direction Archives - Colin Dye

How to know the will of God for your life God's Way – The third green light

Colin Dye — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 09:47:31 +0000

God's will must be done God's way - in his time and by his methods. You may be sure that something is his will for you, but how and when does he want you to fulfil it? This is the third and final traffic light.

Thirty-five years ago, I sat at the back of Kensington Temple, the London church I now pastor. I was a newly baptised member and God spoke to me very clearly: “I have a plan for your life, and a work for you to do.” I told him I was ready. I had read in the Bible how the disciples left their nets to follow Jesus, so I left my “nets’ too! I rushed out to fulfil God’s will for my life – and fell flat on my face! What was wrong? An elderly Christian woman gently explained to me that I had run ahead of the Lord. I had heard God correctly, but it was not yet his time.
Around that same time, in 1972, God gave me a mental impression of a map of Africa. I was born in Africa, and the Lord seemed to be saying, “Where you came from you are going to return.” The impression was that I would be going back again and again, As soon as I grasped that, the map changed to one of South America. The message seemed to be the same. Fourteen years later, in 1986, I finally set foot back in Africa! I have returned many times since, and each time God has revealed his ministry and power.
Then, in 1991, nineteen years after I saw the map of South America, God opened the door for me to go to Brazil. Of course, I could have gone many times before through my own efforts, but I waited for God’s timing. I took a small team with me and the Lord was with us in a special way. He gave us prophetic words for many of the people we met there. In particular, he gave me a prophetic word for a large Christian denomination. I preached two or three messages to that movement, and God is now visiting them in a new way. A fresh wave of spiritual renewal has broken out! It took nineteen years, but in the fullness of time, God released his power and blessing.
God unfolds his will progressively, and it must be followed progressively. Each step must be according to God’s particular way for you. God does not reveal his will by floodlighting the area in front of you.
The picture here is that of a shepherd carrying an oil lamp, as he makes his way home in the night time darkness across the craggy hillsides. As he takes one step, the light swings forward just in time for him to see where he is to put his next step. As so he goes on, step by step. That is how the will of God unfolds for you. You have to go at his pace, one step at a time. If you are willing to wait in patience and in dependence upon him, he will make his will known to you and fulfil it, both in his timing and in his special way for you. Be patient and wait on the Lord both for the when and the how.
Over to you
Now it is time for you to begin to seek the Lord for your situation. Call upon him and tell him exactly how you feel. He is concerned about you. He wants you to walk in the light of revelation and not to grope in the darkness, looking for his will in strange places. He wants you to know him and his direction for your life, because he loves you. Ask him to lead you and speak to you.
Get to know God’s Word, the Bible. Make sure that you are reading it regularly and getting to know it thoroughly. Don’t neglect the times of public preaching and teaching in your church. That is often where you will hear a word from the Lord. Also, it is good to join with others who also want to study the Bible and do it together in small groups.
Finally, invite the Holy Spirit to be your friend. Let him be who the Lord Jesus gave him to you to be – your guide, your comforter, your counsellor and your helper. He is living in you, so learn to hear his voice. He will give you ears to hear, if you ask him. Don’t chase experiences, but stay rooted in the Word of God, and allow him to guide you through it. Through his power and his presence, the living Word will come to you. It is a good idea to keep a journal or some kind of record of what the Lord says to you. I find it extremely encouraging to look back over the things I have received from the Lord. It helps me piece everything together and to discern his hand in it all.

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How to Know the Will of God for your Life God's Word – The first green light Part 2

