September 1 Weighing the Matter

The prudent see danger and take refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it. ~Proverbs 27:12 

So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful. He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. ~1 Corinthians 10:12-13 

Ah, our sister Prudence is mentioned again. Do you remember her? She is the one who urges caution, to put the brakes on and think things through. What is the saying? “Fools rush in where angels fear to tread.” It is good to stop and think, as long as your thinking does not stall you from taking the great adventure of life that God has for you. So, how do you know? Sometimes, I think we never do. 

There are times when we make wise decisions. We have taken the time to agonize and weigh the pros and cons and pray that we have made the right choice and then difficulty arises, and we begin second guessing ourselves. Other times, it can look like everything just fell into place, so it must be God’s will and then, it all falls apart unexpectedly and we have no clue why and little clue what to do next. Yet even that could still be the center of God’s Will with the challenges just part of the package. 

We find ourselves wishing that God would write in the sky or speak to us verbally as He did to Samuel or the other prophets of old so that we would know with certainty, these are God’s instructions for me! While it is true that we may not be given that kind of clarity in many situations, there are principles that we can count on. If we listen to Prudence, urging us to take the time to consider, we are usually better equipped to know than if we just run headstrong into whatever situation we “feel,” we need to be involved with because our passions urge us to do so. 


1.  God will never advise us to go against the principles that He has laid out in His Word.

The more we read God’s Word, the more we become familiar with His character, His principles, His thoughts, His commands and His desires. The better we know His Word and His heart, the easier it is to recognize those things that He does not approve of. The more we know Him, the less mystery there is to what pleases Him. This does take a commitment of time on our part, but it is time well spent, building an understanding of our heavenly Father. 

Think of your spouse, if you have one. Don’t you know now what the likes and dislikes are of your spouse, better than when you first met, or even when you married? It has taken time, but hasn’t it been time well spent? How much more the time we take learning of our Father in heaven, our brother Jesus, and the gift of the Holy Spirit that dwells within. 

2. We must be in prayer.

As with all relationships, there needs to be conversation: us talking to Him, asking if we should or shouldn’t, and then our waiting upon Him to have the time to respond. 

3.  We must recognize our fears. 

“The prudent see danger and take refuge.” Prudence is good, but there is a fine line between being prudent and leaning toward fear. It’s easy for us to talk ourselves out of obeying through our fears. This is not Prudence, this is an internal struggle within us. We may hold back because all the ducks don’t line up quite to our liking, or we don’t have all the answers. However, God is often in the business of pushing us out of our comfort zone, beyond our own understanding and into obedience so that we will rely on Him more and learn that He is worthy of our trust and truly able to meet our supply and need when we are acting in His will. 

Think of those priests standing next to the River Jordan when Joshua told them to step in, at flood stage, carrying the Ark. Can you imagine what the people would have done to them if that thing broke loose and went floating away? They didn’t know that God was going to stop the flow. They just had to believe He would because He said He would. They had to trust and obey. It would have been easy to talk them out of it, I’m sure, but they took the step of faith and were rewarded for their obedience. 

Remember, first of all that “Perfect love drives out fear.” (1 John 4:18) We do not have to be afraid if God is in it. Also, if we are afraid, that fear is not from God: “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, (or fear), but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.” (2 Timothy 1-7) So we shouldn’t be trying to find ways to talk ourselves out of things, but ways to say “Yes,” to God and conquer our fears. 

I remember hearing a colleague say in a sermon, we should be trying to find ways to say “Yes,” to God as much as possible instead of letting our reason, schedules and fears talk us into saying “No.” Sometimes we are just too practically and fearfully minded for our own good. Fear and caution can be a good thing when they are kept in check by other considerations. 

4.  We must recognize our ambitions. 

“But the simple keep going and suffer for it.” On the other hand, there are those times when we want what we want and find ways to justify our desires without stopping to think. We’re willing to say “yes,” to everything without stopping to consider. This isn’t good either. Just because we are asked, or just because we want to, does not necessarily mean that it is our calling to say, “Yes,” at that time. 

I suppose that this person is referred to as “simple,” because he’s not thinking of anything but his own desire. He’s not taking anything else into consideration, so he runs ahead without counting the cost and ends up paying the price for not stopping to think. As we said about fear, adventure can be a good thing, when it is kept in check by other considerations. This is where Prudence helps.

5.  We must submit our wills to Him.

“And God is faithful. He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear.” “Lord, I see in Your Word that You don’t want me too, but I want…” Or: “Lord, I know that You are asking me to…but I’m afraid!” “God has said, “Never will I leave you. Never will I forsake you.” (Hebrews 13:5B) “But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.” If you are tempted to hide, He is with you. If you are tempted to charge boldly ahead, He is still with you and He still loves you. Both those who have fear, and those who are more reckless need to bring their wills to the foot of the cross to do His Will instead. 

Prayer: Father, I will trust You and listen for your guidance. You have promised in Isaiah 30:21, that whether I turn to the right or to the left, my ears can hear a voice behind me, saying, “This is the way. Walk in it.” You are my source of Prudence and wisdom. Thank You for that Promise. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Song: I Will Follow