As I welcomed you to Transformation Today, I stated that I will be using this forum to share insights received from the Lord to some of the questions I have raised and struggles that I have had. The main purpose for all of this is to better equip you for the work of the ministry that being so edified you can equip others. As I received these insights, I wrote them down in a journal. I now have 5 journals dating back to 2008. On January 1st 2017, I came under spiritual attack in the area of my health. Whatever the reason or the cause, it gave me a new determination to hear from the Lord and to do His will, no matter what. This blog is one of the steps I have taken because of this new determination. All things work together for good to those who love the Lord and are called according to His purposes. Out of that January 1st 2017 episode, I was robbed of significant financial resources but I have gained a new-found intimacy with the Lord that has made such a difference in how I now live my life. Things the Lord was saying to me but I was ignoring or putting off have now taken centre stage and I have seen transformation in my life as a result.

The Holiness series was a compilation of my most recent insights. I am now going to take you back in time to share thoughts since January 2017 in the order received. So, as we move forward, you will see a variety of topics in no particular pattern and I will give them just as received. Be blessed!!

“The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, And He delights in his way” (Psa. 37:23).

I used to pray and thank the Lord for ordering my steps but wondered if I was being presumptuous. I perceived that when I was thanking Him for ordering my steps this meant that I was also saying that I was “a good man” since that was the kind of person’s steps the Lord was ordering. Because of this desire not to be presumptuous, I would always say, “Lord, I am trying to be good so thank you for ordering my steps.” But the Holy Spirit gave me an alternative interpretation of this scripture. An active rather than a passive perspective.

As noted already, but just so that we are clear, the passive perspective is, if I am good then the Lord will order my steps and delight in my way. The new or active perspective I received is, if I am allowing the Lord to order my steps that makes me good and causes Him to delight in my way. In other words, a good man will allow the Lord to order his steps. It is in surrendering my steps to God that I am now in God’s will and this makes me good and makes Him take delight or pleasure in the decision I have taken.

This falls in line with the verse that tells us not to lean on our own understanding but to acknowledge God in all our ways and He will direct our paths (Prov. 3:5-6). God’s heart yearns for us to trust Him. Without faith, it is impossible to please Him. Can you imagine as a parent or a friend how hurt you are when you perceive that your child or friend doesn’t trust you enough to place their confidence in your word or promise? Therefore, you can imagine how the heart of God is crushed when we won’t place our trust in Him even after He has done so much for us already.

So, I encourage you today to actively make the decision that God alone will be the one you will allow to lead you. He is the one who wrote down your purpose even before you were fully formed in your mother’s womb (Psa. 139:16). Who better to guide you than the One who preordained your pathways?

With this active perspective in mind, the words of Psalms 23 have taken on an even more powerful meaning as I confess each day:

The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.

The context for all that I am declaring in my confession is my decision to make the Lord my Shepherd and to be like a sheep. None of these confessions will be true outside of that context. Did you ever wonder in Matthew 5:3 what it meant to be “poor in spirit”? I did. The relationship of sheep and shepherd is the epitome of what it means to be “poor in spirit”.  A sheep is totally yielded to the shepherd. It is totally dependent on the shepherd to guide and lead it. It accepts that it does not know the safe and good paths but the shepherd does so it completely submits itself to him. In that way, all its needs are satisfied, it will find itself in a nourishing and abundant place because the shepherd knows where these places are to be found, it will dwell in peace and safety and be re-energized daily as it takes no burdens upon itself but allows its shepherd to care of it on a daily basis. In like manner, I can be assured that as I take on the role of a sheep in the Lord’s care He will only lead me in paths that are in line with His will because His name is at stake if anything evil befalls me when I am trusting in Him. Because I have publicly declared my trust in Him and have displayed this in my life, His honour is on the line and He must protect His name and watch over His word to perform it.

It says further, that the “poor in spirit” are happy for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. What is the kingdom of heaven? Righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Ghost. Don’t you see how this falls right in line with the words in Psalms 37:23 and Psalms 23? The Bible does not contradict itself when studied as the whole counsel of God.

This is not a time to just assume that your paths will automatically be directed by God and be on automatic pilot. Remember that the Lord gave you free will so He will not just take over and run your life if you still want to take control of the reins. You cannot confidently thank Him for guiding your steps if you have not totally, purposely and with active willingness surrendered your steps to Him.

Shalom.