What's YOUR Agenda?

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; 

In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths." -Proverbs 3:5-6

These verses played and are still playing a big part in my life. I was in my second year in college when I accepted Jesus as my personal Lord and Savior. I remember having them written on the first page of each of my books, reminding myself that my studies is not my priority but God. But as time passed by, I no longer looked at them as a reminder of Who my priority is, but as an assurance that everything would go well with my studies because I have God. See? I barely knew God that time. And sadly, I did not exert the slightest effort to know Him better.

My studies is the major reason why I backslid after a month of being saved. I did spend time in prayer and reading the Bible, but most of my time was still devoted to my studies. Due to the increasing loads and additional major courses I needed to take, my time for God diminished rapidly. Eventually, I came to the point of forgetting who God is in my life. Well, I did remember Him during the hardest times, especially during examinations. I treated Him like some kind of a genie, telling Him my requests and telling Him to make sure that everything would work in my favor.

Praise God for that fateful day, when God led my steps to a Christian church, a place which I considered now as a home sweet home. 

That time, I was reminded of who God truly is in my life.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart..."

My friend, it takes ALL - not just half or any portion - of our heart for us to fully trust God. Once doubt finds a place in our heart, we'd end up doubting God. And when that happens, to whom do we put our trust in? To ourselves. As a result, we'll act according to our own intellect and will, trusting our own abilities more than God's as if we know better than He does. The fact that we don't see Him is one reason why we're so easily convinced that we can do things on our own without His help, without His leading. But that is where faith comes in. Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). Even if our eyes fail to see Him, we should make sure that our heart trusts strongly in Him.

"...and lean not on your own understanding."

Our minds - our own intellect - is actually the biggest hindrance in trusting God. There are just so much going on in our head that make us forget there is an All-knowing God whose wisdom is far higher than ours.

It really takes ALL of our heart, so that we'll lean not on ourselves, but on God.

"In all your ways, acknowledge Him and He shall direct your paths."

My friend, if our parents care so much about how we live our lives, our Heavenly Father cares all the more. If they want the best for us, God wants the best among the bests for us. Our parents had been through a lot in life, yet they still make wrong decisions and might give wrong pieces of advice. But our Heavenly Father knows perfectly what's right for us.

Consult God. Try to understand Him.

Most people are afraid that God would go against all of their plans. There are instances wherein we consult God, yet we are already decided even before talking to Him. We just talk to Him for the sake of praying, but we do not really consult Him. We don't even take some time to hear what He's got to say. We talk. God listens. End of rushed prayer.

Yes, we know what's right and wrong, and what's good and bad. Yet, the good thing we do is not always the right thing. A good work is not necessarily the right work. The right work is always in accordance with the will of God. I remember the time when David wanted to build a house for the Lord, yet God sent Nathan to tell him that he's not the one He appointed to do that task (see 2 Samuel 7). It's clear that David did not intend anything bad in doing that, but that's not in accordance to the will of God. So if we want to do things right, we better consult God. And when we consult God, we should be in no rush. We have got to spend time with Him, dwell in His presence until we hear that "still small voice" of God.

Furthermore, the only time that God will guide you is when you ask for His guidance. How can He lead your way if you put Him behind you? Most of the times, we go ahead of God's plans, causing delay and, sometimes, completely ruining His plans for us. And when everything went out of hand, we're so fast in putting all the blame on Him.

My friend, constant communication is what makes a relationship grow stronger. Pray. Don't tell God about your agenda. Ask for His agenda instead. Don't do all the talking. Allow God to speak to you.

"Seek first the kingdom of God and all these things (Matt.6:25-32) shall be added unto you." Matthew 6:33

 

A/N: This is the result of my quiet time tonight since I can't get to sleep. This is unedited. So if you happen to see some mistakes, feel free to let me know. It's actually quarter to one in the morning, and I'm finally getting sleepy. Praise God!

May our dearest Heavenly Father pour blessings upon you! Know that you are greatly loved, dearest. :)