2022 | Discussion starter #206
If others offer you advice that goes against the Word of God, it is the wrong advice.
Tag: Advice
2022 | Day Twelve | Discussion Starter
James 1:19 Post this at all the intersections, dear friends: Lead with your ears, follow up with your tongue, and let anger straggle along in the rear.
I remember when I first came to recovery my sponsor said to me ‘take the cotton wool out of your ears and put it in your mouth.”
The best advice I ever received. None of us ended up here, in recovery because we wanted to. None of us got up one day and said “it’s a nice day, the sun is shining I think I will go to recovery.” We ended up in recovery because God knew it is where we need to be.
My advice to everyone reading this today is to listen to those who have been here longer than you. They know more because they have traveled the road longer and have more experience.
- How did you arrive in recovery?
- Are you willing to learn from others?
Prayer: Just for today Lord open my ears and my mind. Teach me to listen to and advice and apply it?
People who talk all the time tend to think less. Usually interested in their own satisfaction than those they are speaking to. Lack of restraint is a condition in which sin loves to work.
It says in Proverbs 13:7 “A pretentious, showy life is an empty life.” Proverbs 14:2 says “An honest life shows respect for God.” And, Psalm 146:3 says “Don’t put your life in the hands of experts who know nothing about life,”
One of the most important steps in the recovery process is to get a ‘sponsor’ or ‘mentor’ They need to be God-selected and they need to be living a life that pleases God. Otherwise, they are just going to teach you their bad habits, wrong beliefs and encourage you to follow their words instead of Gods.
RECOVERY IS SIMPLE BUT NOT ALWAYS EASY
Wrong Advice
We humbly asked God to remove our shortcomings
Read: Psalms 1:1-6
Focus Verse: Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, Psalms 1:1
Think about it: Advice in this world is freely given. Some of it good. some of it bad and some of it just plain evil. The good news about all advice is ‘We don’t have to listen too it.’ or apply it to our lives,
Welcome to Step Seven.. Which says “WE HUMBLY ASKED GOD’ for advice on how to live our lives. On the right and good processes, He would have us learn and apply to our daily living to please and honour Him. When it comes to the world the people we need to seek advice from are those who have travelled the road we are now travelling and been successful with Gods help to change their life direction.
There is are many voices in the world telling us what to do and what in their opinion is good for us. We need to always remember God is also speaking to us and has something special to say to us each. We can hear His direction and His plan through prayer and meditation. We can also hear it through listening to the right people He places in our lives at the right time to guide us on His way. Other people have been successful in the way we want to go. For our own benefit and spiritual growth and for the benefit of others in our ‘Sphere of Influence’ we need to seek those people out , listen to and apply their advice when it is given.
Learning to appreciate there is goodness in the world will attune us to God’s way of living and place us firmly in His will as we attempt to change our lives for good and not for evil.
About Sin
Don’t let sin control the way you live
Refuse good advice and watch your plans fail; take good counsel and watch them succeed. Congenial conversation—what a pleasure! The right word at the right time—beautiful! Proverbs 15:22-23
What The Bible Says
HUMILITY
Being humble is not thinking too highly of yourself.
I’ll leave a core of people among you who are poor in spirit. Zephaniah 3:12
Being humble is being willing to admit and confess sin.
I know how bad I’ve been; my sins are staring me down. You’re the One I’ve violated, and you’ve seen it all, seen the full extent of my evil. You have all the facts before you; whatever you decide about me is fair. Psalms 51:3-4
Being humble is refraining from drawing attention to yourself
Prudent people don’t flaunt their knowledge. Proverbs 12:23
Being humble allows you to seek advice
Arrogant know-it-alls stir up discord, but wise men and women listen to each other’s counsel. Proverbs 13:10
Advice is often very cheap
Psalms 1:1 Blessed is the one who obeys the law of the Lord. He doesn’t follow the advice of evil people.
Have you ever noticed how many people are ready to tell you what is good for you and how you should live?
