"You just need to follow your heart and you'll do the right thing"....
Isn't it amazing how one of the biggest beliefs in this world, is the complete opposite of what God's Truth is?... Not really (sigh) but it is proof of how hard the Enemy of our souls has worked to get us to believe the exact opposite of what God tells us:
Even as Believers, His Children, we have also bought into this lie too many times: "Follow Your Heart"... "Do what you FEEL is right"... and the newest popular saying today: "Speak YOUR Truth"
Nope. Sorry, none of these statements... are Biblical!
We NEED to stop believing them.
Why is it such a big deal to not believe these sayings? Because, these beliefs will lead us down a path that is very different from the one that God has for us. Do you hear me? THIS is NOT God's path for your life! This should scare us honestly.
I mean, ... what a selfish state of mind we really have in living out these sayings. When we as God's Children, hold these 3 sayings next to His Word, it reveals the heart of the creator of these thoughts... it's not God, but it is the polar opposite. That's how Satan has always done it, he twists what God designs and tries to get us to do the exact opposite of what God tells us doesn't he?
We forget about our enemy. He exists. Since the beginning, he has been mastering his skills of deception and guess what?... he's really good at it by now.
We are foolish when we don't get to know who God is or what His Word says, then we start believing any cute "good" sounding thing as "truth". … and Satan is laughing at us.
More importantly, God is hurting as He watches us be so deceived all while believing and high fiving each other in our "Christianity" as we skip down a path that God did not create for us.
I know this post already is sounding a little harsh but we must pay attention to what we are allowing ourselves to believe sweet friends! It's so easy for each of us to get sidetracked and caught up in ourselves that we sometimes forget that... it's not about us. WE don't know what's BEST for us.
Just because we "give Him glory" for certain things in our lives... it doesn't mean we actually are glorifying him. He's not going to take the credit for something Satan is doing for us just because we "think" it's God doing it.
These misconceptions... um, lies, are so very dangerous for us BECAUSE they take us away from the TRUTH that God is God, and we are His Creation. HE directs our steps. Not us. We follow His heart, not our own. Feelings are not Truth. His ways are higher than our ways, we don't know on our own what is best. And again, here's the biggest kicker to our egos: Our lives do not revolve around us. We were created by Him and for Him. Frankly, it doesn't matter what we think we want, what matters is we live out the plan and purpose He created us for.
We love to read this verse as if God gives us whatever WE want but stop... think about it.... If WE are SEEKING Him in all things... HE will GIVE us the DESIRES … of our hearts. (read it again),,,
He will GIVE us:
His plan for our lives...
The next step we take...
The things in our lives that will glorify Him and fulfill His purpose for us...
The things which will bring us joy... that HE created for us.
Not give us the things that we want but we will begin to want what HE WANTS.
And the things He wants for us sweet friends, are going to be so much better than anything you or I have planned!
It's also really easy to focus on what He has given us already and sometimes we even stop seeking Him in those things. Like our talents. I have learned such a huge lesson in this area of my life. I have learned that sometimes we become the sole driver behind our talents and often assume that just because we are talented and we use those talents that we are glorifying God. But this isn't exactly true.
Now God does tell us that we need to be using what we have and not simply ignoring what He has given us but also that we need to be using them according to His will. Take a look at this verse found in Hosea 13:2
"Now they sin more and more, And have made for themselves molded images, Idols of their silver, according to their skill; All of it is the work of craftsmen..."
Very TALENTED craftsmen.... made idols.
But how does this apply to a Child of God? Well, what happens when we start using our talents in ways that go against God's Word? Is simply the fact that we believe in Jesus enough for God to give us a pass to participate in things that displease Him simply because we are His Children? Are the "things of this world" no longer "things of this world" if His Children are participating?
It's thought provoking isn't it?
This was a hard and painful lesson for me to learn because... it's fun to be talented. There is frankly a LOT of opportunity in this world for talented people. And there are tons of opportunities within the Church for talented people. But if God is not the driving force behind our talent... then how can we be sure we are pleasing Him with it? God wants us before He ever wants our talents. I love this! We are so important to Him way before all the things we can do.
But just as our hearts can be deceiving, so can our ambition with our talents. We have to be so careful sweet friends, that we don't become so focused on where our talents can take us, that we miss out on the very plan and purpose that God has for the talents He gave us. Face it, there are a MILLION different directions our talents can take us, but only ONE direction is meant for us.
We live in a world where everyone wants to be a star... but God has a much better and far more rewarding life for us IF we always make sure that it is HE who is opening those doors of opportunity for us to walk through and not our Enemy holding those doors open. Kind of a scary thought isn't it? But so very true. Satan knows all our gifts and talents. He knows our hopes and dreams. And.. He knows how to hold the "thing we've always wanted" out in front of us. Satan can make opportunities happen for us too. If we are not careful and wise, we most definitely can be deceived all while still believing that God is pleased with our lives!
We must KNOW the AUTHOR of our talents sweet friends! We must let Him guide us in our talents and in our dreams. We can use our talents for anything, we can go many places, but not everything may be beneficial to our relationship with our Creator. We must remember that God will NEVER ask us to do ANYTHING that steps outside of HIS WORD. PERIOD. God will NEVER contradict His Word or His Character and THAT is WHY we MUST KNOW Him and His Word!
I am so thankful for the Holy Spirit who leads and guides me on this journey. I love that the Peace of God is what tells me whether I should go this way or that way. There is NO substitute for the Peace that ONLY comes from God in our lives. it doesn't matter how we may "feel"... our feelings don't define the Peace of God, it is something completely different and can only come from our Creator. Ask Him for His Peace as you do His will with what He's given you... and He will! His Peace is like the bumpers in a bowling alley, it keeps us on the straight path. If you don't have Peace when a door of opportunity is opened to you, even if it's "something you've always wanted"... don't do it. God has something better, something you were created to do waiting. Trust Him sweet friends, He cares more about you than anyone else ever will. And the most important thing that we can do as His Children... is learn to Love the Giver more than the gifts.
Because Truth: If we use our gifts apart from the Giver, and we follow our hearts apart from the One who designed them... what good are they anyway?
Know Him. Love Him. Follow Him.
