Making Decisions With Christ: 2 Chronicles 16:7-9 (Faithfulness)

Read Galatians 5:22-23:

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law."

Are you ready to make an investment in the Fruit of Faithfulness?

Read Psalm 16:

'Keep me safe, my God,
for in you I take refuge.
I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord;
apart from you I have no good thing.”
I say of the holy people who are in the land,
“They are the noble ones in whom is all my delight.”
Those who run after other gods will suffer more and more.
I will not pour out libations of blood to such gods
or take up their names on my lips.

Lord, you alone are my portion and my cup;
you make my lot secure.
The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
surely I have a delightful inheritance.
I will praise the Lord, who counsels me;
even at night my heart instructs me.
I keep my eyes always on the Lord.
With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.

Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will rest secure,
because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
nor will you let your faithful one see decay.
You make known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand.'

Do you believe that if you keep you eyes upon the Lord, that He will counsel, instruct and make known to you the path of life?

Read 2 Chronicles 16:7-9

"At that time Hanani the seer came to King Asa and told him, “Because you have put your trust in the king of Aram instead of in the Lord your God, you missed your chance to destroy the army of the king of Aram. Don’t you remember what happened to the Ethiopians and Libyans and their vast army, with all of their chariots and charioteers? At that time you relied on the Lord, and he handed them over to you. The eyes of the Lord search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. What a fool you have been! From now on you will be at war.”

How fully committed to the Lord are you?

In 2 Chronicles 16:7-9 we are given a clear example of how God allows a godly man to lose his victory and peace when he fails to seek Him before making an important decision (even though, from a worldly perspective, Asa's choice seemed to be a very good one).

How important to you is it to seek the Lord's instruction and wisdom when faced with an important decision?

Take a moment to identify one decision you either need to make or just made, that you would like to bring before the Lord.

Write the decision down in the space provided.

Go to 'DOCUMENTS' and read Oswald Chamber's commentary.

Take a moment to think about what it means to knock on God's door with humility of the crucified thief.

Select 'Successful' when you are finished.

Now bring this decision you chose in Step 5 before the Lord, your God, by saying the following:

"Lord, I come before you in all humility. When it comes to making this decision, I seek your way Lord, not my way. I seek your will, not my will or the will of others. Instruct me in your ways, Lord. I ask in the name above all names, the name of my Lord and Savior, Christ Jesus."

Select 'Successful' when you are finished.

Ask the Lord your question, then get quiet and listen to the still, small voice of the Lord your God.

Write down what you receive.

If you received an answer, proceed to the next Step now.

If you did not receive an answer, consider doing one or more of the following:

a) Reread Psalm 16 in Step 2. Take time to mediate on the verse, then return to Steps 7 & 8.
b) Go for a walk or to a favorite place and do Steps 7 & 8 there.
c) Ask the Lord to instruct you at night, during the day, etc. Let Him know that you are open to receiving His answer at anytime and anywhere.
d) Ask trusted friends to pray for an answer with you.

It's important to put what you believe God was communicating to you to the test. If it is from God, then it must meet the following criteria:

a) It does not conflict with anything in the word of God (The Bible).
b) It doesn't go against the nature and character of God.
c) It doesn't produce a sense of frenetic urgency, but an inner settledness (even if it is a difficult thing to do).

If what you received meets this criteria, then proceed. If it does not, then consider redoing Steps 2, 7 & 8.

Choose the 'Successful' response when you are ready to go the next Step.

Based on what you believe the Lord is guiding you to do, what action(s) are to going to take?

Write it down in the space provided.

Remember, this Trail will be in your library to assist you anytime you wish to seek the Lord's wisdom.

How much has this Trail increased the Fruit of Faithfulness in your current disposition?