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"The
God of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou shouldest know his
will..." Acts 22:14
It is
God's explicit desire that we would know His divine will and plan
for our lives. Many times we pray and seek God, and He doesn't
reveal His wishes immediately. There are lessons to learn while we
wait on God, but let us remember, that 'We shouldest know His will.'
God gave
us the Bible - the Word of God - that instructs us and reveals much
of His plan for us. He gave us the gift of the Holy Spirit to lead
us in the right way. But how many times do we say we are seeking
God's will when we already know what it is?
Walter
Knight tells of a Scottish woman who years ago went to country homes
to sell thread, buttons, and shoe strings. When she came to an
unmarked crossroad, she would toss a stick in the air and go
whichever way the stick pointed. One day she was seen tossing the
stick into the air several times. "Why do you toss the stick several
times?" Someone asked. She answered, "It has pointed every time to
the road going to the right, and I want to go on the other road to
the left. It looks smoother!" She kept on throwing up the
stick until it finally pointed toward the road she wanted to go.
We must
read and pray and seek for God's guidance, but too often people can
pray and rationalize themselves right out of the already revealed
plan of God. When God's will has been made known, our prayer ought
to be for the grace and courage to submit and act on what we know is
right. Too many times people want to direct their own path as this
Scottish woman, but they want to be able to say "I'm doing God's
will."
Let us not
fall prey to this trick of the enemy. If we make a decision and it
is our desire, let us not blame God or use God as a cover for our
own wishes and plans. Often we hear people saying God told them to
do something. Shortly thereafter, they say God told them something
else. When things don't go right, then they say God showed them
something else again. Clearly, God is not the cause of chaos and
confusion like this. Let us readily acknowledge God and truly seek
after His purpose. Let us be cautious in saying something is His
will, when we are trying to 'direct' our revelations of truth and
purpose. God will be faithful to lead His children in a clear and
plain path as we keep our desires submitted to the Lord. Let us
follow the path that He reveals, regardless of how rough it may
seem. For on the path of God's will, one finds true blessings and
joy.
-Bro.
Michael Smith |
