WISDOM FOR LIVING DAILY DEVOTIONAL
JULY 29, 2022
TOPIC: ALLOW GOD TO LEAD YOU
BY T. O. BANSO
“Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6 New King James Version).
God is All-knowing. There are many things you don’t know, which God knows. As a child of God, allow God to lead you and give you the right strategies for success in life. Depend on Him. Your brain alone is too small to run your life!
The Bible says, “Unless the LORD builds the house, they labor in vain who build it; unless the LORD guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows; For so He gives His beloved sleep” (Psalm 127:1-2 New King James Version)
Don’t engage in vain labour. Ecclesiastes 10:15 says the labor of fools wearies them, for they do not even know how to go to the city! Don’t labour like a fool. Wait on God for divine guidance and strategies. Make Him your principal partner. Let Him give you the strategies that will work and the results will last.
If God had not led the children of Israel the way they went after they left Egypt, they would have gone the wrong way. They would have followed the shorter route, which would have exposed them to early enemy attacks.
Exodus 13:17-18 says, “Then it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, ‘Lest perhaps the people change their minds when they see war, and return to Egypt.’ So God led the people around by way of the wilderness of the Red Sea. And the children of Israel went up in orderly ranks out of the land of Egypt” (New King James Version).
The Israelites benefitted from the wisdom of God, although then, going through a longer route might have appeared foolish. God saw ahead what they didn’t see. Let God lead you; don’t lead yourself.
Who would have thought that the entire world would be thrown into a prolonged season of uncertainties occasioned by the current pandemic? The pandemic has affected negatively the plans of nations, governments, organizations, and individuals. The church is not spared. All plans that were made without God’s guidance have fallen flat. Our limitations as human beings stare us all in the face. “There are many plans in a man’s heart, nevertheless the LORD’s counsel — that will stand” (Proverbs 19:21 New King James Version).
Before this season, some people didn’t know why God didn’t answer certain prayers they prayed. Others didn’t know why they received something different from what they believed God for, or why God gave them certain instructions until the pandemic began. If God had not done for them what He did, their stories would have been negatively different. God knew what would happen and He prepared them for it, although they might not have liked it at that time because they couldn’t see into the future. Now they understand and are grateful to God.
The psalmist says, “He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake” (Psalm 23:2b-3 New King James Version). Let God lead you. Don’t despise divine guidance. “Where there is no vision [no revelation of God and His word], the people are unrestrained; but happy and blessed is he who keeps the law [of God]” (Proverbs 29:18 Amplified Bible). The New Living Translation says, “When people do not accept divine guidance, they run wild. But whoever obeys the law is joyful.”
God led the children of Israel and gave them the strategy to conquer Jericho. “You shall march around the city, all you men of war; you shall go all around the city once. This you shall do six days. And seven priests shall bear seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark. But the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets. It shall come to pass, when they make a long blast with the ram’s horn, and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, that all the people shall shout with a great shout; then the wall of the city will fall down flat. And the people shall go up every man straight before him” (Joshua 6:3-5 New King James Version).
They couldn’t, on their own, have thought of that strategy. It was divine and strange! Nevertheless, it worked. Wisdom is shown to be right by its results or works (Matthew 11:19b). On the seventh day, when the Israelites heard the sound of the trumpet, and the people shouted with a great shout, the wall of Jericho fell down flat. They went up into the city and took it (Joshua 6:20).
Furthermore, the LORD must have given King Jehoshaphat the strategy against Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, the three nations that came to wage war against Judah. This followed the prophecy by Jahaziel that the people of Judah wouldn’t need to fight in the battle, but the LORD would give them victory. Consequently, they defeated their enemies without firing a shot! (2 Chronicles 20). No army commander would have thought of or recommended the strategy used.
What sense is there in choosing some people to sing ahead of your army to face fully-armed enemies? It is evidently like sending your people on a suicide mission! From a human perspective, what Jehoshaphat did was not wise, but it worked because the LORD had spoken. He had said the battle was His; they were to take their positions, stand still and watch the LORD’s victory (verse 17). Therefore, the enemies destroyed themselves. The LORD gave the Israelites victory.
