You can trust your decisions and walk in confidence. You don’t have to second guess everything or stress yourself out if you’re walking in the will of God. God is not withholding wisdom and instruction from you, he freely gives them to all who will listen. What it does it take to have your ear tuned to his voice? What does it take for your heart to be receptive to his leading? Walking upright, with integrity, being a loyal and dependable person.
These character traits do not earn the favor of God, they create the right environment inwardly to hear God. God speaks in the frequency of purity, righteousness, uprightness and so on, you will hear him and follow him effortlessly when your inner world matches the frequency of his voice.
Discretion Will Watch Over You
Let’s take a walk through Proverbs 2 and explore this idea a bit more. I have paraphrased some of these passages from the ESV but the context holds true.
1-5 My son, IF you receive my words and treasure up my commandments with you, and IF you make your ear attentive to wisdom and IF you incline your heart to understanding and, IF you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, and IF you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, THEN you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God.
There’s a big “IF” here. The “IF” is not based on performance, it’s based on listening. The eyes and ears of your heart will see and listen based on their track record. He continues on and help us know how to incline our hearts and make our ear attentive to God. But first he affirms that God gives wisdom freely, he’s not withholding it.
6-9 For the LORD gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding; he stores up sound wisdom for the upright; he is a shield to those who walk in integrity, guarding the paths of justice and watching over the way of his saints. Then you will understand righteousness and justice and equity, every good path;
Now begins the instruction of how to receive wisdom from God; walk upright, in integrity and guard the path of justice. This insight is followed by a promise, God will watch over you as you go.
Wisdom is not earned through integrity or good character, but walking upright has the kind of effect on your mind and heart that tunes it to the way God speaks. For the person who follows God’s instructions and lives in a way that’s in harmony with his own heart, they will know his voice more clearly.
Wisdom is effortlessly received by a heart that walks in God’s commandments and instruction. Of course commandments do not earn us favor, righteousness or blessing, they are instruction for us to follow into life and blessing. New Covenant commandments only come with blessings or missed opportunities, not penalty and punishment.
10-11 for wisdom will come into your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul; discretion will watch over you, understanding will guard you,
When your ear is inclined to God’s ways and your heart is receptive to his knowledge, all kinds of good things happen, including being protected from perversion, lust and adultery as described in verses 12-19.
When you walk according to God’s design for humans, in integrity, uprightness and receptive to his knowledge and instruction…
20-22 you will walk in the way of the good and keep to the paths of the righteous. For the upright will inhabit the land, and those with integrity will remain in it, but the wicked will be cut off from the land, and the treacherous will be rooted out of it.
Following God’s Pattern for Life
You can never perform or behave your way into God’s blessings, but you can keep your heart open to him through upright living. Because your heart affects every of your life and because God speaks to you through your inner man, it’s important to keep it distraction free.
Walking in integrity, in up-righteousness and in righteousness tunes your ear to him. Because he gives wisdom freely and because he has good plans for you, you need to hear him clearly to walk into those benefits.
The good news is you hear him better than you think you do and you follow him without trying to all the time. When you heart is confident in him you will make the right decisions. When you know who you are in him, when his promises are your compass, when Christ’s finished work is your foundation, when his peace guards your heart, you can trust your decisions.
When you’ve taken the time to plant his word in your heart and you discipline yourself to live in the pattern of his ways, you have a discretion that will self-correct your path back to God’s voice.
Sow The Word
Here’s your homework, read a chapter of Proverbs every day. Listen for specific things that you can actually put into practice. Read it slowly and make sure your focus is on his character and wisdom rather than your performance. Sow the word and reap a harvest in due time. You need to plant the word today because you’re going to need it tomorrow.
