1 Kings 22:1-5
I find myself in moments all the time where the pressure is mounting. To be clear, I embrace the pressure. I expect that being a lead pastor, a husband, a father, and especially a Christian is going to bring unique challenges to my life. In these moments, I tend to panic and try to “make it happen” in my own strength. I wish it wasn’t true, but it definitely, at times, is. I’m just being transparent with you on this. Maybe you have the same struggle. Maybe you’re good at “rushing ahead” of God and getting yourself into difficult situations. My advice to you is to put into practice the mindset of King Jehoshaphat, king of Judah.
I love that King Jehoshaphat, when faced with an important decision, told the king of Israel: “First seek the counsel of the Lord!” What if you and I took this approach as our first option!? In other words, instead of trying to figure things out in our own power, strength, and timing, we went to God first. Here are a few questions to consider that can help you out in difficult moments of decision-making: (1) What does God want me to do? (2) How will this honor and glorify God? (3) How can my decision either lead someone closer to Jesus or lead him or her to Jesus? (4) What are the spiritual ramifications of my decision, and how will it impact my testimony? What you can see is that I am putting my decision-making through the lens of God’s Will and not my own. Instead of “rushing ahead,” I stop, slow down, and take the time to ask God for his wisdom. This MUST be the priority of every disciple of Jesus!
When we took on the Ortonville campus a few months ago, we knew that there would be great financial and physical challenges. We are happy to say that we are presently in a “trust God” mode. We are seeing glimpses of what it’s going to be over time, and we are excited for what God is doing. We prayed over this opportunity, and we felt that God wanted us to move forward with the adoption. While we are not yet there, I am excited about where we are going. We just need to keep praying for God’s direction and wisdom. When we started our Grand Blanc campus, we were in a similar situation with a lot of “unknowns,” but we trusted God, and look at what he has done! It is always the best practice to “consult” God before you make a decision. Are you “consulting” God?
Many times in life, you’re not going to have the immediate answer or understanding of a situation. My advice to you: ALWAYS DEFAULT IN PRAYER BACK TO GOD! What does he want? How will he be glorified? What is my role in this particular situation? I can say with confidence that he is capable of leading you down the right path as long as you have the wisdom to do what King Jehoshaphat did!
I love that King Jehoshaphat, when faced with an important decision, told the king of Israel: “First seek the counsel of the Lord!” What if you and I took this approach as our first option!? In other words, instead of trying to figure things out in our own power, strength, and timing, we went to God first. Here are a few questions to consider that can help you out in difficult moments of decision-making: (1) What does God want me to do? (2) How will this honor and glorify God? (3) How can my decision either lead someone closer to Jesus or lead him or her to Jesus? (4) What are the spiritual ramifications of my decision, and how will it impact my testimony? What you can see is that I am putting my decision-making through the lens of God’s Will and not my own. Instead of “rushing ahead,” I stop, slow down, and take the time to ask God for his wisdom. This MUST be the priority of every disciple of Jesus!
When we took on the Ortonville campus a few months ago, we knew that there would be great financial and physical challenges. We are happy to say that we are presently in a “trust God” mode. We are seeing glimpses of what it’s going to be over time, and we are excited for what God is doing. We prayed over this opportunity, and we felt that God wanted us to move forward with the adoption. While we are not yet there, I am excited about where we are going. We just need to keep praying for God’s direction and wisdom. When we started our Grand Blanc campus, we were in a similar situation with a lot of “unknowns,” but we trusted God, and look at what he has done! It is always the best practice to “consult” God before you make a decision. Are you “consulting” God?
Many times in life, you’re not going to have the immediate answer or understanding of a situation. My advice to you: ALWAYS DEFAULT IN PRAYER BACK TO GOD! What does he want? How will he be glorified? What is my role in this particular situation? I can say with confidence that he is capable of leading you down the right path as long as you have the wisdom to do what King Jehoshaphat did!
Posted in Devotional