My Walk Monday 01/28/09: Wise Counsel

I am catching up on my "My Walk Monday" even though today is Wednesday.

I have been meaning to write something that God has placed on my heart lately. This post is titled "Wise Counsel" because this is something that is sooooo important to me and my walk with the Lord. I don't know where I would be without the wonderful people God has brought in my life. As I have been meditating on this post for the last week Psalms Chapter 1 keeps coming to mind.

Psalms Chapter 1 is a very important chapter because it speaks of the importance of having solid biblical counsel and how it can make or break the life of the believer. This particular Psalm speaks of how blessed (or happy) the person is who walks in the counsel of the Godly and contrasts this to the person who walks in the counsel of the ungodly. The Psalm likened the man or woman, who sought godly counsel to a tree which was big and strong with strong roots which kept the Christian in different difficult seasons of life. This blessed (happy) person is one who mediates on the Bible and who seeks counsel from godly people. The opposite is the person who seeks ungodly counsel. This person is like a tree which dries up during hard times, and leaves wither. They are also unable to produce fruit because they are disconnected from the "water source."

I have witnessed this in my own life and I am forever grateful for many people whom God has placed in my life. I don't understand why He loves me so much and why He is so good to me. From my youth pastors who loved me unconditionally, to the various people he has blessed me with, I am forever thankful. I will never forget two particular women who God brought to me, both in times of great need in my life. I had the opportunity to spend time with these women last weekend and I every time I do, I am completely refreshed and encouraged. They have taught me things like forgiveness, prayer, humility, submission, and more than that they have unconditionally loved me when I have been most unlovable. It's not only the things they have taught me which have been most instrumental, but it's their lives that have spoken to me the loudest. I have seen the way the treat their husbands, and how they raise their children, and I only hope one day I can be that example for someone else. I hope to one day become that type of women.

I will never forget Mary who sat with me time and time again during my years of drug addiction. She loved me and continued to pray for me relentlessly. Although I was very lost and broken, I remember she would just sit, listen, and pray for me as I cried and cried. She also has put up with me over the years and I am forever grateful for her. She has taught me sooo much about marriage and continues to give me solid biblical counsel even when I am stubborn. :) I have enjoyed being in her bible studies and I have learned so much about the women God desires me to be. I have known her for about 12 years, and I know it was God who brought her along my path.

I am so blessed by Terry who is also a gift from God. I will never forget the first time I met her, I knew it was God. I first saw her heart for prayer and we immediately became friends. Her willingness to share her testimony and continue to reach out to me when I was not able to give anything in return was a gift which I will never understand. I was at a very hard time in my life once again, but looking back I can see how God orchestrated the entire thing. She took me through a study called Healed and Set Free at a time in my life where God was healing me from some very painful things. Her testimony and example has meant the world to me.

What has blessed me the most about these women is their consistency and devotion to the Lord. They have truly weathered the storms of life, and they have become stronger and stronger. When getting counsel from someone it's vital that they point you to the Word of God. It's one thing to tell people what we think, or how we feel, but it's soooooo crucial to point people to the truth in God's word. God's truth combined with the power of the Holy Spirit is what heals and sets free.

Thank you Jesus.