Oak Hill Baptist Church

Never stop learning

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Lifelong learning”

Our Bible verse for today: “I pursue the way of your commands, for you broaden my understanding.” Psalm 119:32 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Never stop learning”

As a child I was a terrible student in school and from an early age I came to believe I was stupid. Second grade was the hardest two years of my life. That’s right, “two” years. I failed the first time and had to repeat second grade. That meant that for the rest of my years in grade-school I was always a year older than the other kids and everyone always knew why. Worse still, from second-grade on, my brother (who was a year younger than me), was always in the same grade as I was and he was a good student while I continued to struggle.

Finally, I gave up. I quit high school partway through the 10^th grade and joined the Navy. Then, when I got to bootcamp around all those other guys from all those other places, I discovered that virtually everyone else was smarter than me – and I hated that. Fortunately, early in my time in the Navy, I had a division officer who took an interest in me and he encouraged me to enroll in the G.E.D. high school diploma classes that were being held onboard our ship. I did that and much to my surprise, I discovered that maybe I wasn’t as dumb as I had always believed. Maybe I could learn after all.

Long story short, I earned my high school diploma and once I discovered that I could learn, I developed a love for learning that has lasted the rest of my life. I went on to earn four college degrees, became an officer in the U.S. Navy, and then a Pastor. Lifelong learning has become a passion for me and it has become the central focus of my life as a preacher and teacher of the Word of God – because to be a teacher, you must first be a learner.

Looking back, I’m grateful that God used those painful early years in my life and brought something good out of it (Romans 8:28). My passion for learning in general became a passion for learning God’s Word and God’s ways in-particular and that ended up determining the path for the rest of my life.

God may not be preparing you for a life as a preacher, teacher, or writer, but He does want us all to be lifelong learners. Not necessarily in terms of earning college degrees, but lifelong learners when it comes to the Bible, and to the ways of God, and to life lessons that can be shared with others. Many passages in the Bible urge us to learn, and to never stop learning. No matter who we are and no matter how much we know, we should never stop learning.

All this month we will explore the many ways in which we can be lifelong learners. I look forward to learning along with you.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville)

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Free-range Christians

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Hearing from God”

Our Bible verse for today: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)

Our thought for today: “Free-range Christians”

Are you familiar with the concept of “free-range chickens”? Free-range chickens are chickens that are not raised in a cage. Instead, they are allowed to roam free. The idea is that it is inhumane to keep a chicken in a cage its entire life and in fact, a free chicken is a better and tastier chicken.

How about “free-range kids,” have you heard about them? The actual name of this concept is “free-range parenting” and it results in “free-range kids.” The idea is essentially the same as with chickens, but with a little less freedom and a lot more care. In this case, the parents avoid the syndrome that is so common in our day of being a helicopter parent. Helicopter parents are constantly hovering over their children watching, guiding, directing, and intervening. Free-range parents encourage their kids to explore and to try new things – and while there are boundaries and safety precautions, for the most part the free-range parent just lets the free-range kid be a kid, without a lot of interference.

That is essentially what Proverbs 3:5-6 teaches. God is a free-range parent and He is raising us to be free-range Christians. He has given us boundaries to stay within, and although He does pay attention and He does intervene as needed, for the most part He just lets us be kids. He encourages us to explore, to try new things, and to not be afraid of failure.

Now, as we go through our days there will be plenty of times when we need to check-in with Him and consult Him. There are times in life when we do need guidance and we do need to hear from God. For those situations He has given us the five basic ways in which He communicates with us (the Bible, prayer, circumstances, counsel, and the church.) But most of life consists of regular old humdrum life-stuff. It is just choosing between the sandbox or the swing set (see yesterday’s devotional). So, most of the time we just need to know the rules, stay within the boundaries, and enjoy life as you trust God to guide you just enough to keep you in His will.

I don’t know about you, but I love being a free-range Christian. It’s so much better and so much more fun than marching in formation to the barked-out cadence of a God who is a lot like a Marine Corps drill sergeant.

As we conclude this month of devotionals about hearing from God, I urge you to remember that God wants to be heard and He wants to be understood by His children. Therefore, He does speak to us as necessary and we are able to hear Him – it just takes practice and you will get better at it over time. Learning to hear God is a learned skill and it is a lifelong learning process – and that is where we will pick this up tomorrow. Our theme for the new month with be “Lifelong Learning.”

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville)

Just live your life

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Hearing from God”

Our Bible verse for today: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)

Our thought for today: “Just live your life.”

This morning, I want us to continue our thinking from yesterday regarding the fact that we do not need God to be constantly directing us. I also want us to revisit the important truth contained in Proverbs 3:5-6, because it is such a rich passage and it is so important.

When it comes to God providing sufficient guidance so we know what we can and cannot do in any given situation, I’m going to use an illustration I’ve used many times before but which I keep referring to because it is so helpful to our understanding of how God directs and guides us. It comes from Dallas Willard in his important book “Hearing God: Developing a Conversational Relationship with God.”

