God, What Do You Think...?
Do you ever wonder how we ever got around without GPS? ^_^
Don't you LOVE how you can go into any city and get to restaurants and hotels without getting lost?
What was life like without turn by turn navigation?
Thank You Jesus for Google Maps and Waze, right?
There's a catch though...
Just the other day I had my GPS on,
It was giving me turn by turn directions,
But I still missed an exit cuz I wasn't paying attention.
Oops! My baaadd!! ^_^
It turns out...
The GPS doesn't work if you're not paying attention. O_o
It can have the most efficient route mapped out for you,
But it's useless if we're not listening or even looking at it.
I wonder if our life is a lot like that.
Holy Spirit is ready to give us turn by turn navigation,
But if we're not paying attention,
It doesn't matter.
Holy Spirit can have the answers to ALL your questions,
But if we're not paying attention,
It doesn't matter.
Holy Spirit is our internal, spiritual GPS.
It would be most valuable in any situation to ask,
"God, what do you think...?"
And PAUSE and wait for an answer.
Do you know someone that refuses to ask for directions,
Even when they are clearly lost?
They will wander for 30 minutes rather than stop and ask for directions.
That's like us in many cases.
We've actually become so used to NOT asking questions,
That ASKING questions seems abnormal.
We keep making excuses,
"No, I already know what God is telling me on this."
"I don't need to ask God all that."
"I know what He wants me to do."
There's big names in the bible that did the same...
Moses KNEW he is supposed to save his people,
But He got fired up and killed someone instead,
And ended up in the desert for 40 years.
Joseph KNEW he was destined for great things,
But his punk self started mouthing off to his brothers,
And he ended up getting sold into slavery.
Joshua KNEW the Israelites were supposed to take over the promise land,
But when some poor beggars came for refuge,
Instead of asking God first,
They entered a vow to save them,
And they ended up getting tricked by their enemy.
So the lesson here is....
Did you ask "God, what do you think...?"
And then PAUSE and wait for an answer?
I was the WORST at not asking God,
But if you asked me if I did,
I was sure to THINK I did,
When I didn't.
As a result I made a lot of decisions on my own that I thought was God, but was only partially.
It's a lot like a soldier getting a mission...
"Soldier, your assignment is to rescue the 3 hostages in this city."
And without getting any further instructions,
The soldier takes off on his own,
Without coordination with other soldiers,
Without consent from his commanding officer,
And only gets 2 of the hostages out while losing his own leg because he stepped on a landmine that was already mapped out by the intelligence unit.
The soldier didn't WAIT or ASK for the rest of the details.
He heard the general goal of the mission and took off.
How often do we do that?
God's like "I want you to do X."
And we're like "Ok, got it. Bye!" and take off running.
And God's like "Ummm... you don't have the rest of the instructions."
So what can we do?
What is the solution?
Get into the HABIT of asking "God, what do you think...?".
When you have a business opportunity that seems like a no brainer...
Ask "God, what do you think...?".
Then get QUIET and LISTEN.
Then WRITE down what comes up in your mind and heart.
When you get into a fight with your spouse or family member...
Ask "God, what do you think...?".
Then get QUIET and LISTEN.
Then WRITE down what comes up in your mind and heart.
When you are stressed or under pressure...
Ask "God, what do you think...?".
Then get QUIET and LISTEN.
Then WRITE down what comes up in your mind and heart.
When you are hurting, depressed or lonely...
Ask "God, what do you think...?".
Then get QUIET and LISTEN.
Then WRITE down what comes up in your mind and heart.
We need to ask MORE questions.
If you feel your mind racing,
Can't go to sleep,
Anxious about anything...
Ask "God, what do you think...?".
Then get QUIET and LISTEN.
Then WRITE down what is coming up in your mind and heart.
It's gotta be our DEFAULT.
However, some of us may have DECADES of practice of NOT asking God,
So it may take a little work to make it a HABIT.
It is a MINDSET shift.
It's practically a LIFESTYLE shift of asking God about everything,
Incorporating Him into our daily life,
Into the small, medium and large size things.
It's what we're SUPPOSED to do.
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God."
I'll play devil's advocate...
"It's ridiculous to not be able to make a decision on your own."
"God doesn't expect us to go to Him with EVERYTHING."
"That's not practical or possible."
Going overboard or forcing yourself in excess would make it painful,
But what I'm suggesting is a gradual increase.
Knowing that we are WANTING to be in perfect sync with God,
Knowing that we have ACCESS to God,
We are exercising the muscle of asking questions a little bit more each day.
It should be light and easy,
It should be joyful,
Not a grueling task,
Not weighed down by obsession,
Not clouded by fear.
More in the spirit of...
"I love talking to the Lord."
"I always get valuable insight when I ask."
"Why wouldn't I want to ask."
"I want to get even better at this!"
Here are 3 steps to SEEKING and INCREASING awareness of what to ask God...
Step 1) Ask "God, what questions do You want me to ask You?"
Then get QUIET and LISTEN.
