A God Directed Life — Teresa Conlon

This message is one of the Times Square Church pulpit series. It was recorded in the sanctuary of Times Square Church in Manhattan, New York City. You are welcome to make additional cassettes of this message for free distribution to friends.

However, for all other forms of reproduction or electronic transmission, existing copyright laws apply. And God directed life.

Trusting God to Direct the Whole Life

If you would turn with me to Proverbs 3, 5. Proverbs 3, 5, a very familiar scripture for many. For some of you, it's brand new. It's a real privilege for me to be able to speak on this verse. Because the very first time I ever went into a born-again evangelical church, this was the scripture that they preached on.

And I'll never forget being highly distracted going into a denomination that I wasn't used to and I didn't know their practices. Totally distracted and then when the preacher stepped up and he opened up Proverbs 3, 5, I remember sitting in my seat and all of a sudden glued to every word that he was sharing.

And it was like the truth that I could never say was being preached to me. There was something in it that was so life-giving and it was this word and I'd like to pray and believe God to make it a life-giving word to everyone who can hear.

Father, I do thank you that your incredible heart is to direct our life. That Lord, you not just want to only save us, which you do gloriously for those that trust you. But Lord, you have a plan and a purpose that Lord goes so beyond anything we can begin to understand or grasp.

Lord, you say that the glory of the former house, Lord, and a time past when you moved among your people is nothing compared to what you want to do for an end time people. That the glory that you want to share with the people who are called by your name and what you want to do in their life and through their life is incredible.

So Lord, we just ask now that you take this word and make it life, make it meat, make it drink for us. That Lord, we may go the whole course, the whole distance of what you have planned for us. And we'll thank you for it and Lord, we'll be careful to give you all the glory for it.

For it's only you who have had this thought and it's only you who can accomplish it in our lives. In Jesus name, I pray. Amen and amen. God directed life. Scriptures, Proverbs 3 starting at verse 5 says, trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.

In all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy path. Be not wise in your own eyes. Fear the Lord and depart from evil. This morning we heard a very powerful, powerful word from the Word of God talking about a man, King Ahab, who lived knowing the Word of God, who was called as a leader of the people of God.

God had revealed himself powerfully to him, had spoken many words over him, had actually used him to defeat the enemies of Israel. But in the end, he would never exchange his own plan and his own will for that of God's plan and God's will for his life.

And he died in his pride. He died never yielding to the plan and the purpose for his life. He could never trust the exchange God wanted to do in his life. Where he had to lay down his plan and his will by faith.

When it didn't make sense, when it seemed to go in the opposite direction of self-preservation, when his kingly glory, when it would require humility to take another path, he could not do it. In spite of strong assurances of God, in spite of a revelation that God would be with him, God would empower him if God made him king, God could bring him certainly through the Red Sea of his own heart and bring him victorious on the other side, triumphant over his fears, his pride, but he would not.

But beloved, this message this afternoon, a companion message to this morning, is about a people who say, all right, Lord, I don't understand what it means, but I do want you to direct my life. I do give you control of my life.

And what, what is the path that you have to lead me through so that will be accomplished in my life? Because beloved, the Lord has to bring us through paths that are strewn, that are full of deception.

Because when we begin to cry out, God, give me a God-directed life, where, Lord, I release and surrender the right to lead my life, because I say your plan is higher and greater for my life. I say because you bought me with a price that's only reasonable, I lay down my life.

I say that because you are the God of this universe. There can be a glory that can happen in my family, in my circle, in my life, if I will surrender, but it will only happen if I let you lead. And beloved, there will be deceptions along the path, the path where we say, God, I want to walk your way.

I want you to direct my life. And so we can see that there will be an enemy. Please know, if this is the cry of your heart today, there will be an enemy that's going to try to scramble the message. There's going to be an enemy that's going to try to twist the signpost.

When you, with a heart cry, say God direct, he's going to try to do that. He's going to run, he's going to try to run interference. Beloved, there's going to be our own heart that is going to oppose the will of God, if our heart strongly desires something in a certain matter.

