“…whoever
listens to me will dwell safely and will be secure, without fear of evil.” Proverbs
1:33
There
are two paths that the Lord sets before man: one leads to wisdom, safety and
comparative ease, the other leads to chaos and destruction. I’m not saying the life of a believer is
easy, I’m saying it is easy compared to those who live without an ethical and
moral compass. Wisdom from God brings
true life and security. This is because
it isn’t man inspired wisdom, but rather wisdom that comes directly from the
throne of the Almighty. Regardless of what may take place in the world or in
our own lives, God is keenly aware of it all and either causes or allows all
things for His own purposes. So if God
is in complete and total control of all things, there truly is nothing to
fear. Those of us who fear have yet to
grasp the significance of what trusting the Lord really means. This isn’t a bad thing, but rather an
unnecessary thing. If He controls all things and knows all things and loves us
unconditionally and only wants good for us, then there is nothing that will
happen to any of us that He has not ordained to take place in our life. All this if we will simply listen to Him.
What
does it mean to listen to God? How is it
done? We can hear Him through the lyrics
of a song or the words of a sermon or by reading the scriptures or godly advice
a devoted spouse or friend. The catch is
we must have a hunger to hear from Him. It’s
easy to misinterpret what is being said to us and even easier to imagine He is
sanctioning that which we are so positive He wants us to say or do. It can take time to hear from the Lord. We need spiritual ears to hear what He is
saying to us. We need confirmation. There’s
no shame in seeking advice from your pastor, elder or spiritual mentor. Proverbs 15:22 says “Plans fail for
lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.” Many can be as
few as 2 or 3.
Place your
trust in the Lord. He never fails to do
that which He has promised in scripture to do.
You are safe in His care. In
earlier verses of chapter 15 we see the plight of those fool hearted folks who
reject wisdom. Turning away from God
will never bring you peace or satisfaction. Remember, this world has nothing of
any substance to offer any of us. Until
Christ returns, walk with the King and be a blessing!
Resources: Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary;
Reformation Study Bible and Asbury Bible Commentary.
