Better to Seek Counsel Than to Have to Repair the Damage — When God Puts a Period and Starts a New Paragraph, Don’t Add a Question Mark

How many times have we been presented with a financial opportunity, an offer to buy something, or a romantic opportunity that seemed too promising to turn down, even though spiritual warning signs everywhere were telling us, “Get away as quickly as possible!” Quite simply, that attractive prospect, which seemed to promise so much, was not in harmony with God’s plans for our lives

. Nevertheless, we stubbornly went ahead with our decision simply because it was too attractive to turn down, even though we clearly understood that we were acting in disobedience. Sooner or later, as we recall, the negative consequences made themselves felt, and we had to come to God, battered and ashamed, so that He would rescue us.

Someone has said, “When God puts a period and starts a new paragraph, don’t put a question mark.” God has declared, “Obedience is better than sacrifice.” The safest place for a child of God is within His will. The false promises of disobedience cannot compare with the security of living and moving under divine approval.

The Bible declares, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death” (Proverbs 14:12). We have already seen that the believer does not process reality in the same way as those who do not know God. Before making any important decision, the wise person inquires about God’s will. The apostle James declares (James 4:13–15):

13 Come now, you who say: Today or tomorrow we will go to such-and-such a city, stay there a year, trade, and make a profit;

14 when you do not know what tomorrow will bring. For what is your life? It is certainly a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.

15 Instead, you ought to say: If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.

The psalmist’s sober judgment reminds us that the only solid foundation for life lies in aligning our actions with God’s will (Psalms 127:1 and 2):

1 Unless the LORD builds the house, those who build it labor in vain; unless the LORD guards the city, the watchman keeps watch in vain.

2 It is in vain that you rise early, go late to rest, and eat the bread of sorrows; for God gives sleep to His beloved.

Through hard experience, I have learned in my ministry and in my personal life that before making any decision I must ask myself: “Is this in harmony with the principles of God’s Word, or with His specific will for my life?” If I cannot answer this question affirmatively, the only legitimate alternative for me is to reject that option and decide in favor of the divine will.

Going against God’s will, no matter how pleasant or promising it may seem at first, is a sure recipe for disaster! That disobedient action, promising at first, is a mere mirage, an empty promise that in the end delivers only disappointment and disillusionment. Mathematically, disobedience can produce only failure. In obvious or subtle ways, in the short or long term, whether we realize it or not, stubbornly continuing along our own paths will bring loss. It is an unbreakable law of the universe.

Wise is the person who makes their way humbly through life, first inquiring of God before embarking on any undertaking, strictly following the manual of the Word, and adhering without question to the divine judgment.