And also know that the world who knows, that knows nothing about godly counsel, the world that knows nothing about being directed by God in big decisions, in small decisions, that they are going to scorn and laugh our desire to do that, our intention, and when we carry it out, they're going to scorn and laugh till success comes.

And then there will be a voice that will try to flatter us out of our faith, that will try to, that we will take back trusting ourselves, because we're going to, there'll be an attempt to flatter us out of our faith, to believe the press clippings when it goes well with us, because beloved, it will go well.

If we lead God-directed lives. And so, this scripture is the key of Proverbs 3, 5. It is the ammunition against every plot and tactic of the world, the flesh, and the devil. It is the absolute key to how we can stay on a God-directed path for our lives.

And contained in these verses is everything that we need to understand the journey we're about, that we're on. If we all have a heart for it. It starts trusting the Lord with all your heart. Beloved, we have to believe that God fully intends to direct our lives, and for good.

And when we believe, we have to understand that every part of our heart starting out on this trip does not trust Him. And so, God is committed to revealing the part of our hearts that does not trust Him.

And what part of the journey is understanding that when we get to the part of our heart where we don't trust Him, something's got to give. That we may be on the journey where we say, God, I am about having you direct my path.

And then, all of a sudden, we come up against things we don't understand. But it's a part of the heart where we don't trust Him, and God is going to reveal it, so He can heal it. Beloved, when it says, lean not on your own understanding, that is how the world operates.

The world that we're called out of. The best the world can do is lean on their own knowledge and understanding of things. That's all they have. And they will get the best or the worst that man can do.

But we have access to a greater understanding. But it means giving up, leaning on our own. Where we have leaned, where we have supported, where we have had full confidence in our own understanding. It's all we've ever known.

And there have been times we've made messes of our lives, but it's all we've got. We have leaned on our own understanding. And God is saying that for you to have and I to have a God-directed life, there are going to be times in our life we are just going to have to give up leaning on our own understanding.

We have to. He says, in all my ways acknowledge him. Beloved, acknowledging him is an interesting term. It means that it doesn't mean, well, Lord, I say your name once in a while, that you're the God of my life.

That acknowledging means to know in an intimate way. It means that God knows all our heart. He knows the path He wants to take us on. He knows how we think, how we operate, how we will respond, what buttons, how we react when certain buttons are pushed in our life.

He knows everything about us, but he says in all my ways that we're to acknowledge him. We're to start on that journey of God. I want to understand you and I want to understand your ways. Lord, I need a revealing of how you operate, how your kingdom goes forward.

I need an intimate knowledge of how you think and what your heart is. Beloved, God wants to do that for us. So he says in all your ways, in all thy ways, I want to learn. I want to learn all your ways.

And then I want to be able to say, oh Lord, I understand by experience you bring me through what you're teaching me now. I understand in your word I haven't been there yet, but Lord you're giving me a bright beam.

Of what is to come. Lord, I don't want to have to be alone. I have to fall into every pothole and every hole to learn something. I want to be able to acknowledge you, to be acquainted, to be intimately acquainted with how you work in a submitted life.

How you work in the lives of those that are found opposing you. How you work in a back student life. How you work in a life hard pot for you. Because God, I want to be able to declare you with confidence to those around me.

I was found in the last day of time with nothing to say because it need not be so. I don't want to be found in the time of a twin tower tragedy and people go, is God responsible for this? And I don't know.

Is this God or is this not God? And the people of God go, I don't know. This does not have to be so acquainted with me. I want to be known by you, but it's an increasing revelation. Finally, it says, be not wise in your own eyes, beloved.

That doesn't mean that we're not to be wise. It means not to be wise in our own eyes. It means absolutely necessary for this trip is a humility that has to be worked into us. That if we start to think we know something, when we start to think, I've got a handle on this.

When we start to feel God with a confidence that can now move into the area of presumption, that we feel we can speak for God without actually knowing. That there has to be a humility in us because we will ever be learning in one degree.