Colin Dye — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 14:03:48 +0000

Wait for the green light, God will show you the way

Our God is a communicating God. He has made himself supremely known through his Word, the Personal Word – who is Jesus Christ, and through his written Word, the Bible. Jesus Christ is the manifestation of the Word – the Logos of God. Knowing him means knowing the Father.
“Jesus answered, “Don’t you know me Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, “Show us the Father?'”” (John 14:9)
It means God’s will is personal. It is to do with heart relationship, not just head knowledge. The purpose of the Word is personal that we might know him and whenever we read the Bible we are able to say, “He walks with me and he talks with me. I can hear him speak to my heart!” It is a two-way relationship through the Word.
The Bible is the full and infallible record of God’s Word to man. Just as Jesus, the Incarnate God’s Word to man, has two natures – fully God and fully Man – so there are two characteristics of the written Word of God. The Bible is the Word of God, but it is also the Word of God through man.
“Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” (2 Peter 1:20-21)
The writers of the Bible wrote under the inspiration and empowering of the Holy Spirit not man’s imagination. Therefore, what was written was exactly what God intended to be written.
That is why we call the Bible God’s Word. The Bible contains 66 books written by over 40 different authors over a period of up to 1,600 years.Yet, it speaks with one clear authentic voice, the voice of the Holy Spirit.When looking for prophetic guidance, go to the Bible.You will never get a surer word from God than the Scriptures. It contains principles to cover every aspect of life:
“… and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scriptures is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:15-17)
All Scripture is God-breathed. It has all been given by the breath of his lips – the Word of his mouth. It means we cannot pick and choose according to your own opinion, accepting this and rejecting that. You cannot judge God’s Word: it judges you! This means all scriptures are useful. The practical use of the Bible is fourfold:
# Teaching God gives the standard by which everything is measured.
# Rebuking God shows you where you have gone wrong.
# Correcting God sets you back on the right path.
# Training in righteousness God shows you how to stay on the right path.
If the Scripture completely equips Christian leaders for every aspect of ministry or life, you can be sure that it speaks into every area of your life. The Bible can adequately guide you and can be trusted as the final and supreme authority. Never depart from it – read it, study it, meditate on it, believe it and do it!
The Living Word
The Bible is not merely an external rule book, or simply words on a page. It is living and active:
“The Word of God is living and active. Sharper than any twoedged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow, it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” (Hebrew 4:12)
This means that the Bible operates from within your heart. The Holy Spirit guides you through the Word. He will never ignore what he has written and has protected over many centuries, despite the efforts of men to destroy it.Voltaire, the eighteenth century French author and philosopher, arrogantly predicted that in his generation the Bible would no longer be read. But hundreds of years after his death, Bibles were distributed from his house. God affirms his Word. He takes it and personalises it, so that it becomes part of your very being.
“I have hidden Your word in my heart, that I might not sin against You.” (Psalm 119:11)
The Holy Spirit, then, speaks through the Scriptures, but does this mean he will never say anything other than what God has already said in the Bible?
When I tried to find a verse that would tell me whether or not should I take up the call to ministry in London, I could not find one. Nowhere does it say, “Colin, do (or do not) go to London.”You too will face decisions that are not covered in detail in the Bible. Suppose you are offered two jobs which are equally valid biblically. It is not enough to choose the job that will give you the best influence as a Christian. How can you know what influence you may have? You need God’s wisdom. One of those jobs may look outwardly promising. The other may appear to give you less opportunities as a Christian than another job, but it could mean that you lead the next Billy Graham or Reinhard Bonnke to the Lord! You cannot rely on outward appearances or human wisdom in matters like that. Neither can you say, “God hasn’t made it clear, so I’ll do what I want!” The Bible says:
“The Lord will guide you in all your ways.” (Isaiah 58:11)
The Holy Spirit is your Helper. He will lead and guide you in a personal way, not just doctrinally. Many Christians are sound in their doctrine and yet are powerless to live for God because they have not understood that doctrine is not solely a matter of the mind or intellect. John Calvin, the great theologian of the sixteenth century taught that no doctrine has been fully learned until it has been appropriated by your whole being. That is why we need the Holy Spirit. Jesus said:
“When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on His own; He will speak only what He hears and He will tell you what is to come.” (John 16:13)
You need to know the Word. The Holy Spirit will never contradict it. But you also need to know the Holy Spirit, directly and personally. My life and ministry were transformed when I learned to listen to the Holy Spirit. I realised that the most dangerous thing I can do is to ignore his voice, however he speaks into my heart or life. When Jesus left this earth, he said that he would send us another Counsellor, or Comforter, who would be with us forever, to lead and to guide us. To follow the Holy Spirit means to follow Jesus. The Holy Spirit is here to reveal Jesus to us so that we can get to know him intimately. Do you know him like that? Learn to accept the leading and guidance of the Holy Spirit in all things.

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How to Know the Will of God for your Life Part one: God's plan for your life

Colin Dye — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 11:20:05 +0000

Wait for the green light!

“What does God want me to do with my life? “
“How can I make this important decision that I am facing?”
Perhaps you have burning questions like these. You may be in the midst of a crucial decision, or you may be seeking God for some specific direction in your life and ministry. I have good news for you! God is concerned about decisions you make. He wants you to know his will – both in the long term issues and the little details of life.
“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you.” (Psalm 32:8)
This verse gives you God’s promise. He promises to guide you and reveal his will to you personally as your Instructor and Counsellor. He is constantly watching over you for that very purpose. But he is also looking for a response from you. The next verse says:
“Do not be like the horse or the mule, which have no understanding but must be controlled by the bit and bridle or they will not come to you.” (Psalm 32:9)
God wants you to be open-hearted and responsive to him. He doesn’t want you to be guided merely by external restraints like a horse or a mule that stubbornly resists every prod and pull. He has given you a new nature that is born of God. The Holy Spirit lives within you to reveal God’s will to you and he enables you joyfully to fulfil it.
It is possible to know God so personally that you become intimately acquainted with his will and his ways. His will can cease to be something alien to you, but in the mysterious working of God’s Spirit within you, you can come to love his will and his ways, your nature conforming to his.
“Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Romans 12:2)
God’s will is good and pleasing – not harsh exclusion from that which is enjoyable. He invites you to approve it! He is inviting you to taste and see that the Lord is good and that his will is best. Just taste his will for you and you will be sure to approve it. We have all tasted the fruit of our own will and have proved how devastating it can be. What a contrast to God’s plan for us!
“‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'” (Jeremiah 19:11)
Do you not long to know God’s will for you in every detail? God, the creator of all things, is never short of ideas. He has had plans for you from the beginning of the world. The apostle Paul said:
“For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:10)
This verse tells us two things. First of all, God has prepared you for good works which only you can do. Secondly, this verse teaches that God has prepared good works for you to do, just as he has prepared you for good works. This means your special will for your life is tailor-made.
Don’t you long to find God’s perfect will for you and begin to fulfil it? I wonder, have you ever sat down and earnestly asked God what he wants you to do with your life? If not, or if you need his direction in any other way, why not ask him now? God promises to answer if you sincerely ask him in faith.
“If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.” (James 1:5)
“Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.” (Jeremiah 33:3)
How God guides you
The question now is: “How does God guide me? How will he show me his plan?” There are many explanations of how to find the will of God, but one stands out from the others. That is the three “Ws” :
* God’s Word – the Bible
* God’s Will – his specific plan for you
* God’s Way – the way in which his plan is to be fulfilled
These are like three traffic lights. All three must be green before you can proceed on life’s highway. They must all check out before you can be sure that a particular direction or course of action is from the Lord. You must be determined to find it and be sure to follow it. You will need to go patiently, being careful not to rush on to the next test before you have properly checked out the previous one.

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