“find yourself a place where you won’t get into any trouble.” 2.0

… … …The only similarity between obedience and disobedience is that they reflect the type of lifestyle we have. If we have sincerely committed our lives to God, then we are going to obey Him; we are going to trust Him and leave all the consequences to Him. In times of disobedience, we lean on our own desires for direction. We waver back and forth between what we want to do and what we know is right.

Dorothy leaned on herself instead of trusting her family. She didn’t put her full trust in them. She became disobedient when she ran away from home. She did not trust that her family would help her and take care of her needs. Do you ever find youself wavering between needs of the flesh and God’s needs?

What We Can Expect

God never intended for us to be harassed about the decisions we make each day. Sometimes when we pray, we immediately discern the will of God. Other times, we must wait, trusting Him to show us when and how to move forward. At still other times, He spends a great deal of time preparing us to step forward through an open door. But when the opportunity comes, we hesitate with feelings of worry and doubt. Then there are situations that result from a relaxed attitude about purity and holiness.

I cannot begin to count the number of times I asked a person why he or she allowed sin to gain such a stronghold. One man confessed that he had been around a certain type of sin most of his life. He did not have a clue about its influence on him until he realized that he did not have the joy and peace that he believed a Christian should experience. He had moments of happiness but nothing that lasted. He noticed that every time he tried to pray, his mind filled with images that were sinful and wrong. The enemy knows when we have withheld our obedience to God. Like a well-trained warrior, he moves in for the attack, but often his approach is not a full frontal assault. It is subtle and hidden, like a landmine just below the surface. The mistake we make is in assuming that we can ignore God’s commandment to obey Him and not suffer harm.

The bottom line is that there is never a time when it is OK to disobey God. We should obey Him regardless of what we think or how we feel. It is a matter of choice, but one that many Christians do not yet understand or submit to. Far too often, people evaluate their circumstances according to what they perceive will profit them: How will this help me get ahead? or Will this move be beneficial to my future? We say we believe God is all-wise and knows what is best for us, but often we end up looking for advice from people around us and not from the only One who knows everything we need to know. We need to consider only one issue: Is this God’s will for my life?

Disobedience is not always wrapped in a sinful-looking package. Yes, it is sinful to disobey God because it hurts the heart of Someone who has a plan for our lives. It damages our fellowship with Him and leads to feelings of guilt and shame. But far too often when we hear the word disobedience, we think of a sexual sin or some habit that is just dead wrong. However, we disobey God when we refuse to do what He has gifted, trained and called us to do. Our refusal to be open to His plan can bring misery and regret. On our own, we do not have significant insight into the future. All we can do is make choices based on what may or may not take place. When all is said and done, only one Person has absolute knowledge, and that is the Lord. And He has promised to provide the guidance we need:

Trust in the Lord with all your heart

And do not lean on your own understanding.

In all your ways acknowledge Him,

And He will make your paths straight.

Do not be wise in your own eyes;

Fear the Lord and turn away from evil.

It will be healing to your body

And refreshment to your bones.

(Prov. 3:5-8)

We can worry, fret and fume about an issue that God has already dealt with and has moved on to another point. But if we trust Him, we will obey Him each and every time. Being obedient does not mean that we will never face difficult decisions. It means that when we do, we will resolve that He has gone before us; and because we have committed our lives to Him, the way we travel will be straight, sure and manageable. The prophet Isaiah reassured us:

The Lord will continually guide you,

 

And satisfy your desire in scorched places,

And give strength to your bones;

And you will be like a watered garden,

And like a spring of water whose waters do not fail. (58:11)

Notice that both passages of Scripture speak of physical health and well-being. That is what obedience does for us. It disposes of the raw emotions that tie us up in knots inside.

You may be living in complete obedience, and yet you are battling a serious illness. Your situation does not mean you have done something wrong. On the other hand, if you believe in God but refuse to trust Him completely or to obey Him, then you are going to feel stressed, pressured, out of control and fearful. Disobedience can be as simple as not trusting Him to take care of your immediate need at home, in your community/school or on your job.

On many occasions I have talked with educators who confess to feeling utterly burned out. They have short emotional fuses and are tired. When I ask them if they have shared all of this with the Lord in prayer, many look surprised and comment that they felt He was already aware of their needs. Part of the obedience process is learning to open your hands to Him and give Him your deepest cries of frustration. Healing cannot take place when you are holding on to hurt or frustration. Lay it on His altar and allow Him to restore you. There are many facets surrounding obedience but only one way to accomplish it, and that is through surrender to the One who loves you and has a plan for your life and circumstances.

