Leaving Beyond – Grounded In Scripture

Written by: April J. Buchanan

“True wisdom is not merely speculative, but practical. The end of it is to guide us in the way of holiness.” ~ Jonathan Edwards

Prayer is not a means of avoiding responsibility and coasting to the end. Sometimes our prayers sound more like we want everything to happen with such ease that we never experience discomfort, we have no responsibility in our choices, and we want everything to be smooth sailing.

When we pray, do we trust that God is sovereign and He really is working all things together for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose?

Consider the prayer of open and close doors. Do we pray for wisdom and that we may be sanctified in the truth? Do we desire that we be changed and that our desires be conformed to what pleases God? Or do we ask for opened and closed doors so we have no responsibility in making wise or unwise decisions? Even then, do we see a “closed door” and beat it down, or an “open door” and walk through, assuming it is proof that it is God’s will, and if it all falls apart, it’s not our fault? Do we take any responsibility for our choices?

Friend, do our prayers look to God and seek Him in all we do, desiring to obey Him and, having our minds informed by truth, we pray for wisdom to make decisions that glorify God? Or do we read the tea leaves, seek a sign, look for an opened or closed door, or listen to see if we feel like God is trying to tell us what to do?

We have far more freedom in our choices than we often realize. We don’t need a sign or to read the tea leaves in order to know what job to take, where to live, who to marry, what church to attend, if we should confront a brother in sin, or if we should expose false teaching. Scripture is clear. It does not tell us who to marry, but it does tell us what to look for in a spouse, what is expected of us in marriage, and what person not to marry. It doesn’t tell us what job to get or not take, but it does give us wisdom in what kind of employee we ought to be and using wisdom in every other area of our life in how those jobs will affect our ability to be faithful to attend a doctrinally sound church and how it will affect our family.

What is often missing in many of our prayers is wisdom and asking God to change our minds and our hearts to desire what pleases Him. We often don’t want the responsibility of making a decision, or we’ve already made up our mind and want God to agree with us, even if it’s not His will, so we seek a sign or look for an open door.

We may find an open door, or we may have peace about a decision and be completely wrong. We did not ask for what we were told to ask for: wisdom. We did not pray according to God’s will, asking Him to change our minds and help us to make wise decisions that glorify Him. We did not seek wise, godly counsel. We sought a sign, a feeling, a sense of peace—some subjective thing of which God never told us to seek or trust.

Friend, it’s not that complicated. Pray and ask God for wisdom. Make a decision based on wise counsel and put your desire and choices up against God’s objective Word. Test it there. If you have more than one decision that is wise, choose either. You don’t have to make it so mystical and super-spiritual.

And, friend, stop blaming God for bad decisions. You prayed for an open door. You saw an open door. You went through it. It was an unwise decision. That’s not God’s fault. That’s on you. Repent. Learn from it. Stop trusting your emotions and seeking a sign to support your folly. Seek the truth. Seek wisdom. Obey God. Honor Him in whatever you do.

Grace and Peace, y’all
Soli Deo Gloria