In his desperation Saul consulted with the witch of endor. He needed direction so desperately and did not known where to turn. Even though he had previously put away all those who had familiar spirit, it became for him the case of a dog returning to its vomit. As it later turned out it was another step in the wrong direction with telling consequences. Saul's bitter end is succinctly captured in one verse of scripture: "so Saul died for his unfaithfulness which he had commuted against the lord, because he did not keep the word of the lord, and also because he consulted a medium for guidance" (1cor. 10:13)
It is certain that you will need direction in the course of the year;but never allow any form of desperation to push you in any extra-biblical path to guidance. God has better ways to guide you; He wants us to seek his guidance in prayer , he also gives us the guidance of the spirit and his word.
He provides us with mentors and wise leaders. And he's given us the example of Jesus himself". You cannot exhaust these Channels before you gained insight of which direction God wants you to go.
Directions we take in our lives matter a lot.
I would love to tell us **FOUR WAYS GOD HELPS(DIRECTS) HIS PEOPLE **
1) Decree:
God sovereignly decrees and designs the circumstances in our lives, so that we could all end up where he desires and wants us to be even if we don’t have any conscious part or thought in getting there.
**2) Direction: **
This is our topic for today,it is simply what God almighty does for us by giving us the commands and teachings of his word, the holy Bible. They direct us rightly and specifically what to do and what not to do. The Ten Commandments are one example.1. Don’t steal.
2 Don’t kill.
3 Don’t lie.
Or the Sermon on the Mount:
i) Love your enemies.
ii) Or the Epistles:
iii) Be filled with the Holy Spirit.
iv) Put on humility.
This is the leading of direction. God reveals his directions in the Bible.
3) Discernment:
Most of the decisions we make are not spelled out really specifically in the Bible. Discernment is how we follow God’s leading through the very process of spiritually sensitive application of biblical truth to the particularities of our life's situations.
Romans 12:2 describes this:
“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect”.In this case God does not declare a specific word about what to do. But his awesome Spirit shapes the mind and heart through the word and prayer so that we all have inclinations towards what would be the most glorifying to him and very much helpful to others.
4) Declaration:
This is the least common means of God’s leading. He simply declares to us what we should do. For example, according to Acts 8:26
Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, "Go south to the road--the desert road--that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza."
Source
Discerning what to do on the basis of biblical principle when we do not have a specific command for our exact decision will yield less confidence than when we have an explicit direction in the Bible. And the truth that God is sovereign and guides all things is the rock bottom confidence under all others.
It is a good place to rest.