God knows the choices and decisions that can spell danger for you in the future, though it may not appear so now. Most plans or strategies, businesses, and so on that appeared great, safe, lucrative, promising and so on this time last year have suffered a serious setback. If anyone had predicted this would happen, he could have been called a prophet of doom. Don’t trust your brain above God’s judgment.
God’s leading or guidance is necessary for success in life. In Exodus 13:21-22, the Bible says, “And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so as to go by day and night. He did not take away the pillar of cloud by day or the pillar of fire by night from before the people” (New King James Version). They were guaranteed divine leading and guidance as long as they followed the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire.
There is safety and protection when you allow God to lead you. “Commit your way to the LORD, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass. He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday” (Psalm 37:5-6 New King James Version). Don’t promote your intelligence above God’s leading. There is a way that seems right to a man but the end is destruction (Proverbs 14:12; 16:25).
In Exodus 32:34, God assured Moses that His angel would lead the way before him and the people of Israel. God didn’t allow them to lead themselves. The leading of an angel of God is safer than the leading of any expert.
Joseph said God would lead the Israelites out of Egypt (Genesis 50:24), and God did. He brought them out with a mighty hand (Exodus 3:19-20, 32:11; Deuteronomy 4:34; 5:15; 6:21; 7:8, 19; 9:26; 26:8; 34:10-12).
However, although the Israelites were out of Egypt, they thereafter went in the way of Egypt to drink the water of Sihor – went into alliance with Egypt. They also went to Assyria to drink the waters of the river (Euphrates) – went into alliance with Assyria (Jeremiah 2:18).
The two alliances were not based on God’s leading and didn’t profit them. Allow God to lead you. When God leads you, you’ll be safe. “See, I am sending an angel before you to protect you on your journey and lead you safely to the place I have prepared for you” (Exodus 23:20 New Living Translation).
God’s leading is the safest and the surest; don’t be deceived by what Egypt or Assyria – the world – is offering you. Beware of the offer of the serpent! It will lead to your eviction from your God-given garden. David says the LORD leads him beside the peaceful streams; He renews his strength; He guides him along the right paths, bringing honour to His name (Psalm 23:2-3). These are some of the benefits of allowing God to lead you.
Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths” (New King James Version). Allow God to lead you. TAKE ACTION!
If you are not born again, you need to give your life to Jesus now. I urge you to take the following steps: *Admit that you are a sinner, and you cannot save yourself and repent of your sins. *Confess Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. *Renounce your past way of life – your relationship with the devil and his works. *Invite Jesus into your life. *As a mark of seriousness to mature in the faith, start attending a Bible-believing and Bible-teaching church. There they will teach you how to grow in the Kingdom of God.
Kindly say this prayer now: O Lord God, I come unto You today. I know I am a sinner, and I cannot save myself. I believe Jesus is the Son of God who died on the cross to save me and was raised on the third day. I repent of my sins and confess Jesus as my Lord and Saviour. I surrender my life to Jesus now and invite Him into my heart. By this prayer, I know I am saved. Thank You, Jesus, for saving me and making me a child of God.
I believe you have said this prayer from your heart. Congratulations! You will need to join a Bible-believing and Bible-teaching church in your area where they will teach you how to live your new life in Christ Jesus. I pray that you flourish like the palm tree and grow like the cedar of Lebanon. May you grow into Christ in all things and become all God wants you to be. I will be glad to hear from you. The Lord be with you.
PRAYER POINTS: Father, forgive me for not allowing you to lead me. I surrender to You, O Lord; lead me in the paths of righteousness for Your name’s sake. Lead me the right way I should go. Reveal to me the right steps I should take. Give me divine strategies for the success of the projects before me and the fulfilment of my destiny.
(For over 800 in-depth and powerful messages by T. O. Banso, visit www.cedarministry.org).
T. O. Banso is the President of Cedar Ministry International, Abuja, Nigeria.
Phone No: +2348155744752, +2348033113523
WhatsApp No: +2349081295947
Email: cedarministryintl@yahoo.com,
cedarministryng@gmail.com
Website: www.cedarministry.org
