But First Seek The Counsel of The LORD
For three years there was no war between Aram and Israel. But in the third year Jehoshaphat king of Judah went down to see the king of Israel.
The king of Israel had said to his officials, "Don't you know that Ramoth Gilead belongs to us and yet we are doing nothing to retake it from the king of Aram?"
So he asked Jehoshaphat, "Will you go with me to fight against Ramoth Gilead?"
Jehoshaphat replied to the king of Israel, "I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses." But . . . "First seek the counsel of the LORD." I Kings 22:1-5
The king of Israel had said to his officials, "Don't you know that Ramoth Gilead belongs to us and yet we are doing nothing to retake it from the king of Aram?"
So he asked Jehoshaphat, "Will you go with me to fight against Ramoth Gilead?"
Jehoshaphat replied to the king of Israel, "I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses." But . . . "First seek the counsel of the LORD." I Kings 22:1-5
"But . . . First seek the LORD."
I can't even begin to imagine the number of lives that have been ruined because this all-important but basic advice has been ignored time and again by God's children. Marriages have been entered into with attendant life-long pain because God's children never sought His face before entering those marriages. Business partnerships and dealings have been entered into and vast resources lost because God's input was never sought. Monies have been lost because God's children entered ventures that were never the will of God for them.
Ahab, the godless king of Israel, wanted to drag Jehoshaphat into war without consulting God. Jehoshaphat immediately saw the red flag and insisted that they first seek the LORD for counsel. He wanted to know what God had to say about the issue.
What God has to say about anything we do is of utmost importance. First, we can hear what God has to say about any issue primarily through what He has given by way of revelation through His Scriptures. Our daily conduct in any area of life can always be bounced of the divine revelation -- the Bible. Second, we can hear God's voice through intimations and clear directives from the Holy Spirit of God who lives in us and who is our guide and paraclete -- the One who has been given to us by God to walk alongside us in the nitty gritty of life. He is real and He passionately desires to direct us in all we do. He speaks and directs.
Seeking God's counsel is of utmost importance because Scripture makes it clear that God knows the plans He has for us, plans to prosper us and not to harm us; plans to give us a hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11). Seeking God first before we move ahead into anything ensures that we are in complete alignment with God's plans for our lives and that we are not doing anything outside of His will for our lives. Being in the will of God is the surest path to blessings and prosperity. Take time to seek the counsel of God.
I can't even begin to imagine the number of lives that have been ruined because this all-important but basic advice has been ignored time and again by God's children. Marriages have been entered into with attendant life-long pain because God's children never sought His face before entering those marriages. Business partnerships and dealings have been entered into and vast resources lost because God's input was never sought. Monies have been lost because God's children entered ventures that were never the will of God for them.
Ahab, the godless king of Israel, wanted to drag Jehoshaphat into war without consulting God. Jehoshaphat immediately saw the red flag and insisted that they first seek the LORD for counsel. He wanted to know what God had to say about the issue.
What God has to say about anything we do is of utmost importance. First, we can hear what God has to say about any issue primarily through what He has given by way of revelation through His Scriptures. Our daily conduct in any area of life can always be bounced of the divine revelation -- the Bible. Second, we can hear God's voice through intimations and clear directives from the Holy Spirit of God who lives in us and who is our guide and paraclete -- the One who has been given to us by God to walk alongside us in the nitty gritty of life. He is real and He passionately desires to direct us in all we do. He speaks and directs.
Seeking God's counsel is of utmost importance because Scripture makes it clear that God knows the plans He has for us, plans to prosper us and not to harm us; plans to give us a hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11). Seeking God first before we move ahead into anything ensures that we are in complete alignment with God's plans for our lives and that we are not doing anything outside of His will for our lives. Being in the will of God is the surest path to blessings and prosperity. Take time to seek the counsel of God.
Prayer: Lord, I desire that everything I do will be in conformity with your plans and will for my life. Please help me to patiently wait on you until I hear your clear voice of direction. Amen.