He shall surprise us. He's going to be fresh in his revelation. Every morning, there's going to be a new depth of mercy. There's going to be a new revelation of incredible love towards us. That's going to keep it vital.

And so there's going to have to be a humility. Beloved, how does all this apply? How does this verse apply in everyday life? If you would turn with me to Joshua 9. In the Old Testament, Joshua 9. Lesson here that the Holy Spirit wants to speak to us are things are not as they appear.

Things are not as they appear. Beloved, when we start to have a heart, say, God, I want a God directed life. I want your plan and purpose that you determine from the beginning of the world. When you saw me and determined that I should be.

That if I would give this surrender to you, there was this plan. And beloved, what is going to happen to that heart is the enemy is going to come. And he wants to make things appear in a different light to deceive.

And that's what happened to Joshua in Joshua chapter 9. Joshua went in as captain of the Lord's army, an anointed, anointed captain and leader of the army, anointed to fight the enemy with a heart to obey.

He knew success in the battlefield, an incredible success, and the fame of him and the fame of his army spread throughout the whole promised land. And every ungodly nation heard of the fame of Joshua and an undefeatable army, it seemed.

And there was incredible fear in the hearts of these people who represent spiritual enemies to us today because they had not known a defeat when they first entered the promised land. The fame of Jericho had spread.

And now the enemies knew that when they moved in, they mean they meant to possess it fully. That means their demise. That meant their end. And so the scripture tells us that people who were Joshua's neighbors disguised themselves and they came to Joshua and they had with them some moldy bread and they had their shoes scuffed up and they had their clothes were old and they had old bottles of wine with them.

And they put on a show for Joshua and his generals. They took the leadership of that godly army and they stood before them and in their cunning and in their slyness and in their worldly wisdom, they stood before them and they began to say in verse nine, in verse four of chapter nine, they did work slyly and went and made as if they had been ambassadors and took old sacks upon their asses and wine bottles old and rent and bound up.

And they and it goes on to tell their old shoes and garments. And they said, we're from a far off place, although they were neighbors. And they said, we've come to make peace with you. They said, look at the great distance we've come.

Look at our shoes. Look at all that we brought. We are. We have come from a long way off and we want to make peace with you. And the Bible says in verse 14. That Joshua and his leadership and the men took of their victuals and asked not counsel at the mouth of the Lord, Joshua and the leadership took from their hand, they took their story, they took everything they said, and they appeared that they understood the situation.

They understood that these men had had seemingly come as people from a long way off that could do them no harm. That they would not be a people living in their midst and that in their wisdom, they would show them mercy.

They would be good to them. But the Bible says that they asked not the counsel of the Lord and beloved things are not what they have here. And the scripture says that after they'd put on the show and Joshua had not asked counsel and receive from their hand, receive their story, fully believe them that the scripture says that in verse 15, that they made peace with them and made a league with them to let them live and the congregation swore unto them.

They said, we won't touch you. But beloved, can you imagine when they found out that these were the people that God had commanded, that they were to be destroyed when they found out that they weren't a far off people, that they were their very neighbors, that the land that they possess was called by God to be their land.

And now they've made a league with them. They swore to them and they said, we will not touch you because things were not as they appeared to be, and they were totally deceived. And when they made peace and chose to live with them, what an incredible thing, because as long as Joshua and those that have the heart of Joshua lived, they were able to subdue these people.

They were their servants, but another generation rose up and their descendants of the people they've made peace with their enemies. They became a snare to Joshua's children. They became a snare to Joshua's generation and the people that should not have been there occupying that land they had made peace with, and now they were going to be a snare to the following generation.

Joshua could handle it and his generals could handle it, but the following generation could not. And beloved, we may find that we have made peace with an enemy we should not have had. There may be peace in our home where there should not be a peace.

There may be a music coming in. There may be influences coming in, and we've made peace with it. We said, all right, you have it your way. I'm just going to worship God here, and I'm going to try to turn a blind eye and a deaf ear.

