, and discernment to move in your Will for my life because You know best. May the Glory of God be revealed in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen~

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Is the Vision for Now or Later?

Running is such an inspiration for me because I can spend one-on-one time with God observing His creation.  During this intimate time with God, He always gives me a Word of revelation and encouragement.  As I worship His Holy name privately while running, God drops seeds of wisdom according to His Word instructing me how it applies to my life. 

After gaining discernment from the Lord, my goal is to let His wisdom transform my life personally, professionally, and spiritually.  Professionally, I get to share God’s wisdom through teaching.  God has given me the gift of teaching and during the day I have the honor and pleasure to teach Bible to preschoolers.  Each week we focus on a different biblical account from the Bible and this week we are focusing on the life of Joseph. 

Now, one evening after work, I decided to go running and as I was running I began to think about my discussion with the students and at that very moment God reminded me of Joseph’s dreams. 

“Joseph had a dream… He said to them, ‘Listen to this dream I had: We were binding sheaves of grain out in the field when suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright, while your sheaves gathered around mine and bowed down to it.” (Genesis 37:5-7 NIV)

“Then he had another dream, and he told it to his brother. ‘Listen, he said, I had another dream, and this time the sun and the moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me.” (Genesis 37:9 NIV).      

The revelation God gave me was not so much wisdom for the content of Joseph’s dreams as much as it was the timing of his dreams.  Scripture tells us that Joseph had these dreams around the age of 17 but they did not come to fruition until he was a grown man.  So I ask you, “What vision has God given you and you are now using it years later?”

God gave me visions for writing about five years ago but I never took it seriously.  Years before the vision, I kept my God-revealed knowledge to myself.  In my quiet time with God, I would journal my thoughts and what I felt God was telling me.  I thought what God was telling me was only for me, but as my spiritual understanding blossomed, God placed the desires in my heart to write for others.    

But as my spiritual maturity was growing, my obedience toward the vision of writing was stagnant.  I felt inadequate because I was not a scholar or theologian with an accredited biblical background.  In addition, writing would expose my thoughts and individuality, thus taking me out of my comfort zone so I kept journaling.  As the years past, I created a blog website (as I have done again) and shared weekly devotional messages, but I was still slow to obey on writing a book or consistently.   

Then, through conviction this question can to mind, “When I gave you the vision did you feel as if you were supposed to use it now and since you did not, do you feel you were disobeying Me?”

For years I’ve had the desire to write a book, but I have allowed excuses to control my progress, which has caused me to feel as if I was disobeying God.  But today, God revealed my vision for writing in light of Joseph’s dreams.  Joseph’s dreams were for an appointed time and God’s predestined plan for his life would not come to fruition for several years later.  Joseph could have thought his dreams were to happen immediately or within the next couple of days or weeks.  But, little did Joseph know that he would go through so many test and trials before his God-ordained elevation. 

So, I have come to tell you and encourage you that God makes no mistakes.  What you may feel is disobedience toward your vision because you have not acted yet could be God’s plan. 

Maybe you have to grow, learn, and mature more! 

Maybe the atmosphere God wants you to impact is not ready!

Maybe God is getting rid of haters, enemies, or distractions!

“In Him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of Him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His Will.” (Ephesians 1:11 NIV)

What I learned is that what I thought was disobedience, or a mistake was God’s plan all along and the years it took for me to get to this point was preparation.  What was training back then is now battlefield work! 

Be Blessed in the Precious Name of Jesus Christ~ Amen