Consider this marvellous fact:  God has provided the Believer in Jesus two pairs of eyes and two pairs of ears!  We have sight and hearing in the natural and also in the spiritual.  Most of our problems arise from living our lives according only to our natural abilities, making decisions according to sense knowledge alone.

2 Kings 6: 8-19 demonstrates Elisha, the prophet, using his spiritual eyes in a dire situation and acting accordingly.  The king of Syria was at war with Israel.  He sent a great host of his army of horses and chariots, by night, to encompass the Israelite city.  In the morning, Elisha’s servant arose early  and was full of fear when he saw, with his natural eyes, the great Syrian host surrounding the city.  Elisha saw something with his spiritual eyes and trusted God.  Speaking to his servant, he said:  “Fear not, for they that be with us are more than they that be with them.  Elisha prayed, saying, ‘Lord, I pray Thee, open his eyes that he may see’.  The Lord opened the eyes of the young man and he saw, and beheld the mountain full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha”.  (2 Kings 6:16-17)  Elisha prayed and the warring host was struck with temporary blindness.  They lost their way and their mission, through God’s supernatural intervention.

Isaiah prophesied of Jesus:  “The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of  knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.  And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord.   He shall not judge after the sight of his eyes , neither reprove after the hearing of his ears”,  Isaiah 11: 2-3.

Jesus is our Pattern Man, the firstborn of many brethren.  He is bringing many sons to glory – Our birthright through Calvary is 1 John 4:17  “….Because as He is, so are we in this world”.

We have to unlearn our way of making decisions in the natural, judging them as good ideas.  The Lord does not need my good ideas, however good they may appear.  I need to get God’s perspective on situations and decisions and follow His guidance, instead of asking, or presuming, His blessing on my good ideas.  Is it a God idea?  The good is the enemy of the best…..God’s best.

We have formed habits in the natural which we take more notice of.  A deeper walk with the Lord requires me to surrender the natural as I seek the spiritual sight and hearing for His guidance in daily decisions.

The last two verses of the old hymn “Dear Lord and Father of mankind, forgive our foolish ways” are worthy of meditation:

Drop Thy still dews of quietness till all our striving cease,

Take from our souls the strain and stress and let our ordered  lives confess,

The beauty of Thy peace, the beauty of Thy peace.

 

Breathe through the heats of our desire Thy coolness and Thy balm

LET SENSE BE DUMB, LET FLESH RETIRE,

Speak through the earthquake, wind and fire, O still small voice of calm,

O still small voice of calm”.

Every situation that arises in my life, I can either choose to see God……or the devil.  The devil lost all his power at Calvary.   He can only affect my blood bought life when I give him back the power Jesus took from Him.  His territory is murmuring, deceit, fear and lies.  If I embrace any of his territory he will gladly pay me a visit and whisper his lies into my heart and gain a foothold.  When I refuse to entertain his lies and choose to see God in ALL things (Matthew 5:8 “Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God), Satan has no power over me.  As I trust my Saviour in the storm, in retrospect I find the truth of Romans 8:28 being worked in my life because my spiritual ears have been tuned in confidence to God’s word: “…All things work together for good to those who love God…..according to his purpose”.

Dear Lord, please tune my ears, open my eyes that I might be a vessel fit for your purposes and glory…..Amen.