But beloved, the only way that I see that we can come against, because it says in verse 19, it says, we may not touch them. All the princes said, we've made a covenant. We cannot touch. Beloved, you may have made peace with something that God has had a controversy with you, that God has been showing repeatedly.

You didn't want to have to deal with it. You didn't know where to begin. You don't know how to start. You don't know how to go about it because you've made peace with it, and now it seems like you can't overturn the decision.

It may seem like you don't even know how to begin. But beloved, I tell you that when we say we will not lean on our own understanding, and we begin to say, God, I acknowledge my sin, and God, I cry out to you, your ways are higher.

I can't think this through. I can't rationalize this through. I don't have the plan how this is to be overturned, but God, you understand what has happened here, and I ask you, God, to cancel the peace.

I ask you, God, to give me the next step. I know that if I charge in in my anger, if I charge in in any other spirit but yours, Lord, the enemy will be allowed to oppress. But Lord, I'm asking you now, I acknowledge you.

I need an intimate knowledge, God, of how you're going to handle this in my home. We need to rise up and say, God, you're God of this. Now give me the plan. I begin to cry out, and I want you, oh God, to come and teach me how not to fear but to depart from evil.

And he would do that. He will do that for us, beloved. He will cancel the peace treaty. He will cancel the bad harvest. If we lean on him and acknowledge him in all our ways, if we will trust him for this, he says that he will direct our path.

He knows how to take back the land we've given up. He knows what it is, how to go in and have us teach our hands to war and our fingers to fight against an enemy that we've made peace with. For he is committed to giving us all the promised land.

Integrity Is Not Enough Without Trust

Now, beloved, another way that can be a deception of the enemy, another way when we, to take us off the path of following, of having a God-directed life, is believing that because we want with all our heart a God-directed life, because we have a heart for him to do this, that this will save us from being manipulated by the enemy.

Because we have walked with him and he has started to clear up some confusion in our mind. Because we've started to know some success. Because we have an integrity and we have a history with him. That, beloved, that is going to be enough.

Scripture, if you turn with me quickly to Psalm 26. God wants to show us a very important principle. The heart for truth is the right step, is the first step in a right direction, but it needs something more.

Psalm 26, one verse. Judge me, O Lord, for I have walked in my integrity. I have trusted also in the Lord. Therefore, I shall not fly. Because, beloved, we can have an integrity and it's not going to be enough.

The Scripture says, I have walked in my own integrity. I have trusted also. And we see how this is made so real in the life. You don't need to turn there, but in 2 Samuel 15 -11, for those that like to take notes.

It talks about a time when Absalom, the son of King David. When he rose up against his father. God's anointed one to lead Israel. And the Scripture tells us how Absalom began to beguile the people of Israel.

He began to beguile them by saying he had an interest in them. He began to say, I am as you are. He wouldn't allow them to kiss him and do honorary customs towards him. And he began to steal the hearts of Israel.

Israel began to see an aged king. And there was something in them they liked about Absalom. And the Scripture finally says that Absalom, at a certain time, rose up against his father. And made rebellion against him.

And it caused David to flee the city of Jerusalem. But an interesting thing in 2 Samuel 15 -11. Tells us, and with Absalom went 200 men out of Jerusalem that were called. And they went in their simplicity and they knew not anything.

And when you look up that word simplicity, it means integrity. They went in their integrity and they knew nothing. But beloved, they were in the wrong war. They went with a good heart. They went believing they were called men, it tells us in that Scripture.

They went believing they were in the cause of God. They went believing they were in the right war. They thought time had changed. They thought David is passing away and we've got a king among us. Right after our own heart.

A man that we feel we can walk in agreement with. But it tells us in their integrity, in their simplicity, they didn't know, understand the wrong that they were doing. But they were in the wrong army fighting the wrong enemy.

Even though they were men of integrity. We can have all what you want, but the Scripture tells us and we must trust. That means there's going to be a time, beloved, that you and I are going to feel fully right in our cause and God is going to come and say, move away, move out.

