Why Christians Miss It : The Top Five Reasons
Let’s admit it, sometimes Christians make the worst decisions and God gets the blame! After more than my share of of bad decisions, decades of studying the scriptures and learning from others, I’ve compiled my top five reasons why Christians miss finding God’s will.
No.5 IGNORING WISE COUNSEL
Proverbs 12:15 says ‘The fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise person listens to counsel.’ Christians often stubbornly ignore wise counsel. Perhaps it’s because we know God is able to work against all odds. More likely it’s because we use ‘faith’ as an excuse for wishin’ and hoping.
God is wise. Wisdom is His nature. Solomon prayed for wisdom and was rewarded with both wisdom and wealth (1 Kings 3). Jesus increased in wisdom (Luke 2:52) and in James we are told to ask God for wisdom.
The vast majority of the time, God’s will makes good sense. If you’re praying about a business decision, seek good advice, God’s into good advice. If you’re praying about a partner, look with wise eyes: do they have a job, have they got a temper, are they loving and kind, do they love the Lord?
If you feel you’re being led in a way that may not make good sense, don’t rush, pray more, read the Bible, get some more advice. If you think you’re being led into a relationship where you know there’s issues- run- it’s not God, it’s your wishin’ and hoping.
No.4 LOOKING FOR ‘WORDS’ RATHER THAN LISTENING TO THE INNER WITNESS
There has been a significant miss-understanding in the church of the role of the ‘prophetic’ in the New Testament. New Testament prophesy is primarily for building up the church, not for direction or guidance (1 Cor 14:3).
In the Old Testament the prophetic was far more important for guidance because God’s people did not have the abiding indwelling of the Holy Spirit (John 14:16-17). The New Testament, new creation Christian is a different breed to Old Testament saints, we have the indwelling Holy Spirit to lead us. God leads the New Testament church and Christians primarily by the inner witness. Any ‘word’ you get from someone else must be confirmed by what God is already saying to you. The Bible says in Romans 8: 14 & 16 that children of God are led by the Holy Spirit by way of a ‘witness’ or testifying by the Holy Spirit to our spirit.
The spiritual Christian primarily seeks God and listens to His leading in their spirit.
No.3 GUIDANCE BY CIRCUMSTANCES
Often Christians are looking for signs such as open or closed ‘doors’. The Bible never says God will lead us through circumstances. He leads us by His Word and the inner witness of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes we have to ‘kick doors open’ both in the natural and in the spiritual. Other times we have to walk straight past ‘open doors’. Remember, there is still a ‘god of this world’ working to deceive Christians, and he is quite capable of opening and closing doors!
No.2 CONFUSING FEELINGS WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT
This one is more nuanced. Feelings have an important part to play in our emotional health, but God doesn’t lead us by feelings. Feelings are caused by impressions left in our emotional memory, most of which are subconscious. They have little or nothing to do with being led by the Holy Spirit.
Feelings can have more to do with fear, emotional hurts or conversely joyful memories. Feelings are in our soul-ish, emotional realm. Often times God’s leading will go quite the opposite to our feelings.
I remember one of the Church’s most significant healing evangelists, T. L. Osborn saying how he never ‘felt’ anointed. If you’re relying on feeling the Holy Spirit you’ll end up being led by insecurities and last night’s indigestion.
Finally, coming in at number one is...
No.1 NOT SPENDING ENOUGH TIME READING THE BIBLE AND IN PRAYER.
Yes, most of the time we miss God’s leading because we’ve been too worldly and not spent enough time being quiet with God. This especially includes praying in the Spirit.
Meditating on God’s Word and praying in the Holy Spirit builds us up in the spirit. If we’re not spending quality time with God, our inner man becomes weak and the voice of our spirit and the witness of the Holy Spirit is silenced.
Spending time quietly meditating on God’s Word and in prayer is the best way to ensure we can hear the voice of our spirit and the leading of the Holy Spirit.
Pastor Grant Peterson
