Are you discerning?

The top three things I pray for (when I pray for myself) are wisdom, self-control and discernment. I was led to write about discernment tonight. Discernment is so important. Discerning good from bad,long term from short term and godly advice from Satan's will etc.(it's not always easy. We may think that Satan's advice may be horrible and clear cut e.g killing someone, however the bible says that Satan masquerades himself as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14-15) Everything that appears good, moral and attractive is not necessarily. This has been one of my areas of growth. I had a hard time with it and to this day, it's still not my strongest quality, hence why I pray for more of it continuously. 

The merriam-webster dictionary defines discernment as "the quality of being able to grasp  and comprehend what is obscure, an act of perceiving" which could also be summed up as the "ability to judge well".  

We need discernment not only in our spiritual lives, but it is also needed in business, friendships and relationships, and finances. You should not go into business with just anybody, you should not get emotionally involved or invested with everyone who expresses interest and you can't go around buying everything that promises results or even has a good price! It's more than how they/it looks on paper or even if it worked for someone else, will it work for you? Is it something God is leading you to do? 

Spiritually, we tend to want to feed on encouragement. Now don't get me wrong, God's word states that we are to uplift, love and encourage, however our encouragement should always align with God's words. The two can't contradict. As much as I may love a person, I won't encourage them to go along and steal something they want, simply because they "Feel" like doing it because stealing is wrong. I want them to feel convicted about the matter and I would advise them against it. Many times we want others to feed us what we "Want" to hear, rather than what we "need" to hear. So discernment is needed in the messages we allow our brains to reflect on through regular conversations and by preachers. Yes, we should be uplifted and encouraged, but not at the expense of continuing down a destructive path. A good preacher or someone who truly loves you will give you the balance of both. You will be loved, but you also will be told the truth. So having discernment in our spiritual lives is key. Questions to ask yourself, does this teaching or advice confirm scripture or go against it? Does this person have fruit of spirit in their own lives?

1 john 4:1 reads (new living translation version) "Dear friends, do not believe everyone who claims to speak by the Spirit. You must test them to see if the spirit they have comes from God. For there are many false prophets in this world. " 

So what's the first step in using discernment? TESTING! Even God tests us. He tested the Israelites when he freed them from Egypt several times, he tested Abraham and many others (he also tests us ) so why shouldn't we do the same? Testing is not a bad thing, it's all about the purpose and the ways it is done. Testing done by us requires observation, being still and seeking God's will through prayer and reading his word. That's it. So no you don't have to tell Jimmy boy or Jamie girl " I can't go out with you because I have to test you first " LOL please don't. You don't have to say anything honestly, you observe him or her and look for the qualities you seek in a partner in his/her life. Quite frankly, way too many people jump into relationships (I was guilty of this) without knowing what the person is all about before giving them your body, heart, time and energy. Then 8 months into the relationship you are saying "They changed!" No they did not. That's who they always were. But you can't see that when you are running on emotions, bringing in sex and not seeking counsel from trusted people while speaking with them and observing them from behind the scenes! But that's another blog ( and my book.,. I am in the process of writing! pray for me!:) ) 

Paul's prayer in Philipians 1:9-10 was this: And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ. 

Discernment helps us approve the excellent from the not so excellent. Wouldn't it save you pain, hurt and drama if we made decisions in our lives through discernment rather than our emotions, what your friends were doing, what you're used to doing and based on what looks good? Wouldn't it just be easier to do things God's way and avoid testing our your way and Tom and Susie's way first? I wish i did. Yes, i learned a lot from my mistakes and hurt, but at some point we need to change our way of doing things and save ourselves the time! I don't have the TIME to waste anymore. I don't want to "try" this out and see if it works. I need to know that it is God ordained and it's his calling for MY Life. If God is not in it, i DO NOT NEED it. I may WANT it. I may want it really bad, but that's where my prayer for self-control comes in. Self-discipline gives us the strength to say No, I will pass, I will wait, I will pray, I cannot do this until I hear from God...etc.

My prayer for you tonight reading this is that you will seek God's will in ALL areas of your life. Many times we want God's hand on our finances ( I pray to be financially well so I can give to others in need as well) but we don't want his hand in our relationships or social life because we are not quite ready to let go of some things we KNOW need to go. I want to encourage you today to seek him first. I want you to understand that his strength is perfected in your weaknesses. I want you to love yourself enough to STOP wasting your time and ending up in hurtful situations. I want you to experience God's love and grace that CAN and WILL consume you if you just make yourself available to him. I pray for wisdom, self-discipline and discernment in your life. He loves you right where you are.... Speak to him tonight and ask him to help you. xoxo