One scripture I smile at each time I come across it in the scriptures is, “prove every spirit”. That’s most needful in our world today, where some ministers of the gospel move from being vessels in the hands of the Lord to abusers, liars, and offenders of the highest degree. It is the reason why people should have personal relationships with whomever they choose to worship, and not depend on another human being to as it were, lead them by hand. Like these people are infallible, without blood in their veins.
And so we sound/act shocked when people do things that people do – make mistakes. We can’t wrap round a fellow human being doing something that is ‘wrong’. *sigh* Am I excusing wrongdoing, or people taking advantage of the spiritual authority they wield over others to wreak havoc? Not in the least. All I’m saying is that if we remind ourselves that are human like us, we won’t swallow hook, line, and sinker. Better yet, we’ll concentrate on pleasing God, not the men of the cloth.
To my mind though, the ‘prove every spirit’ line doesn’t only apply to teachings from Pastors/Priests/Bishops or other spiritual leaders, it’s a scripture that can easily be applied to every sphere of our lives.
Especially when receiving advice from people; thank God for friends – casual, bosom, with or without benefits (lol), best buddies, there are all types of them really. My people say because the lizards all lie on their stomachs you can’t tell who’s got a distended belly. In the same way, because you cannot see the roots of the advice people give you, you cannot tell a lot of things. You cannot tell what their intentions were, what their level of knowledge on the matter they are advising you on is, and the percentage of truth, half-truths and outright falsehood in their talks.
Have you ever been told “this is the way, walk in it” by a buddy and ended up in serious trouble? I’ve got tales for days on that, and to be honest I’m a lot wiser for it. Doesn’t mean I’ve become a loner, neither does it mean I don’t listen to people anymore. It just means I’m a little more careful, a lot more wary (not paranoid), and I tend to consciously pause and think before I act on anything I hear.
Most importantly, I seek divine direction/guidance, and I listen to myself. Sometimes I call a meeting that has just me in attendance, and then I troubleshoot information, or potential actions. If I’m satisfied, I go ahead, otherwise it’s back to the drawing board.
Has it worked? Yep! Don’t take my word for it though, ‘test every spirit’, including mine!
Enjoy the rest of the week!
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