Step back in our simplicity, are going to be fully convinced we're correct. And that's where trusting in the Lord is going to come in. Because when we begin to hear His voice in order to be God-directed, He has to begin to show us we're in the wrong path first by saying if He speaks a word to us, we have to trust it and do it.

Learning Discernment Through a Painful Mistake

When I was a brand new Christian, not very long saved, I came under the influence of a teaching that says all doctors and all medicine was wrong. That it showed a lack of faith. And they were very pervasive teachers.

They were very convincing. And it sounded like what they were teaching was for the greatest glory and honor of God. And I hadn't traveled too far down that path of listening to their tapes, being totally convinced in my heart that I was on the highest path because I wanted God with all my heart.

And I did not realize that I was being led by an Absalom. That I was being led by someone who was forming an army against the true anointed army of God. And while I was in that teaching, my oldest son, when he was three years old, fell in a fire.

It was an open pit. I lived on a farm. And we had a fire pit. And he fell in it and a chair fell on top of him and pinned him in the fire. And my husband pulled him out of the fire and put a three-year-old boy, my son, in my arms who was screaming in pain.

And I had fully believed that teaching. And I began walking up my driveway while my husband went in to get a wet cloth for his hand and I was praying in tongues and I was believing. And I had been taught, beloved, that anything of medicine was a lack of faith except in my arms was a badly burned son.

And we went off to the hospital and I want to tell you that God did an incredible work on my son's third-degree burned hand. Took away the scars from his face and his chest. And brought me out of that teaching because it was the medicine that was three long weeks in a burn unit that was able to bring that hand back to use.

And I don't say that God has to use every measure like that to that degree. But I do know from that moment on that in my simplicity I had been following an absolute. That I needed to declare in that hospital room, God I... and he opened my eyes.

When I had other people from that persuasion coming and questioning why I was in that isolation room my only word to them was that I trust God. When it didn't make sense that's all I could say. And then God opened that word to me and began to show me that in my integrity it was not enough but I needed to couple it with trust and if he said move away, then I did.

When Human Wisdom Tries to Replace God's Choice

Beloved, another deception it can be seen in the Scriptures in the life of David and Joab and it's a picture of David who has a heart who wants to do God's will. But David had a general, Joab. And for most of his life Joab, the general of his army served him.

And beloved, that's a picture of our intellect and our will and our intelligence and our wisdom and our skill with our hands and an intelligent approach to life. God is not asking that we lay down our intellect our wisdom, God-given wisdom and otherwise, or our skills but he's to say it's forever to be the servant to a heart that wants him.

It's a picture of those talents that God has given us and we are to be trained in righteousness through the use of exercising our mind and our skill and our wisdom. It is forever to be the servant to the leader of a heart that wants God's will.

And for most of his life David's general of the army, Joab was in right relationship but beloved, there came a day when he rebelled. And it started like this. God made it very clear that at the end of David's life his son Solomon was to be his successor.

And the scripture tells us in 1 Chronicles 22 you don't need to turn there but it says, Behold a son shall be born to thee who shall be a man of rest for his name shall be Solomon he shall build a house for my name and I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel forever.

So before Solomon was even born there was a prophecy to David you are going to have a son and his kingdom, his throne shall follow yours. And it tells us also, David says and all my sons, for the Lord has given me many sons in 2 Chronicles 28.

He has chosen Solomon my son to sit upon the throne of the kingdom of the Lord over Israel. And so this was a well known fact that after David's death his son Solomon should reign in his stead. But beloved, towards the end of David's life when he gets old and infirm, this general Joab who is a picture of our will and our desire and our heart who is a picture of when our own understanding and our own human will wants to lead our life.

And David is old and unfirm and his servant the general declares another ruler another direction another power to rule and the known will of God is to be replaced by the commander's will the known will of God, beloved, listen to me this will happen to you if you have a heart for God the known will of God he has spoken it to you you've seen it in the word you've heard it preached it's clear to you.

And yet there's another own understanding and our own will that will want to rise up and anoint another to lead his choice. Joab wanted his choice leading the kingdom. It's a picture of when our own will and our own heart's desire wants to rise up and rule our lives.

