“In all your ways know, recognize, and acknowledge Him, and He will direct and make straight and plain your paths.” Proverbs 3:6

Life is full of decisions and challenges that require directions. As Christians, we do not just need directions but we need divine directions. People are always willing and ready to give advice and directions for our lives whether they are asked or not. It is important that we acknowledge God, even in the ‘simple’ things in our lives.

It is so very easy for us to decide what we are going to do about things that we think we have control over or things that we think we can handle. However, God wants us to acknowledge Him in all things. God should be the one in control of our lives.

Have you ever been in a situation where you are faced with a decision, you did not pray about it or ask God what you should do, but made your own decision; and then when things did not work out as you planned you cried out to God? Some of us even go as far as asking God why this or that happened, when in essence if we had sought Him and acknowledge Him and ask His opinion, He would have told us to do the opposite of what we did. Of course there are those who do their own thing and go their own way and when trouble comes ask God how He could allow this or that to happen to them. To sum this all up its like ‘When all else fails, ask God’. When we operate like this, it is living our live in the reverse.

God is the one who created us. God is the one who knew us from the time we were in our mother’s womb. He knows where we were, where we are and where we are going. He knows our past, present and future. He holds the blueprints for our lives in His hands. Not only that, but He has great plans for each of us. No matter what circumstances you were born under, no matter what you have gone through or are going through, God still sees you as a child of purpose and He has great plans for you. He sums it all up in Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD , "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

The devil is already on a mission to kill, steal and destroy every child of God. He is not after us. He is after the gifts in us and the anointing on us. If we decide to live our lives, leaning on our own understanding and doing things our way instead of God’s way, all we do is help the devil to keep us out of our divine destiny and hinder the blessings of God from coming to us.

A lot of times we blame the devil for a lot of things that we are responsible for. We get ourselves in a lot of things that really could be avoided if we had only acknowledged God. God speaks to us in so many different ways; by the Holy Spirit, through His Word, the preached Word, Prophetic Words etc. The problem is that it is not that we do not hear what God is saying at times, but it is that what we hear is not what we want to hear so we do the opposite. In the natural, if you go to a function and they acknowledge the presence of someone, this is only done if the person is present. When we acknowledge God, we are saying that He is present in our live and in our decisions. When we acknowledge God, He brings us joy and He blesses us. “Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.” Psalm 16:11 God never leads us in the wrong path.

Yet, there are those in the body of Christ who instead of acknowledging God, they acknowledge man and depend on man to direct their path. They do not learn to seek God for themselves but constantly rely on people who they think are ‘spiritual’ to tell them the directions they should go in and make decisions for them. Nothing is wrong with seeking Godly advice if God directs you to, but if you find that you cannot make decisions without consulting people then something is wrong with your relationship with God. God says in Isaiah 65:24 “And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.” We all need to learn to know the voice of God for ourselves. This comes by spending quality time in the presence of the Lord. St. John 10:27 “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.”

A lot of Christians are intrigued with the prophetic and prophets. Prophets and the prophetic have their place in the body of Christ. Yet, God never told us to trust the prophets or acknowledge the prophets. He told us to seek him with all our might and to acknowledge Him. So many people are from place to place and state to state, following from one prophet to another seeking to get a ‘Word’. Many have itching ears and are just looking to hear that God is gonna give them a new car, a house, a lot of money, etc although they are not living right. In 1 John 4:1 we are warned with these words “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” Yet many Christians never take time out to test the spirits, they just take in, believe and act upon every ‘Word’ that is given them whether it witnesses in their spirit or lines up with the Word of God or not. Christians beware of false prophets and false prophecies that go against the Word of God or that are from the flesh.

The psychics are a counterfeit of the true prophetic. Yet, many Christians who are blessed with the gift of prophecy or who are called to be prophets try to operate the gift of prophecy as if it is a psychic hotline. Some 'prophets' even have people pay for personal prophecies. I won't go there today, that is another devotional altogether. They constantly give people ‘Words’ just because the people ask and they do not prophesy from the Spirit of the Lord, and are not led by the Spirit of the Lord, but from their flesh. Remember that anything from the flesh reaps corruption and acting on false prophecies is no exception. This has led many well meaning Christians astray. God has already given us His Word from Genesis to Revelations. As I said before the prophetic and the true prophets of God have their rightful place in the body of Christ. But beware that you do not get caught up in living your life waiting to hear ‘a Word’ and ignoring the Word and voice of the Lord. If someone gives you ‘a Word’ and it does not witness in your spirit, seek God about it before you decide to act on it. If someone gives you ‘a Word’ that does not line up with the Word of God, you do not have to seek God, you know automatically that it is not a word from the Lord.

Saints of God, we are living in serious times. If ever a time we need to acknowledge God, it is now. Seek the face of God, seek the heart of God and talk to God about every area of your life. Remember, that as long as King Uzziah sought the Lord, God caused him to prosper. God wants you to prosper today, even as your soul prospers. Acknowledge God in all your ways.

Remember, if you do not acknowledge God, He cannot direct your path.

Wilbert & Jacqueline Richardson
ALIVE WORD AMBASSADORS FOR CHRIST

Email: alive_word@yahoo.com or alive_word@hotmail.com