The First Step

“Wake up from your sleep, Climb out of your coffins; Christ will show you the light! So watch your step. Use your head. Make the most of every chance you get. These are desperate times! Don’t live carelessly, unthinkingly. Make sure you understand what the Master wants.” (Eph. 5:11-17 MSG)

The first step is to wake up! Open your eyes and shake off your grogginess. Become aware. Climb out from a state of dormancy. We have to take the initiative for that first step—to turn towards God, become aware of Him, and to seek His will. Then, Christ will turn on the light and show you where to place your next step. Then it is your move again. Stretch. Don’t climb back into bed and pull the covers over yourselves again. Be alert, making the most of every opportunity that God presents before you. Don’t just plod on carelessly, following the crowd. God has specific assignments and schedules for each of us to follow.

I have a difficult time discerning between divine inspiration and my own impatience. In my fear of making a move based on my own instincts to just do something, I tend to freeze up and do nothing.

Recently, I read about the difference between the legal standards in a criminal case vs. a civil lawsuit. In a criminal case, the prosecutors have to prove their case ‘beyond a reasonable doubt.’ However, in a civil lawsuit, decisions are made based on a ‘preponderance of evidence’—the standard is met if the proposition is more likely to be true than not true.

 

When waiting for God’s guidance, I find it better to make each step based on careful prayer, reflection, and a preponderance of evidence. If the chances are more likely than not that God wants you to move in a certain direction, then go ahead and take the initiative. As long as you are continuously centered in prayer, God will keep guiding you. Sometimes, even after much prayer, I have made decisions that seem misguided in hindsight. Yet, God has used these occasions as detours to redirect me in different ways. As long as we are listening and obeying, before long, God will set us back on the right path.