And the reason why would Joab this is a revealed will of God. He has followed David faithfully and they have known victory. Why now at the end of his life would Joab want to turn why. And the scripture tells us in 1st Chronicles 22 5 it says Solomon my son David said is young and tender and the house that is to be built for the Lord must be exceeding magnificent.

Beloved. When we look at that word tender it means weak faint hearted and soft we have to get the picture. It is a known fact that Solomon is to be the next leader. It is also a known fact because if your father is saying it you know it's got to be true.

He's saying he is young but he is also faint hearted and he is weak and he is soft and the work to be done is exceedingly magnificent. And there was a time when the whole kingdom had a huge question mark over this boy because the work that was to be done they were used to a David a full bodied man who could take control and charge.

He seemed to know the will and mind of God. He had victory after victory over his enemies. Even when he fell he was able to because he had a heart of a lion get back into right relationship with God and it seemed like only this kind of personality could lead Israel.

And now God's anointed was a young and a tender man who was weak and faint hearted and the work was to be exceedingly magnificent because David in his latter days had stored up to build a magnificent house for God and he knew he was not to do it it was going to be his son after.

And God's choice looked to be the wrong choice. God looked like how could this be? God that you are choosing a man that is faint hearted and weak and soft how can that be? Beloved I'll tell you God will try us because many times when he is saying this is the way walk ye in it it looks like a path of no success.

It looks like something that's absolutely impossible and it is in the natural it looks like something God can that be you at this time? God you know what a change I'm facing you know God what is before me and the work to be done in my life you tell me you want it to be exceeding magnificent.

Yet God the path you're pointing for that to happen looks so weak. It so looks unlike you but beloved Solomon was David God's choice. Solomon was God's choice. The lesson of Joshua things are not what they appear to be but beloved battle will be.

How can I trust when God points in a direction we can't seem to trust. When our own understanding of God's will seems to be so in conflict of what's needed of what I think should happen of God. You're asking me to trust but there doesn't like to be much to trust but beloved I'll tell you something God directed life says trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not on thine own understanding we will be tested on.

This could legitimately point to David and say you have been a mighty man of war but you've also failed. You've also missed it. And it could be another reason why he could rise up and anoint another successor.

Not only is the choice weak hearted and faint in a time when the work is great but it's also David you who are anointing who said you've heard from God you've made mistakes and beloved. The enemy will come like that.

How can we really trust what we're hearing. Look at our track record. Watch your will but remember when you did this and remember when you failed here and the enemy will continually be pointing to our track record.

How can you be sure this time when it looks so fearful to go this way. God if you really are calling me to change careers look at the little bit of money there. It's not able to support me but beloved.

And then the doubts. Well you've missed God before. You haven't been right in everything David. Joab well remembers the time that it tells us in Samuel chapter 11 where it says it was a time for kings to go out to battle and David was found in the wrong place at the wrong time.

How can I trust. How can I trust beloved. God's not asking us to trust our track record. He's saying I trust mine. God's saying I want you to remember something that I am a God who's never failed and I'm a God who never will fail you.

And when I point to the Solomon in your life you can trust. When I point to the plan and you know like you know because I've spoken it to you out of my word just like Joab knew that Solomon was the God appointed heir.

There had been a word about him repeatedly and beloved. There are some of you today and God has spoken repeatedly to you about something repeatedly. And you use these excuses of why you would not go down that path.

We can trust. We can trust. But I want you to think about something about Solomon. God's choice to leave. Who was he. He was the son of a king and a woman that should not have been his wife. And many times beloved we pull away because can God truly redeem that level where I sunk to.

Can God's will actually come into a situation that is depraved. Is this. Can God actually turn around and redeem a mess that I have made. And when I ask him God come in and take over and direct path that you'll do it.

Oh yes he will says that when Solomon was born the Lord loved him what he was going to do and all that Solomon represented to David and his wife. Beloved. Many times we begin to get under where I say God I have missed you too many times.