This Is The Way Walk In It

 We have barely turned the first page in the start of the brand spanking new year. There are so many unknowns ahead. So many opportunities. So many decisions that have to be made. So many choices from which to choose between the better and the best. 

I know some who approach this year with a great deal of optimism. Hopes are high. There is a great deal of expectation for a good year. On the other hand, I know others who have a pessimistic outlook for 2024. They believe cataclysmic events will happen in the coming months challenging all of us. 

No matter what your outlook is, I am confident that you will need God's guidance along the way. I know I sure will and already do. In various conversations I've had with people today each is facing important decisions. Some about dating and future marriage. Some about education. Others about marriage. Some about employment options. Some about parenting. Each decision important. 

Some decisions are easy. Like not stepping out on the street in front of oncoming traffic. That makes logical sense. There are other decisions which are not so easy. Like when there are two choices between two good things. Both choices have their pros and cons. Either decision will bring consequential effects. How does a person decide?

Followers of Jesus must prayerfully discern His heart and mind in critical decisions. People in the church talk about following God's will, but how does a person really know what God's will is? What steps do they take to discover His will.?

First and foremost, start with reading the Bible. Isaiah 30:21 states," Whether you turn to the left or to the right you will hear a voice behind you saying, 'This is the way walk in it.'" 

We need to hear that voice. I hear that voice most clearly in the scriptures. When I look back over my life at critical moments God used His word to guide my steps. 

God used Deuteronomy 1:8 to guide us in relocating our ministry. I was contacted by two different churches at the same time about becoming their pastor. I really was leaning toward one in deep east Texas  because I knew someone in that church. My college roommate passed my resume onto the FBC in Paradise, TX. I had never heard of Paradise, TX. 

The search committee from Paradise contacted me. I visited with the chair person on the phone. They wanted a sample sermon so I sent them a tape of a sermon I had preached recently. They called again wanting to set up a formal face to face interview. In the days before that interview I read Deuteronomy 1:8, "See, I have placed the land before you, GO IN AND POSSESS THE LAND WHICH THE LORD GOD SWORE TO GIVE to your fathers Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to them and their descendants after them." The preferred church I wanted to go kept dragging their feet. 

That phrase, "Go in and possess the land," stayed in my mind for weeks. It became a clear word from the Lord. I made it a prayer. We did eventually interview with FBC Paradise. Immediately after the interview, they scheduled me to preach in a sister church that evening. I thought Brenda and I would drive ourselves. They insisted that we ride in their church van with them. From the moment the interview ended until after we returned, Brenda and I did not have one single moment alone. 

When we arrived back in Paradise I went to the restroom and God clearly reminded me, "Go possess the land." I did not fully understand in the moment. When I met back with the group they shocked me when they said, "We unanimously want to offer you to come in view of a call to be our pastor." Brenda and I stared at each other in shock. We did not have time to talk it over. I did have the voice of the Lord in essence tell me, "This is the way walk in it. Possess the land." We accepted and enjoyed four wonderful year in that congregation. 

That is not the only time God has used His word for Brenda and I. He did the same thing before relocating us to FBC Seminole. Then it was Hebrews 11:8. That verse kept showing up repeatedly in my devotions, in books and I even saw it on a tee shirt. God used that verse along with Romans 12:1 to guide our family to the adventure of ministry in west Texas. 

I could tell multiple other stories about God guiding me through scripture. When God really wants to speak to me He uses His word. He will put a scripture before me and keep bringing it before me over and over again. He did that when I needed to forgive some people. He also did that when I needed to repent for a wrong action. It has happened numerous times in my life. It has been happening recently. 

Like the times we bought houses. We looked at many. So many they would all begin to run together in our heads. Each time we bought a house we walked into one where we had more peace than over all the others. Sometimes it looked impossible. Each time God made a way. His peace guided our steps along with His word in Psalm 37:4 for our first one which reads, "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart." That verse guided us in what we looked for in a house. God's peace overcame me when we bought our first house when I stepped through the front door. It was everything we had asked God for. We had that verse on the mantle over our fireplace. What wonderful memories we had there. 

When I am faced with decisions I trust God's word for insight. It has been a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. In big ways as well as in small ways. That is why reading the Bible is such an adventure. Just yesterday morning He pointed out a set of verses that have surfaced in my life for the past couple of months about inquiring of the Lord. David inquired and God answered each time. I also inquired of Him and expect that He will answer in His good time. 

There is another way I've used to discover God's will. One of my best friends counseled me many years ago to let the peace of God be my guide in decision making. I have leaned on that numerous times. Trusting God to guide me through His word and His peace have served me well. 

There have been numerous opportunities in my life that looked good. From all the information I could collect it appeared I should go in one direction. Except I would have this uneasy feeling in my spirit. I could not explain it. I couldn't get any peace about choosing what looked right. Brenda and I yielded to the lack of peace and made our decisions accordingly. Each time that proved the right thing to do when further information was made available. God guided Brenda one time with a lack of peace to keep me from making a huge mistake that looked good to me. She refused to budge. In hindsight, her lack of peace was the right decision. 

God will guide us into the new year with His word and His peace if we listen. He will show us which way to turn when decisions have to be made. He has done that for my family and I am sure He will also do that for you. God's word and His peace walk hand in hand. They work in tandem to reveal the heart and mind of God. Trust God to use them when you have to make your next critical decisions.