Sometimes making major plans can seem overwhelming and even feel paralyzing, but God gives us ways in which we can navigate through them the right way and be successful in our endeavors. Goal setting doesn’t have to be a fearful process when we have taken the time to prayerfully consider our plans and receive Godly counsel to accomplish the goal.
Plans are established by counsel; By wise counsel wage war. Proverbs 20:18
Generally, if people are intent on going in a certain direction, they shy away from getting counsel because they don’t want anyone to slow them down or say “no” to them. I would rather have someone share a nugget of truth to cause me to slow down than move fast with my half-baked idea in a problematic direction!
Sometimes, pride gets in the way of asking for counsel. Some people think asking for counsel is for the weak or the immature believers. The truth is none of us have experienced everything in life, and it would be better to glean from someone else’s insight or experience than to reinvent the wheel. The beauty of receiving counsel is that we are not obligated to follow it. However, we now have a responsibility to weigh all the information gathered and prayerfully make a decision that is based on wisdom rather than ignorance.
Getting Godly counsel gives us a greater confidence about being on the right path. When difficulties come, we are less likely to back down or quit because we are not wishy washy about the decision. The above scripture tells us that we will wage war with wise counsel, which implies there will be resistance on our path. Wise counsel will allow us to fight the self-defeating thoughts, the enemy’s accusations, and the nay sayers’ voice because we have done our due diligence to be sure we are moving in the right direction.
On the other hand, if we move hastily into a certain direction, in the back of our mind, we are wondering, “Was this me or was this God? Is God trying to speak to me or is this the devil trying to derail me?”. The greater resolve we have at the beginning, the clearer our path is going to be in the middle of the battle.
How do we wage war while making plans? This is the subject of the next devotional.
