How Does God Guide People?

By: Pat Robertson, cbn.com

God’s primary means for giving us guidance is the Bible. “Jesus answered, ‘I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the spirit'” (John 3:5).

The Bible is our rule book of faith and practice. If we know and understand the scriptures, we will be well on our way to having His guidance. He never guides His people contrary to the clear principles of His written Word.

Second, guidance comes from a knowledge of God Himself. We need to know what pleases Him and what displeases Him. There is no substitute for walking with God, sharing with Him, and talking to Him daily. “The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Corinthians 2:14). When you do that, you will experience His direction and His correction. You will come to know what His desire is. “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14). “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up” (James 4:10). This relationship develops over a long period of time, not instantaneously. Through constant use, your senses become sharpened so that you know good from evil. “Humility and the fear of the Lord bring wealth and honor and life” (Proverbs 22:4). Spiritual maturity forms a basis for guidance.

A third key to God’s guidance is found in the book of Proverbs, where we read: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding: in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” “But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6). This means that you are not only to know God, but to trust Him implicitly. Every aspect of your life is to reflect His sovereignty over you. “In all your ways acknowledge Him,” means in your work, in your family, in your personal life, in your thought life, in your recreation, in everything you do, you acknowledge that God is in control of you. Then, lean not on your own understanding. If you think you know all the answers, if you have everything all figured out, then you are leaning on your own understanding. If you trust God, acknowledge Him in the way that you live, and do not lean on your overconfidence or past experience. Let Him guide you.