Who do you listen to?
I had to miss church today – had a bit of a rough night with a tummy bug – but I watched the broadcast on God TV from Abundant Life Church, Bradford. Paul Scanlon was speaking on Proverbs 15:22:
“Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed”
Having recently updated our version of PC Study Bible (now includes the Life Application Bible Notes), it made the following comment on this verse: -
“People with tunnel vision—those who are locked into one way of thinking—are likely to miss the right road because they have closed their minds to any new options. We need the help of those who can enlarge our vision and broaden our perspective. Seek out the advice of those who know you and have a wealth of experience. Build a network of advisers. Then be open to new ideas, and be willing to weigh their suggestions carefully. Your plans will be stronger and more likely to succeed.”
On the Church weekend away at High Leigh, I shared something with the people about new ways of thinking. Talked about Noah, Abraham and Moses. Noah had no blueprints for an Ark – he could not go on the Internet and check out how you were supposed to build one. They didn’t even have a concept of rain, let alone floods. So he had to rely totally on what God told him to build, and get the blueprints for something never before conceived directly from Him. No wonder they thought he was mad!
Abraham had no map to get to the City God had for him – God simply told him to pack up and leave. I was also listening to Bayless Conley yesterday, and he used a great illustration. He said that when you drive somewhere at night time, you don’t stay outside your house with the car running and the lights on, but refuse to move until the headlights light up the entire journey! You have to move forward 50 yards at a time, and then the headlights will light up the road ahead for the next 50 yards, and so on. God leads in this way – he asks us to take a first step of faith, and you can’t move into Step Two until you have taken Step One.
And then there was Moses. He had no satellite Navigation system through the Wilderness – maybe that was a good thing! - but God led them supernaturally, and made every provision for the journey.
But along the way, these people also had the opportunity to take counsel – for support, wisdom and encouragement. Noah had his family, who were supportive enough to help him build the Ark. Abraham took counsel from Heavenly visitors, and Moses took counsel from his father-in-law
Pat’s Thought for the Day;
Whose human voice do you listen to? Is it the one you think is the most encouraging one? Sometimes, we can be too “nice” in our encouragement, fearing to be honest and truthful with our words. Flattery, it is said, will get you anywhere – usually means “lost”, though. Far better to seek out wise counsel, even though it might seem confrontational, and then consider it carefully before taking actions.
“Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed”
Having recently updated our version of PC Study Bible (now includes the Life Application Bible Notes), it made the following comment on this verse: -
“People with tunnel vision—those who are locked into one way of thinking—are likely to miss the right road because they have closed their minds to any new options. We need the help of those who can enlarge our vision and broaden our perspective. Seek out the advice of those who know you and have a wealth of experience. Build a network of advisers. Then be open to new ideas, and be willing to weigh their suggestions carefully. Your plans will be stronger and more likely to succeed.”
On the Church weekend away at High Leigh, I shared something with the people about new ways of thinking. Talked about Noah, Abraham and Moses. Noah had no blueprints for an Ark – he could not go on the Internet and check out how you were supposed to build one. They didn’t even have a concept of rain, let alone floods. So he had to rely totally on what God told him to build, and get the blueprints for something never before conceived directly from Him. No wonder they thought he was mad!
Abraham had no map to get to the City God had for him – God simply told him to pack up and leave. I was also listening to Bayless Conley yesterday, and he used a great illustration. He said that when you drive somewhere at night time, you don’t stay outside your house with the car running and the lights on, but refuse to move until the headlights light up the entire journey! You have to move forward 50 yards at a time, and then the headlights will light up the road ahead for the next 50 yards, and so on. God leads in this way – he asks us to take a first step of faith, and you can’t move into Step Two until you have taken Step One.
And then there was Moses. He had no satellite Navigation system through the Wilderness – maybe that was a good thing! - but God led them supernaturally, and made every provision for the journey.
But along the way, these people also had the opportunity to take counsel – for support, wisdom and encouragement. Noah had his family, who were supportive enough to help him build the Ark. Abraham took counsel from Heavenly visitors, and Moses took counsel from his father-in-law
Pat’s Thought for the Day;
Whose human voice do you listen to? Is it the one you think is the most encouraging one? Sometimes, we can be too “nice” in our encouragement, fearing to be honest and truthful with our words. Flattery, it is said, will get you anywhere – usually means “lost”, though. Far better to seek out wise counsel, even though it might seem confrontational, and then consider it carefully before taking actions.
posted by PatK at
6:34 pm
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home