Often we end up making a mess of our lives, not because we don’t know what is right but because we listen to and follow bad advice. In AA I learned a valuable lesson that has stuck with me all my life. It is ‘Stick with the winners.’ If you want good advice on how to succeed in recovery then speak to and listen to those who are living successfully in recovery.
There are many voices in our lives telling us what to do and what is good for us. It is important to remember in the recovery process God is with us all the time and He is always ready to talk to us, through His Word, through prayer and through the lives of those living victoriously in His name.
If we can learn to appreciate there is goodness in the world in which we live, although there are also dark forces trying to lead us back to our old ways of living we can start in the recovery process to look at life differently. We can start to learn God’s overtures of mercy and grace by putting ourselves in the ranks of seeking to find and do His will in His strength on a daily basis.
Trust and Obey
Luke 5:31 Jesus said, “Those who are healthy don’t need a doctor. Sick people do.”
The Word of God provides us with a pattern for physical, spiritual and moral living.
Sometimes God will ask us to do things we don’t understand. My advice is to obey them.
Jesus Christ came to this word with one purpose – to save sinners. He lived on this earth for 33 years training for it.
Obeying God is in our best interest
The Word For Recovery
Listen to good advice if you want to live well, an honored guest among wise men and women. Proverbs 15:31
Purpose
Jeremiah 29:8-12 Believe it or not, this is the Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies, Israel’s God: “Don’t let all those so-called preachers and know-it-alls who are all over the place there take you in with their lies. Don’t pay any attention to the fantasies they keep coming up with to please you. They’re a bunch of liars preaching lies–and claiming I sent them! I never sent them, believe me.” God’s Decree! This is God’s Word on the subject: “As soon as Babylon’s seventy years are up and not a day before, I’ll show up and take care of you as I promised and bring you back home. I know what I’m doing. I have it all planned out–plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for. “When you call on me when you come and pray to me, I’ll listen.”
Jeremiah 29:10 This is God’s Word on the subject: “As soon as Babylon’s seventy years are up and not a day before, I’ll show up and take care of you as I promised and bring you back home.”
God speaks to us through His word: He promises us that at the right time in our lives He will show up and take care of everything. He will take notice of what is going on in and through our lives and provide a solution to every problem.
Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he’s the one who will keep you on track. Proverbs 3:6
Jeremiah 29:11 I know what I’m doing. I have it all planned out–plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for.
God has a plan for our lives and He knows what He is doing.
If you asked me today what I am searching for through recovery the answer is found in Step 11“In order to discover God’s purpose for my life, implement it and to improve my relationship with Him, I will spend time daily in prayer, reading the Bible and meditating on it.”
Proverbs 19:21 We humans keep brainstorming options and plans, but GOD’s purpose prevails.
Proverbs 15:22 Refuse good advice and watch your plans fail; take good counsel and watch them succeed.
Ecclesiastes 3:17 “There’s a right time for everything, every deed–and there’s no getting around it.”
Ephesians 1:8-9 He thought of everything, provided for everything we could possibly need, letting us in on the plans he took such delight in making. He set it all out before us in Christ.
Ephesians 3:12 When we trust in Him, we’re free to say whatever needs to be said, bold to go wherever we need to go.
Read The Bible
Psalms 79:9 God our Saviour, help us. Then glory will come to you. Be true to your name. Save us and forgive our sins.
If others offer you advice that goes against the Word of God, it is the wrong advice.
A large part of my personal life with Jesus revolves around making sure I am doing what He wants. I do that through prayer, reading the Bible and meditating on what the Bible says.
The beauty of the Bible is the more you read it, study it and meditate on it the more you understand the character of God.
Recovery is a consistent process of spiritual growth so is understanding the Bible.
You need to read the Bible as often as takes for you to understand it.
- How often do you read and consult God’s Word?
Prayer: Lord help me to develop good Bible reading disciplines.
