Tuesday, November 16, 2010

#103 - Follow Peace & Listen

Good morning! Still here in Orlando, enjoying my time with my parents! What a blessing to be able to spend time with them! Praise the Lord. I'm so blessed that Tyler allowed me to come home and be a stay at home Mom, Wife & Business Partner.....and thank that Lord that we started a business several years ago that would help replace my income. Thank you Tyler for leading our family!

Well, let's go! We're off to Disney in a bit, so I want to give you what the Lord gave to me this morning. He actually gave me things for YOU! :) He's good like that!
Proverbs 16:9,33 - A man's mind plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps and makes them sure. The lot is cast into the lap, but the decision is wholly of the Lord [even the events that seem accidental are really ordered by Him].
Psalm 16:7 - I will bless the Lord, Who has given me counsel; yes, my heart instructs me in the night seasons.
Psalm 46:1 - GOD IS our Refuge and Strength [mighty and impenetrable to temptation], a very present and well-proved help in trouble.
Psalm 76:1 - IN JUDAH God is known and renowned; His name is highly praised and is great in Israel.
Proverbs 16 is so full of good insight on making plans & decisions, allowing God to direct your steps, following the right path. What kept ringing in my ears was the word PEACE. Peace. I'll share some insight about peace shortly. First let's look at how it begins in Proverbs 16:9. It talks about how YOU & I make our plans.... we MAKE PLANS. We start out with a PLAN. If we aren't doing that, if we have NO PLAN, then that is the first mistake. We start out with some raw material for the Lord to work with. As we establish that plan, He is then able to step in and direct & tweek our plan. Tell us what in our plan needs to be changed. We see in Psalm 16 that HE gives us counsel and our heart will instruct us.

As we make our plans with the Lord to "edit" them... "tweek" them.... "fine-tune" them, we can do so in CONFIDENCE that He is also our REFUGE & STRENGTH! He is MIGHTY! Like the sound of a LION roaring and the echo of Him sounding in the valleys and rocks of the mountains. A LOUD ROAR. Our GOD carries with Him STRENGTH! Picture that. Picture a HUGE LION standing up tall, stretching out his head and letting out a ROAR that almost shakes the trees standing near by. With the Lion as our friend, you & I, tuck ourselves right behind His 900 pound frame and take refuge. We know that nothing is going to get by this ferocious beast. That is the Lord. He is there in a time of trouble, need, help. He is KNOWN. He is FAMOUS. He is MIGHTY.

Where does this peace come in? Well, for the new Christian and the veteran's.... peace is one of the first steps in walking in obedience. Maybe you have been in the Word for years and years, but never fine-tuned your ability to LISTEN to the voice of the Holy Spirit. You study, you know the stories, you know scripture, but you haven't ever really established the habit of listening. Or, for you who may be a fairly new Christian. This whole "Bible" thing is new to you. In the past you maybe read it and thought, "I just feel like this is all going over my head. I totally don't understand this." Or, maybe you practice on a consistent basis to LISTEN & be LED by the Voice of the Holy Spirit. Whoever you are, this is for you. Follow Peace. Continue in the Word, being in the Word will allow you to KNOW God, and will lead to KNOWING His Voice. Without spending TIME with someone, it is hard to discern & know their voice. The KEY is FIRST, spend time in the Word getting to know YOUR Shephard. If you haven't ever really "known how" to "listen". A great Umpire would be PEACE. If you are new at listening, FOLLOW PEACE.

Start small. Ask for help picking our your clothes. Ask what you should wear. Or perfume. Cologne. It was interesting, the other day the Holy Spirit even told me NOT to wear any perfume. I always wear perfume. But the person that I was going to be with, was allergic to fragrances. How could I have known that? I did not. But the Holy Spirit knows even the finest details!

Start small, just start. Listen. Be in the Word, and Follow Peace. Peace can and will be your umpire. That uneasy feeling inside you is most often the Holy Spirit prompting you NOT to do or go to that place. But when you just feel that PEACE, the overwhelming PEACE, you know you are heading in the right direction.

Be blessed today! Follow Peace & Listen.

No comments:

Social Sharing