Daily Devotional May 3 - Confidence With God

"And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him. For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then we have confidence with God." 1 John 3:19-21

Even though your heart and mind can play tricks on you, after all is said and done, and after you have fully evaluated the situation, down deep, you know what is right. You know that after you had fully evaluated the situation you are in right now, you would fully recognize that the choices you made brought you here. The secret to a happy and fulfilled life is to make the right decisions when things come up, not after you have tried on your own and failed, but before you even begin the journey.

The times we are in are fast and furious and the necessity for making choices are coming at us at a a very rapid rate. You have got to stop and think and stop and pray before you leap. Your future hangs on the decision of today. Not everything that looks good is good and not everything that looks bad is bad, but careful cogitation and communication with God and you will always be able to ferret out the right answer. Don't make hurried decisions when you are under pressure. You will not be pleased with the outcome and you may very well have to renege later.

The key to understanding is getting a glimpse of what it means to "have confidence with God" concerning a matter.

• Have you considered the situation in light of eternity?
• Have you discussed it with other qualified persons; those who maybe have gone through or experienced the same thing you are about to?
• Have you discussed it with credible friends; those who have proven themselves over the years to have your best interest at hand?
• Have you personally read about it or gathered everything about it to make sure that you understand the short term and long term ramifications?
• Have you looked to heaven and under the influence of the Spirit of God prayed about it?
• Have you heard from God concerning the matter?

If you have done all these things and the answer is yes, then you can with confidence make the decision. But if you have done all these things and the answer appears to be no, wait. Wait on God to reveal to you the final word. Don't jump the gun. Don't answer yet. Make others wait on you. It will be worth your while.