Following God on New Paths
Are you struggling in your marriage? Do you need to talk? We have mentors waiting to talk to you.
“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you” (Psalms 32:8).
Have you ever tried to find a building in a town you have never visited before? Asking for directions from a citizen of that town can be frustrating. “Turn right at the red barn which is just down the road from the white store with a purple sign out front.”
Maps are helpful but reading them in the dark can be difficult. Modern Global Positioning Systems (GPS) found on many telephones and in cars usually take us to the correct address but even this unique technological device occasionally errs.
Life Lesson: Biblical perspective on the end times
Experience It: Living in the power of the Holy Spirit
The best method for finding a sought destination is when a friend takes us by the hand—or sits in the car with us—and personally leads us to where we need to go.
The Israelites found themselves traveling into new territory. They had left the familiar and were about to set out for the land promised to them by God. There was no map or GPS, but God did give direction:
“When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God carried by the priests, set out from where you are and follow it… that you may be able to know the way you must go, for you have not passed this way before” (Joshua 3:3 & 4).
The Ark of the Covenant represented the presence of God to these people. Today Christians have God’s Holy Spirit within and the written Word, the Bible, to give guidance as we travel ways we have not passed before.
Our friends Tom and Sue are following God into new and exciting challenges of ministry. In recent years they have had opportunities to be living witnesses in unimaginable places in the world in response to God’s call. And then came a heart attack. Although doctors have said Tom is now well recovered, is it still possible to follow God? Had they misheard God’s call? What now?
When we find ourselves on paths new and challenging, the words to Tom and Sue, and to all of us, are found in God’s original instructions, paraphrased here, “Set out from where you are and follow Me.”
Questions: After a heart attack or other difficult situations, is it still possible to follow God in new and exciting challenges? Do you then start to doubt God’s call for you?
Diane – You certainly sound like you have a lot on your plate right now. Would you like to talk to a mentor privately? Just fill out the mentor request form and your mentor will be in touch to pray for and talk with you.
Barbara & kaycoy – It seems that you have resolved your argument however I would ask you both to please be careful not to attack fellow readers. When I read kaycoy’s initial comment, I don’t seem the same cause for concern that Barbara saw. It looked to be that you were saying that God should be fully in control, not merely making suggestions and that sounds right to me.
Tracy – You are absolutely correct. The reference should have been PSALMS 32:8, not Isaiah. Thank you for letting me know. I have corrected the devo.
Dear kaycoy,
I agree…Let go and let God…
Have a wonderful day.
BARBARA–I also do hope that before you wrote your comment accusing me of such and such, consult with God first and pray before you wrote your comment back to me. I hope we all get along as believers in Christ and not accuse each other by hasty judgments and failing to understand what was written in my comment.
I pray for your, and may God bless you much.
LET GO AND LET GOD —means let God take control and let Him be the driver.
BARBARA–Do you really think I’m using strong words? I am watching what I speak. You probably misunderstood me just because I have an opinion of how this post was written. I HOPE YOU READ MY COMMENT CAREFULLY FIRST BEFORE ACCUSING OR MAYBE YOU JUST READ THE FIRST SENTENCE OF MY COMMENT. I believe in God and I believe in Jesus…I love Him so much and I worship and exalt Him. What I am saying in my comment, that I don’t quite agree with the post here that God should be our guide. What I believe is that God should be the DRIVER, not the guide. If we humans drive our lives on unsafe, unfamiliar places, and let God be the guide, we are in the wrong seat because the seat belong to God—-he is the DRIVER, not the GUIDE. We surrender to God and let him control EVERYTHING in our lives. A guide means that we take the control, but we consult directions but still we are in control….that’s not it should be. God is the DRIVER, NOT THE GUIDE.
BARBARA—If you love God as your guide, I hope he guides you in writing a comment making accusations.
I do not intend to write my comment for new believers….my comment was to voice out what I believe and what I think because I didn’t agree with the post…I am sorry that it came to you that way, but that was not my intention and that was not how I wrote my comment. I just hope you did not use these STRONG AND OVERPOWERING words that imply more of accusing me,
Dear Kaycoy, Wow! What strong usage of words….you need to watch when you speak to new believers in Christ for you will turn them off with your STRONG and OVER powering use of words. I love having God as my guide…
I don’t believe that God should be our “guide”—He is to be the “driver” , not the map or the GPS to guide us where we want to go. This is the wrong notion about God that he should be our “co-pilot” or the one who should guide us. Because if He is the guide, we are in the wrong seat. He is supposed to be in the driver’s seat not us. I believe also that God’s Word is not a guide of how to run our lives —-it is actually the “manual” of our lives. If it’s the manual, then we should obey each and every detail that is given, and not to take only what is “relevant and useful” to our lives.
Dear Tracy, I looked up the verse too. It should be Psalms 32:8.
