Detailed Instructions

In moments of surrender I find myself wondering what God has in store for me. The trouble usually is that I am not patient enough to sit and wait for all the instructions to come through. Reading the Bible I see that God has very specific instructions for how he wants things done, and those things are usually a big hit. Look at Noah and the ark for example. The instructions were precise, something that had never been seen before, and it fulfilled its duty perfectly.

I wonder what would have happened if Noah had decided to slightly change the design of the ark because he had a better idea. That is where I tend to fail when it comes to the plans God has for me. I could be in the middle of working on something, and God impresses on me a particular direction, and I find myself insisting on doing it my way. Every time I have ignored or argued away a direction from God, I have found myself having to go backtrack and follow the instruction as given … no matter how far ahead I had run.

You would think that I had learnt my lesson by now. Sadly not; I am much better at listening but still struggling at following through and trusting that God knows what is best for me and has my best interests at heart. When we are so keen to do things our own way, it is easy to say that God is not listening to our requests for directions, but the truth is, we are not listening to his gentle nudges.

I look at Joshua and how he conquered Jericho. I doubt that I would have followed God’s instructions in that scenario. I would have tried to think up some fancy way to will the battle. But God’s way, ridiculous as it may have seemed, brought them victory.

Rather than make plans then ask God to bless them, I endeavour to spend time with God and find out the plans he has for me then put them into action as he directs their implementation.

Be Diligent

I took on a project recently. I have to admit that I took it on without thinking too much about what it would entail. It seemed pretty straightforward, though it was a new area for me. Two weeks later and I wonder what I was thinking. The upside to all of this is that I have learned through experience some of the Proverbs that I have read over the years.

Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed. ~ Proverbs 17:22

Had I taken a little time and asked around, I would have been well informed on what was required and what could, or could not be done, and the cost of it. Currently, I have been forced to go into my pocket to complete the project. I doubt I will forget this lesson!

Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, saying, “This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.” ~ Luke 14:28-30

I thought I had counted the cost, but clearly I had made a lot of assumptions along the way. At this point it has been easy for me to say that I ventured into something that God had not intended for me to do. That could be the case, but if I am truly honest with myself, I took on the project for selfish reasons. I needed money, and it was going to bring in an easy buck, or so I thought. My lesson here is to present my plans to God first and see if they line up with what He has planned for me. In doing so, it is also an opportunity for me to weigh in on my motives.

Commit to the LORD whatever you do, and your plans will succeed. ~ Proverbs 16:3

All is not lost. I may be limping but I have not lost hope. I have felt crushed and have despaired, but God in his infinite grace and mercy has reminded me that he is with me always; even through my mistakes. With each step I have taken, a way has opened. If I continue to work hard and remain connected to My Creator, it shall be well.

Footprints In The Sand

We have quoted it so much that it has almost become cliché. Until the point where you find yourself in the position of being carried by Christ and you don’t even notice it.

It took the pastor talking about counting your blessing to get me thinking about it. We have made it through this month not by our own strength, but by God’s grace. We have not slept hungry, necessary payments have been made. We have had enough.

A lot of the time the focus is on me, and I forget that my journey today, may be a ministry for someone else another day. For me to be of benefit to another, I need to pay attention to the journey and the lessons learnt so that I can pass them on, so that another can be encouraged.

For that reason alone, I must keep pressing forward, keep trusting …

Total And Complete Surrender

I stumbled on this quote towards the end of last week and I felt determined that this is how my Christian walk should reflect on the non-believers around me. Little did I know that I was setting myself up for a fight or more appropriately, a lesson. Everything that I was counting on to happen, or that had seemed to be on the right track, backtracked. I could not believe it.

I found myself on my knees wanting to pray, but wondering if God had forgotten all about me! The whole weekend I had found it difficult to spend time with God, either in prayer or Bible study. But by this morning, I had to find out what was going on. Albeit reluctantly I began to pray.

We are always told not to ask God  ‘why’ but to just trust. I could not do that. I had to ask! In that asking I was reminded one, that spiritual things take time. In a generation that wants instant answers, we get impatient. It was a reminder for the need for perseverance. Two, when you are on the right track, there is always opposition. The devil knows that once you get this thing, you will have gained enormous ground, and therefore does all he can to dissuade you by making it look like things are falling apart. Thirdly, I remembered the song, Praise You In This Storm  by Casting Crowns, just the title itself stopped me in my tracks. I felt like I was being torn apart, because we are required to praise God in all situations.

How do you give praise, when everything around you shouts that there is nothing to give praise for? That for me speaks of total surrender to The Almighty. A complete trust in Him; the kind that has nowhere else to turn to, by choice. It hurts, but at the same time, it gives freedom. That peace that surpasses all understanding, the knowledge that everything is under control much as they seem to be spinning out of control.

God is always with us, at all times. His Word says he will never leave us nor forsake us.

He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and be faint Isaiah 40:29-31