Get all the advice and instruction you can, so you will be wise the rest of your life. You can make many plans, but the Lord’s purpose will prevail. (Proverbs 19:20-21, NLT)
If you have ever taken lessons from your local pro to tune up your game, you know how awkward the changes can feel. You can’t imagine how this can be right. Then your pro tells you, “You have to get worse in order to get better.” Seriously? That really gives me a strong confidence about my game when I play against the guys on my regular Saturday game…
But the moment comes when you successfully apply the corrections. After a lot of practice and hitting balls on the range, the ball is going where you want it to go (wow!). You gain those few extra yards you were looking for and you say to yourself, “My pro really knew what he was talking about!”
The same principle often applies when we go to our biblically grounded, trustworthy friends. These are our brothers and sisters in Christ. One may be our spouse, another a pastor or elder. All have been given insight by the Holy Spirit to help us along.
I have learned in my life as I seek wise counsel that it sure saves me a lot of frustration and troubles if I discern the advice and see if the counsel aligns with God’s Word. I know of people who thought they received good advice, but afterwards realized it did not match with God’s Word. Too late in recognizing the error, they had to suffer the consequences of bad advice.
As we look at today’s passage from Proverbs, we can clearly note that if we seek all the godly advice and instruction and do our due diligence to make sure it’s in God’s plan, his purpose will prevail.
A good friend and brother in Christ produces a line of clothing with the logo GIIC. That’s right—it stands for “God Is in Control.” I find this to be an exceptional reminder, both for myself and for my golf partners. Those who are believers do well to encourage each other with these words, so that we do not seize upon our own best thinking or even the best thinking of a Christian friend. Rather, we must go back to the Lord himself for what is best for us.
But if we can start a conversation with an unbelieving friend, all the better! If they ask, “What’s with the GIIC?” I can explain its meaning and use the opportunity to testify to the difference in my life between the times when I’ve tried to direct my own course and when I’ve let God do the leading. It’s not a hard sell, but it lets me clearly explain why God has been so good for me. It lets me speak my wisest words to another who really needs to hear them.
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Dereck Wong
October 11, 2012
Copyright 2012 Links Players International
The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.