I was following God and wanting so bad to find His calling…led right into a marriage of a mental abuser…due to my Christian upbringing I would not even think of divorce….held on for 11 years and three children…then I got sick…physically…10 months of fighting and his lies but I won and have full custody and have moved 500 miles away, but I always check my rear view mirror…always wonder when the phone rings…he mentally abuses my children…he takes me to court over stupid stuff every 18 months and costs me thousands of dollars and hinders my giving, extracurricular activities for the girls, and needless to say, we can never take a vacation! How can I work for the Lord with a past like that and a future so uncertain!?
Dear Dianne, I recognize the pain, suffering and sorrow you are in and my heart goes out to you. If you feel deep within your heart that you are unable to work at this time and believe that you might be eligable for disability I suggest that you apply for it. You need no money to apply for it and you can even fill out the application via the computer or over the phone with soc. sec. If God wants you on disability He will allow it to take place. Years ago I had to apply and I knew God would come through if that was the avenue He found fit for my situation. My doctors back then warned me how long it would take YET they were blown aways when my application went through within a year. I knew it was GOD…all GOD…and He has been healing me over the course of these past years while being on soc. sec. disability. Have faith that God can work in your circumstances like He did in mine.
I pray that God will bless and protect both you and your husband.
I don’t feel like believing right now.
Oh, boy do I. I am not dealing with a “call” proper at the moment, but I am dealing with difficult circumstances. It all has to do with going back to a regular job (not just baby-sitting) and I can’t see myself doing that successfully or for much better circumstances than a currently have
(The last one I had was seasonal with potential for hire, but because I experienced a bully who worked behind my back against me AND because I wasn’t able to work as fast as they wanted me to – even though I worked hard enough to have sweat rolling down the sides of my head and felt nauseous doing so- I wasn’t retained).
Yet, that might have to change, and I am depressed about it.
Recently we lost our COBRA health coverage (partly because I am not working and couldn’t raise the money [and they would not accept a payment that would have been partially on a credit card], and partly because we have been arguing so intensely that we can’t even discuss finances [so we missed the last day of the grace period]). I have been off of (for 2 – 3 weeks now), and won’t be able to get, my antidepressant (couldn’t afford the 30.00/month co-pay and have already had assistance from the pharmaceutical company in the last 12 months) . Plus, gas prices are killing us (husband can barely afford to get back and forth to work and I can’t afford to get out and about much at all). We have multiple backed-up bills (even though we are on energy assistance and one week/month’s worth of food stamps). We also just had our cell phone service suspended (our only phone) and don’t have the money to reinstitute it.
Our church (which is shrinking) helped us for about 6 months last year, but we decided to stop letting them know our circumstances because they haven’t had much benevolence money lately, and we don’t want to be greedy. Our Food Stamp re-application/redetermination is coming up, and although we have had little food in the house for the last 5 – 6 months, we are likely to be disqualified entirely because they will only look at the last 3 months (which they then multiply over the past 6 month period) and my husband has likely earned too much in the last 6 weeks from his substitute position (someone became unable to work) for us to get the help anymore (we have no children, which is part of why our situation is so precarious).
If I had a lot of money (and now, health coverage) I could probably prove disability, but because I haven’t been trying to do so, I have no documentation of it. Plus, it takes the average applicant almost 4 years of appointments and denials to receive government disability benefits (this is what I found out from disability lawyer when I looked into it on the advice of others).
I just got done agreeing with someone (Sunday) that my faith has grown as a result of the difficulties of this past 12 months or so, and now I feel like “NOT!” is where I am today.
Sometime the devil wants us to doubt god especially whe we are going through a great storm in opur lives but we must always remember that jesus promised us he will never leave us or forsake us.
I was looking up Isaiah 32:8 in my NIV Bible and the verse is this “but the noble man makes noble plans, and by noble deeds he stands.” Where did you get your verse from?
Absolutely it is possible! My husband has had 3 heart attacks. The first two were three days after we had been into a prison doing ministry. We also had a training scheduled and he couldn’t help. I decided to go ahead and do it by my self. I didn’t want the devil to stop what God had called us to do.
The last heart attack happened while I was out of state in prisons all day. I got the message late in the afternoon. God had everything under control. I know that He knew when I booked the airline tickets about the heart attack and He allowed. I decided to trust Him and He workd it out. Praise God!!!!
Dear Marilyn, Thanks for this great devotional today. To answer your question… “After a heart attack or other difficult situations, is it still possible to follow God in new and exciting challenges? Do you then start to doubt God’s call for you?” YES! It is possible to still follow God’s new and exciting challenges after a heart attack. I had a heart attack just 30 days before my 45th birthday and one week following my first book signing for a childrens christmas book. I was blown away when I laid in the hospital bed while the pain transcending through my body overwhelmed me…from there the recooperation was a long journey but during such times I went on to finish writing a memior re: the many challenges God brought me through..now just about three years later from the anniv. of my heart attack I am attending schooling in hopes of obtaining a diploma in christian ministry..GOD kept me alive for a good cause..although He changed my path He is leading me to higher gounds and horizons…the heart attack made me realize how perishable our lives are and so long as it is called “today” He still has great plans for each of us.