To state the obvious: It’s one thing to have God’s Spirit dwelling within you; it’s another thing altogether to be led by Him.(Rom. 8:14; Gal. 5:16; John 10:27)

As I have grown older (and hopefully wiser)...I find myself being a tad more reluctant to jump the gun and just start telling people what they ‘have’ or don’t have when it comes to spiritual matters in God’s kingdom. Who am I to suggest I know that a person is ‘saved’ or not, or if they have God’s Spirit dwelling in them? All I know to do is point to Jesus and His word and encourage people to ‘examine their own hearts’ (2 Cor. 13:5)... and to make sure they are truly ‘abiding’ in Him (John 15:1-8; 1 John 2:6; 3:6).

This I do know, based on what I read in God’s word and have personally experienced myself...that when a person is truly humbled and brought to repentance...that God’s Spirit is most assuredly at work in that person’s heart/life. And such a place brings ‘times of refreshing from God’s presence (Acts 3:19; James 4:7-10; Luke 15:20; Ps. 34:18).

Such divine encounters also usher in usually ...a divine ‘peace that passes understanding’ (Phil. 4:7). Can I just tell you now that such moments are not intended to be just these little, occasional ‘dollops of joy’ one encounters from time to time during their walk of faith? God intended for us to continue walking...in His presence on this pathway of peace (Luke 1:79). It’s supposed to be a new way of life and living when we abide in Him.

In His presence, there is fullness of joy (Ps. 16:11). Jesus likens us to being His ‘sheep’ who ‘know His voice and follow Him’ (John 10:27) which is what the whole 23rd Psalm is about. I know we love to quote it....but have you ever taken into account what is being related in that beloved Psalm? Our great Shepherd is ‘leading us in the paths of righteousness’, which implies we are ‘following Him’, and doing what is ‘right in His eyes’. This...is how we experience those ‘green pastures and still waters’ (Ps. 23:1-3). And this is how we know who is ‘born of God’ (1 John 2:29; 3:4-10)

So what does it actually mean to be ‘led by God’s Spirit’? Can we really know...and hear... and sense His ‘promptings’ and guidance? I can assure you now with a loud and clear... resounding ‘YES’! (John 10:27). But we might first need to at least address the possibility that there are plenty of people out there today claiming God ‘told them this or that’, which can give us pause. No doubt, there is much taking place today that gives us all reasons to be skeptics and doubters. But...we were told there would be no shortage of fake counterfeits that would come our way deceiving many. (2 Cor. 11:3-4,14-15; Matt. 24:4-5)

I don’t make it my mission in life to try to uncover all the ‘wolves in sheep’s clothing’ that exists today. My heart is bent on pursuing ‘balanced truth’, which is a term loosely tossed around today, I know. But I am also confident that if I continue to share this truth (not to mention striving to continue walking in it myself)...that God is quite capable and willing to ‘confirm His word’ with signs following. (Acts 17:11: Mark 16:20).

I used the term ‘micro-manager’ the other day and posed the question asking if this is what it might mean to be ‘led by’ God’s Spirit? Just how involved does He become in our daily lives? Does He really care what brand of pasta you buy or toilet paper you use? Do you find yourself praying and fasting over what color to paint the exterior of your new home?

Yes...we are admonished to ‘be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication...let our request be made known to God’ (Phil. 4:6), and there is nothing wrong with asking God to be a part of all our daily lives, ‘acknowledging Him in all our ways...so that He will direct our paths’ (Proverbs 3:6). But we need to be reminded at times what is at the top of God’s priority list. Can I just tell you His list usually differs greatly with our list of priorities?

We also need to be reminded that we have a spiritual ‘enemy’ to contend with (Eph. 6:12; 1 Pet. 5:8) who is always lurking in an attempt to confound and confuse our minds as we pursue God’s kingdom. He is a deceiver and a liar yet can appear as an ‘angel of light’ (2 Cor. 11:14). We learn from the experience that Jesus had with him in the wilderness that this enemy can be proficient at quoting scripture to get us off balance (Luke 4:9-11). Is it any wonder that there is so much division and polarization that exists today in the ‘church’ world? I suppose this is why I sense the Lord has had me circling some very fundamental ‘basic truths’ these past 6 years in my personal studies, and then writing and sharing here for anyone else who has sensed that ‘something has been missing’ in their basic understanding of Christianity, and what it means to be a believer/follower of Jesus.

I would submit for your further study and prayerful thought... that more than a few sincere and young converts were ‘commissioned into service’ for God’s kingdom prematurely, either by themselves (aided by the deceiver) or by misguided leaders/pastors/preachers who were driven to expand God’s kingdom for a host of reasons and/or hidden motives. I used that military term, ‘commissioned into service’ on purpose. I grew up around Army bases and have known many men and women who joined one of the five branches to serve in the military; and this I know...before you are ever sent out to serve, you go through this period of time known as ‘basic training’. If you fail to get through this course, your career as a soldier is grounded.

What is ‘basic training’, in simplest terms? I’ve often heard it described as a period of time where a young ‘know it all’ youth is ‘stripped down’ of themselves, so that the military can in turn ‘build them up’ to be trained soldiers who know how to take orders and then execute them for the greater good. As you might suspect, it can be a grueling experience for ‘all the reasons’. And the more specialized one desires to become, the more excruciating the training becomes. Have you ever seen how Navy S.E.A.L.’s are trained and conditioned?

So consider this verse found in Hebrews 5:8; it’s a passage that often gives me pause as it reads that Jesus, ‘though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered.” But don’t stop there...let’s continue on with verse 9- “And having been perfected, He became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey Him.” This may shed more light on that profound question Jesus asked others who seemingly expressed interest in becoming followers of Him when He asked them: “Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and not do the things I say?” (Luke 6:46)

Join me tomorrow?