BY REV. CHARLES STANLEY
Understand that God provided VERY clear and VERY specific guidance throughout the Bible to those who believed, and followed his instructions. This was true for Abraham, Moses, Joshua, Gideon, Paul, and many others.
CLEAR THE PATHWAY (a) You cannot expect to receive Holy guidance with a sinful mind. Sin will fog the process. Take care of the sin in your life before you ask God to share his thoughts with you. (b) Clear the
pathway of strong desires; and not just sinful desires. Say, not my will, but yours, God. Get yourself to a point of submissive neutrality, in case God’s plans for you are not what you might expect. Remember
God’s plan for you is clearly much better than any plan you could ever think up for yourself.
EXERCISE PATIENCE (a) Be willing to wait patiently until you are absolutely certain you have heard from God. Psalm 27:14 & 25:3. David was anointed King of Israel at 16 but didn’t assume the throne until the age of 30. Understand that there is a clear reason God is not responding immediately and there is a lesson in waiting patiently.
BE ALERT TO PRESSURE (a) External pressure can come from people or circumstances. People who know absolutely nothing about scriptural principals are quick to give advice. When you feel pressured by
circumstances or you feel as if you are running out of time, you need to remember that time never runs out on God. (b) Fears and anxieties give rise to internal pressure. It could be the fear of losing what you
have or the fear of not getting what you think you should have. When this happens, you need to remember that whatever God has in store for you is much better than anything you could imagine for yourself. Other
internal pressures arise from the way you were raised and the baggage you carry as a result of that. A child that is told he will never amount to anything thinks about that his entire life.
EXERCISE PERSISTENCE IN PRAYER Remember Paul’s exhortation to pray without ceasing. Don’t just say a prayer and forget about it. Expect results. If Jesus, who was God, felt the need to pray continuously, how much more do we need to pray? And remember, God ultimately wants to conform us to the image and likeness of his only Son.
REST IN GOD’S PROMISES Every answer you’ll ever need is in the Bible. Psalms 32:8 & 62:5. God will do no less for you than those you read about in his word. In fact, that’s why they are in the Bible; to show
you how God thinks and deals with those who love him.
WAIT FOR THE PEACE To make peace means to weave together. Is your decision woven together with God’s plan? Gal 3: 15-16 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts. Understand that even if the whole world collapses, nothing can shake the peace that comes from knowing Jesus. When you find this peace the pressures will cease and waiting patiently will be easy.
THE ABOVE MATERIAL WAS PUBLISHED BY REV. CHARLES STANLEY, APRIL 29, 2004. THIS MATERIAL IS COPYRIGHTED AND MAY BE USED FOR STUDY & RESESARCH PURPOSES ONLY.