Friends are God-given resources, but they may provide unwise counsel and wrong information. The very thing they feel is the best for your life may not be what God wants you to do. Therefore, it is always best to listen to their counsel, especially when they are committed believers, but also to pray and ask the Lord to make His will absolutely clear so you will not take a wrong turn—mentally, emotionally, spiritually or physically. You can avoid a lot of heartache by obeying God

Yours in Christ

Jake Harper

Day 20 of 100 Days of Discipline

Day 2 Seizure Free

“find yourself a place where you won’t get into any trouble.”

Just a quick re-cap on me before we get started. I have recently been battling a horrid cold. In the days leading up to me sharing my testimony with my youth group I felt that I was being attacked from all angles. I came down with a 101 degree fever the night before, and I just knew the Devil was trying everything in his power for me not to share my story. Well Devil be damned. I shared it anyway, and it was through God that there was an amazing response from the students. The day following that I was sicker than ever. I felt a darkness trying to surround me. That night I had another Grand Maul Seizure, and ended up going back to the hospital. They kept me overnight and released me the next day.   

With Dorothy living on a busy farm, she was often required to follow specific instructions of her family. It was through her obedience towards them that she was able to build a strong trusting relationship with them. This is exactly how our relationship with Christ should work. Through being obedient towards him, we will continue to grow our relationship. This is the beginning of a three part series on obedience. I would recommend that all three be read in the order that they are posted. They will be building off of each other. I had originally planned to post this as one posting, but I fear it is too long, and has far to much meat to be taken in all at once.

Have you ever made a decision to obey God as a way of life? I’m not talking about obeying once in a while but in every area to the best of your knowledge and ability. Or do you find that there are times when you struggle to do what you know is right and in keeping with His principles? There may be times when it is easy to discern between what is right and in keeping with God’s will and what is wrong and not a part of His plan. In fact, you may actually obey Him at crucial junctures because you want His best. Other times, you may feel as if you are being pulled aside by disobedience simply because you did not do your homework in prayer and the study of God’s Word.

Solomon admonished us to “catch the foxes.” He went on to explain that it is the “little foxes that are ruining the vineyards” (Song 2:15). Often the smaller decisions bring about the biggest consequences. A decision to tell a little white lie is very costly because it leads to sin and usually the next step, which is deception. The enemy is very keen. He knows better than to tempt a seasoned believer to flat out disobey God. Obvious sin always draws a response. Friends and family members usually speak up when you are involved in something that leads to shame, failure and a damaged testimony. You may falsely believe that something perceived as being insignificant is much easier to disguise. It may be for a season, but at some point God pulls the covers back, and the truth is revealed about what you have done.

Too many people reach the point of being shattered, broken, hurting, lonely and discouraged before they seek God’s help. A Christian counselor who works with corporate executives once said me that if he can be brought into a conflict before it escalates to a serious level, he usually can show people how to solve the problem. But this rarely happens because most of us are very reserved and will not freely expose what we are feeling and thinking until much later. By then the conflict is threatening to spiral out of control. Jesus knows our hearts, and He makes it clear from page one of His Word that obedience to Him should be our central focus. Adam and Eve disobeyed God and suffered the loss of everything they knew as right and good.

However, just as you can track disobedience down through the generations, you also can trace the benefits of obedience. God provides a perfect contrast between the two in His Word:

 “If you diligently obey the Lord your God, being careful to do all His commandments which I command you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth. All these blessings will come upon you and overtake you if you obey the Lord your God. Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the country. … But it shall come about, if you do not obey the Lord your God, to observe to do all His commandments and His statutes with which I charge you today, that all these curses will come upon you and overtake you. Cursed shall you be in the city, and cursed shall you be in the country” (Deut. 28:1-3, 15-16).

The only similarity between obedience and disobedience is that they reflect the type of lifestyle we have. If we have sincerely committed our lives to God, then we are going to obey Him; we are going to trust Him and leave all the consequences to Him. In times of disobedience, we lean on our own desires for direction. We waver back and forth between what we want to do and what we know is right.

… … …To Be Continued

Yours in Christ

Jake Harper

Day 19 of 100 Days of Discipline

Day 1 Seizure Free