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 Sunday

   Bible Classes (10:00 am)

   AM Worship (11:00 am)

   PM Worship (3:00 pm)

 Wednesday

   Bible Classes (7:35 pm)

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180 Townwood Drive

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The Right Source for Council, Advice, Plans and Strength

by Tim Nichols

If I remember correctly there is a country song about a fellow who is "Looking for Love in All the Wrong Places". People are like that. They seem to think that they know what they want, but they tend to search for it in all the wrong places. When they think they’ve found what they were looking for they find out that it's not   what they really wanted after all.

The truth is, we're not as wise as we sometimes think we are. When we allow ourselves to trust our own judgment too much we end up like the small child who just HAD to have the toy when he saw  it on the shelf in the toy store, but then found no pleasure in it when he got it home.

Right now there is a God in heaven who knows exactly what you ought to be doing with your life. He made you. He made your mind. He created the world in which you live. He inspired men to write a book that addresses your every spiritual need (Hebrews 4:12, 13).  What He has to say to you in that book is deep and meaningful even if the world considers it foolishness. It is also practical. There is probably not a decision that you can make that cannot be made better by applying some principle or precept from the Bible.

And yet we fret about what to think, what to do, and how to handle difficult situations. In our search for solutions we frantically seek the counsel of our fellow-mortals.  We take their advice, devise plans based upon what they have to say to us, and feel the sense of power that comes with feeling that others agree with what we are doing and support us in our actions.

But this is a dangerous procedure if we are not, first and foremost, seeking to know and do the will of God. Human counsel is no greater than the one who gives it. The advice of man is limited to the wisdom of the man who advises and the degree to which he can see and understand the matter. Plans that are devised and acted upon by mere men often go awry. Most sentences that begin with, "If I were you I would...", usually end in a lie.   

When we turn to mere men for strength we find that they are either not able to do for us what we thought they could, or unwilling to do what they can when the going gets rough. The sense of power that some men feel when they associate with men who they view as powerful is nothing more than an illusion. Their protectors often blow away when the political winds change direction. Those perceived to be "mighty" are often found to be mighty weak when the contest actually begins. Like the buddies of Ray Stevens when he confronted the "Blue Cyclone" for the second time, those big strong men who give you comfort when you stand in their shadow  will often leave you  standing alone when push comes to shove.

Isaiah was inspired to point these things out to those who were looking to Egypt when they ought to have been looking to God for guidance and strength.

'Woe to the rebellious children,' says the Lord, 'Who take counsel, but not of Me, And who devise plans, but not of My Spirit, That they may add sin to sin;  Who walk to go down to Egypt, And have not asked My advice, To strengthen themselves in the strength of Pharaoh, And to trust in the shadow of Egypt!  Therefore the strength of Pharaoh Shall be your shame,  And trust in the shadow of Egypt Shall be your humiliation. For his princes were at Zoan, And his ambassadors came to Hanes. They were all ashamed of a people who could not benefit them, Or be help or benefit, But a shame and also a reproach' (Isaiah 30:1-5).

Trust in God.  Stand with both feet upon His truth.  Let His word direct your every step. If good men can help you to learn the Bible and if associating with others who are living according to the book gives you greater strength to obey God then be grateful for them. 

But never allow yourself to become dependent upon the counsel, advice, and strength of men as long as our God speaks from heaven (Hebrews 12:25, 26).

 Other Articles by Tim Nichols
Thoughts About the Difference Between Character and Reputation
Fault-Finding and Righteous Judgment are Poles Apart
Before You Jump on Anyone's Bandwagon