My Life...God's Way

For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts (Isaiah 55:9, NJKV).

                Indeed God’s ways are higher than our ways. His thinking is higher than our way of thinking. Therefore, His standards are higher than our standards. What we think is right living; God may not necessarily think is right living. The Bible says in Proverbs 21:2, “Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs and tries the hearts (AMP). It is up to God to decide what is right or wrong, not us. If we get confused about what is right in the eyes of God, we only need to turn to His Word to find the answer. Our feelings and what we see cannot be trusted. We can go our own way but God’s way is the best way. In Proverbs 14:12 it states, “There is a way which seems right to a man and appears straight before him, but at the end of it is the way of death (AMP). This can mean death spiritually, emotionally, socially, etc. When we stray from God’s ways, we are in danger of making matters worse.

            There is a peace that comes from knowing you are in the perfect will of God. When we disobey God or go our way, we lose that peace because we know in our hearts that it is not the will of God. Obedience brings peace even in the midst of a storm. Personally, I can remember doing whatever my flesh wanted to do. I drank what I wanted, smoked what I wanted, and was in relationships that I knew God told me to cut off. I was satisfied in my flesh but my spirit was weak. There was no peace because I knew I was living in disobedience to God. It was so bad I did not even want to go to church. You know the infamous guilt feeling on Sunday mornings after you have done your own thing. Nevertheless, I thank God for His grace. His grace is definitely sufficient (2 Corin. 12:9).

            His grace will give you chance after chance. His grace will give you the strength to keep on going. His grace will give you the heart to live a life pleasing to Him. However, we have to be willing and obedient. The Bible says in Isaiah 1:19, “If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land…”  We also have to be honest with God and ourselves. If you do not have the desire to live in obedience, pray for the desire. If you do not have a desire to stop a particular sin, pray for the desire to stop. Ask God to show you what in your life is not pleasing in His sight. I personally know He will show you.

            Apart of being in right relationship with God is doing what pleases Him. A lot of that has to do with faith. If you don’t have faith to believe God for something you’ll end up doing anything. This is not an overnight turnaround. It’s not a switch that we can turn on and off. It takes a lot of prayer and being tired of one’s own self to get to this place. The place that says, "I’D RATHER OBEY God than continue in this behavior or settle for less than what I believe God has for me." God’s ways are for our benefit. He knows what we don’t know. He sees what we cannot see. He understands what we cannot understand. We are to Lean on, trust in, and be confident in the Lord with all our heart and mind and do not rely on our own insight or understanding. In all our ways know, recognize, and acknowledge Him, and He will direct and make straight and plain our paths (Proverbs 3:5-6, AMP).

            My life Gods way is not just a slogan or a cute phrase to recite. It’s a lifestyle…a way of life. Jesus told His disciples in John 14:6, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life…” Jesus is the Way. God’s Word is the right way. Everyday my feelings and my body want to tell me what to do. I don’t always want to be meek and endure other people’s ignorance or jealousy. My body does not like the fact that I am celibate and waiting for the one God has for me...at all. I don’t want to be nice to nasty people. But God’s ways are not my ways. Everyday is an uphill battle but God is able. I am grateful that God is pulling me out of carnality, meaning living and making decision according to my flesh and not the Spirit. Trust God instead of yourself. Live life God’s way. It’s not an easy road to travel, but it’s a worthwhile one.