Recently, I finished a Bible study on the Book of Ruth. On the last day of the study, we discussed how Ruth’s decision to follow Naomi, and to abandon her gods and her people impacted generations because not only was she the great grandmother of King David, but she was also an ancestor of Jesus. Ruth’s choices are still impacting us up until this day. Therefore, we must take great care in making our decisions. One of the participants in the Bible study emphasized the importance of making decisions in the fear of the Lord and not in the fear of man. Whatever choices we make should first be pleasing to God. If we are not fearing the Lord, we may make wrong decisions, which could not only be detrimental to us, but also to many others, while fearing the Lord brings blessings. And fearing the Lord simply means that we revere and respect Him while being in awe of His power and authority.
Who is the person who fears the Lord? He will instruct him in the way he should choose. His soul will dwell in prosperity, And his descendants will inherit the land. The secret of the Lord is for those who fear Him, And He will make them know His covenant. Psalm 25:12-14
Fearing the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and all those who follow His commandments will have good understanding (see Psalm 111:10). It would not be wise to make decisions without the Lord’s instruction and guidance as He is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent. And we should also recognize that the choices God would have us make, may go contrary to what the world would consider as good decisions. Let us consider Ruth, a young widow who left all she knew behind to follow a miserable old lady to a land that she did not know and where the people would be prejudiced against her because of her nationality. Many people would think that leaving her home was a foolish move, but that is exactly what God would have her do and every move she made thereafter seemed like God positioning her to fulfill an amazing destiny.
But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are. 1 Corinthians 1:27-28
We should never be concerned about what the world thinks is wise to make a decision because it is usually opposite of what God would have us do. The world is opposed to God and often our flesh, even as Christians, opposes Him too if we are not completely submitted to Him. In another Bible study, I reflected on the choice to ask people to pray that the fibroids I have would shrink. That sounds like a normal prayer request. But God revealed to me that this request was rooted in pride because I wanted to have a flat stomach to look good. I was quite proud of my flat stomach before and often flaunted it in fitted clothing. That doesn’t seem too Godly now does it? My motive was very wrong and worst of all is that God opposes the proud. I spent a lot of money at the doctor and using different types of medicines and teas mostly for my appearance. While man looks at outward appearance, the Lord looks at the heart (1 Samuel 16:7). At this point, I would like to ask all of you who prayed for the shrinking of my fibroids to forgive me because I was asking with the wrong motives in my heart and our motives are important to the Lord.
You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures. Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, “The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously”? But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.” Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. James 4:3-6
I wonder if my prayers and all that I did to shrink the fibroids were being opposed by God? Many times, whatever remedy I would use seemed to work for a month or so and then after things appeared worse. Could God have been opposing me because of my prideful motive? We often blame the devil for the stumbling blocks in our way, yet we see in the Bible that God will put obstacles in the way of the ones He loves if we rebel against Him. This is not because He hates us, but because He loves us and wants us fully submitted and dependent on Him, while becoming holy as He is holy. When we obey Him and have a heart that is right with Him, then He will hear our prayers and He will bless us.
When I asked one of the missionaries to forgive me as I had her and her family praying for me because of my pride. She told me not to worry because just that morning she and her family were praying for healing for my entire body so that I could serve the Lord well as it is difficult to serve the Lord when you are not healthy. What a difference? It is a similar prayer, but with a different motive. Which prayer do you think God is more pleased with? Therefore, also, when we make decisions, we should make sure that the motive of our heart is pleasing to the Lord. We need to ensure that our decision is not rooted in pride and that we are fearing the Lord and not listening to the opinion of the world who is in enmity with the Lord. Any decision made based on what the world thinks may be contrary to what God would have us do. We also need to discern whether the seemingly good advice of the Christians is of the Spirit and not of the flesh. Therefore, it is important to trust God, and wait on His instructions, while asking Him for strength to do what He says as many people may not agree with your decisions and try to obstruct you.
Comentários