Let’s explore how the word of God comes to us. To be spiritually strong, we need to feed on God’s word daily. Most likely, if I am not ingesting God’s word, then I am ingesting something else that is not as good for me spiritually, such as, my own thoughts, news, or hearing about other people’s bad reports. We need the bible because it is packed with good seeds to plant daily within our hearts. If you have been walking with the Lord for a while, then you should be like the woman in the Song of Solomon who is “a whole orchard of succulent fruits.”1 You have already brought forth harvests, to the delight of the Lord, you, and others. However, you need to continually keep planting to reap new harvests in the future.
Occasionally, God plants within you a seed that gives vision, direction, purpose, calling, or destiny. We will consider how these seeds come to us, especially one way that is often overlooked.
God can speak directly to your heart as in the case of Abraham or Jeremiah. Joseph received his destiny seed through prophetic dreams the Lord gave to him. Joshua received his calling of succession to Moses because he was under God’s training serving the current leader. God still impacts people with dramatic encounters such as Moses or Paul experienced. David received his calling through the prophetic acts and words of the prophet, Samuel. Solomon was chosen by God through his father because of his heart and he was David’s son also. Ezekiel and Isaiah received visions from the Lord. Daniel came to his place of ascendency in Babylon because of circumstances beyond his control and the favor of the Lord. These are all valid today.
Frequently, we look for the dramatic or sensational from God to assure us of our direction and confirm his will. When our expectation for the dramatic does not come to pass, it can leave us bewildered and feeling abandoned. What do we do then? Is God not speaking? Sometimes, we need to be still and give God time to move. Or maybe He is speaking, but we are missing His voice because it is coming in a manner different from our expectation.
Consider Nehemiah. When he heard the devastating news about the state of Jerusalem, he mourned, fasted, and prayed for days. He was deeply touched by what happened in his homeland. We eventually see Nehemiah go before the king and ask to be released from his position in order to bring restoration to Jerusalem. How audacious of this man to presume that God wanted him to do this! He did not have a word from God, a dramatic encounter, or a prophetic dream. Do you know what he had? He had a burden or desire in his heart that was just as valid as any other form God could have used to speak to him. God moved deeply within Nehemiah’s heart in the form of a desire to bring aid to his countrymen. Nehemiah went, God showed up, and the rest is history.
Often, the very thing God wants you to do is already in your heart. Psalm 37:4 says, “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.” As we delight in Him, not only does He bring fruition to our desires, but He also plants new desires within us that spring up. Bill Johnson in his book, Dreaming with God, says,
“A good way to remember the intent of the word desire is to break it down by syllables. ‘De’ means ‘of.’ And ‘sire’ means ‘father.’ All desire is ‘of the father.’ The question should not be, ‘Are my desires from God?’ The question should be, ‘With what, or with whom have I been in communion?’”
This is the intimacy that I spoke of last week. When we get intimate with God, He plants seeds within us to direct our walk in this life.
My wife and I counseled a successful financial advisor about some changes in his career. He planned on leaving one firm and joining another, but he agonized over if this was the Lord’s will or not. He is a person that truly spends time with God and wants to do His will, but he had not clearly heard from the Lord. We asked him what his desire in this situation was. He wanted to go to the new place, but he did not trust that his desire was from the Lord. We counseled him to trust his desire as being from God. Eventually, he did go and it worked out well.
Proverbs 16:9 states, “In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.” For years I thought this was a proverb of opposites. Essentially, man could not trust his heart to set his course, and the Lord is the only one who will direct your steps. When I started receiving revelation about guidance, I found out it was a proverb of continuation. As I plan my general course of where I think I need to go, then God steps in and determines the very steps I need to take. In this situation, we are partners together in the journey He has for me.
As you commune with the Lord, He puts new desires within you. As you pursue those desires, God will determine your steps. This partnership will bring life to your life and freedom to your walk with God!
1. Song of Solomon 4:13 (The Message)