Then WRITE down what comes up in your mind and heart.
Step 2) "Anything else?"
Then get QUIET and LISTEN.
Then WRITE down what is coming up in your mind and heart.
Step 3) Then ask again, "Anything else?"
Yes, you are doing this multiple times to get more juice from the question.
Then get QUIET and LISTEN.
Then WRITE down what is coming up in your mind and heart.
I LOVINGLY CHALLENGE you to do this daily for 1 week.
Increase your sensitivity to Holy Spirit.
Get in the practice of SEEKING and LISTENING.
Become aware of the things to ask God about
You'll discover things you didn't even think about asking God.
It's really cool because you're asking God and He leads you in the answers.
The fact that you're SEEKING God means that you will FIND Him.
God said so, not me....
"You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart."
"The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him."
"I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears."
Let me give you some real-life examples of how this helped me.
Example 1: Business Opportunity to Double...
- I had potential client that would easily double my business. We got through the vetting process with each other. They wanted to do business with me and enter into a larger scale agreement. It was a tremendous growth opportunity, but before pulling the final trigger, I checked in with God almost as a courtesy check-in. I was practically EXPECTING Him to say Yes, but to my surprise, I got a No. Shocked, I asked for the next several days... and it was still a No. So I asked for another week... still a No. Awk!! OMG! Are you kidding me?!?!? So I did eventually turn the deal down, but it wasn't easy. I don't know the full repercussion of that decision, but the lesson is, ask God sooner! ^_^ I realized I ASSUMED that any growth opportunity would be an obvious Yes. In my human eyes, it was something to jump on but I guess God knew something different. It's easy to forget God doesn't operate on human logic.
Example 2: Going to an Event
- There was an event that I was drooling over. It was actually all about God. I was really excited about going there. I asked God if He wants me to go and I initially got a Yes. But I was in the practice of asking for a week on anything that I have a strong desire in or would take a significant amount of time, effort or money. This was a week long event. So I decided to ask for a week. After the 3rd day, the answer switched from a Yes to a No. Whhaaatt?!?! Is that even possible? I was totally sure I was not hearing correctly and decided to ask until I heard correctly. Nope. I kept getting a No. What I realized is that I was hearing my own desired answer instead of God. But since I kept on seeking for a week, His voice eventually came through. What a SHOCKER! It's worth it to sit with a question for a week... or as long as it takes!
Example 3: Marketing Strategy
- When exploring a new marketing strategy or tactic, I like to run it by God. I don't always get a clear answer the first time around. When the answer feels incomplete I come back later and keep asking day after day until it feels complete or God says "No, that's it". Sometimes He gives a small fine tuning adjustment and sometimes He gives a new idea that I wasn't even thinking about. That's how I ended up doing these emails. God is the #1 in everything include marketing. Who'd a thunk it?
Example 4: Health Treatment
- I was looking for a particular health treatment and was browsing online. There was a ton of results that came up and I didn't know the difference between one or the other. I decided to ask Holy Spirit which one I should go to. Pretty quickly, He drew my attention to this one shop that seemed smaller and less attractive. It was also not on a side of town that looked very friendly. I hesitated and kept scrolling. I was listening for Holy Spirit as I went into the profile of each different place and I kept hearing No, then another No, and another No. I would scroll back to the original one and it was Yes. I kept on doubting what I was hearing and searched until my eyeballs were about to cross. I finally said "Fine!" and scheduled an appointment with the place I didn't really want.
- When I went to the appointment it turned out the lady did an amazing job AND she referred me over to a doctor that I am still using to this day and have referred other people over to AND she was someone who loved Jesus! What a triple whammy! I would have never found this doctor if it weren't for this lady. I'm so glad God loves to direct us and open up opportunities in the weirdest ways.
"Dear Heavenly Father,
Teach me how to SEEK You,
Remind me to ask you more questions,
Help me LISTEN for your answer,
Help me EXPECT an answer.
Help me BELIEVE that I am DESIGNED to hear your voice.
Re-program me to believe that a decision with You is better than one on my own.
Re-program me to believe that You are a God of details and that I'm missing so much details by not asking,
Remind me that it's costing me time and money to NOT ask You.
Re-program my heart to remember that you are the creator of the universe,
That wants to be in the weeds with me,
That it is a tragedy NOT to ask for Your advice.
Engrave in the tablet of my heart to ask "God, what do you think about this...?",
Make it a daily thing,
Make it an ALL day thing,
May I FEEL Your presence more each day,
May I SEEK Your wisdom more each day,
May I NOTICE the difference when I don't.
Teach me anew,
Rebuild my foundations,
Re-program my brain,
To believe in Your truths,
And not my own,
That I got this,
When You're the ONLY one,
Who has control over it all.
Thank You for loving me,
Thank You for being with me,
Thank You for never leaving me,
Even when I'm being a butt head.
I love you so much,
In Jesus name, Amen."
Cheers to asking God more questions!
It's like having a million dollar coach for free! ^_^
Enjoy!