Dallas tells the story of how, when his children were young, he would often send them to play in the backyard. The yard was fenced and the children had many options to choose from in terms of play and recreation. They could play in the sandbox, swing on the swing set, sit in the shade and read, kick a ball, play with the dog, or a wide variety of other options. As their father, all Dallas required was that they stay within the boundaries of that fenced-in backyard and that they didn’t misbehave. Beyond that, they were free to choose for themselves what activities they wanted to engage in. Dallas felt no need to direct them to any one activity in-particular. He wanted them to choose for themselves, but according to the rules and within the boundaries he had established for them.

God works in a similar fashion with us. In the Bible, He has given us the boundaries within which we are to live life. The boundaries are broad and there is a lot of freedom of choice available to us within those boundaries. As long as we remain within the Biblical boundaries and we don’t misbehave (sin), then we are free to choose for ourselves among the many choices God has made available to us.

Is it safe to live like that? Well, yes, it is if you know the Bible and if your heart is right. You have already been living like that for most of your Christian life whether you realized it or not and God hasn’t let you walk off the edge of a cliff yet. Proverbs 3:5-6 is true. Know the rules; live by them; and trust God to give you just enough guidance to keep you in the center of His will.

God doesn’t want to be a Marine Corps drill sergeant in your life. He doesn’t want to have to direct your every step. Instead, He wants you to be a mature Christian with good judgment who makes smart choices. We don’t necessarily need to be hearing from God all the time. He has already provided us with all the guidance we need in order to live according to His standards and within the appropriate boundaries. So, stay within those boundaries and then just go live your life.

But now you may be wondering how this squares with what we’ve been thinking about all month regarding the five ways God typically speaks to us (Bible, prayer, circumstances, council, and the church.) Do we need God to speak to us or not? We will think about that tomorrow in the final devotional in this series.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville)

God is not a helicopter parent

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Hearing from God”

Our Bible verse for today: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)

Our thought for today: “God is not a helicopter parent”

So far this month I have been drawing heavily on Henry Blackaby’s classic work, “Experiencing God: Knowing and Doing the Will of God.” But there’s another important study that’s also very helpful in learning to hear God speaking, and it is “Hearing God: Developing a Conversational Relationship with God” by Dallas Willard.

In that book Dallas taught a lesson about hearing from God that profoundly impacted my own understanding about this, and which led me to adopt Proverbs 3:5-6 (above) as one of my personal life verses. The lesson is that many times, perhaps most of the time, we don’t need to hear from God.

Does that surprise you? Sometimes we think we need to be hearing from God all the time; that we need step-by-step instructions, 24/7. In that case God would be like a Marine Corps drill sergeant barking out cadence for us to march to, “Left, right, left, right, left, right, left, right” one step after another, marching along in perfect lock-step to His commands. But is that want God wants for us, His children? Wouldn’t that essentially turn us into a bunch of robotic automatons with our every thought, word, and deed dictated for us?

Instead, God created us with an intellect that enables us to think things through, and to use our judgment, and to make good choices. Our ability to do that is an essential part of our growth. But if He were to dictate it all for us, how would we ever grow? Think about this in terms of the relationship between a human parent and a child. Don’t we train our children to think for themselves? Don’t we want them to have good judgment and to make good choices on their own? As they grow older don’t we give them more and more freedom and encourage them to use their intellect?

Have you ever seen a helicopter parent who treats their 15-year-old as if he or she is still 5? The parent is always hovering in the shadows watching and waiting and then suddenly (frequently) they swoop in to intervene, or give instructions, or even to do the thing for the child. Such a child will be stunted in their intellectual, emotional, and spiritual growth.

Well, God is not a helicopter parent. And He doesn’t want us to be stunted in our spiritual growth because He constantly intervenes in our decision-making process. Instead, we must learn to live our lives in the will of God, without Him calling cadence or providing a constant stream of instructions. The truth is that we don’t need God to dictate our every thought, word, and deed in order for us to live well and to please Him. This is important, so we will continue thinking about it tomorrow.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville)

A sign of confirmation

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Hearing from God”

Our Bible verse for today: “So the Lord Jesus, after speaking to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the word by the accompanying signs.” Mark 16:19-20 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “A sign of confirmation”

So, here’s the end of the story about how we arrived at a group consensus on an important issue while avoiding the dynamic of groupthink. We went with the digital sign. After three-and-one-half years of seeking the Lord, praying, discussing, researching, praying some more, researching more, waiting on the Lord, and finally coming to a strong group consensus, we spent the money and purchased a digital sign.

And how did that work out for us? Well, trumpets sounded, angels rejoiced, there was a party in heaven, and the world beat a path to Oak Hill Baptist Church in Crossville, Tennessee.

Or not.

Actually, initially, nothing happened. Oh, most of us were happy with our new sign. It looks very nice. Our Youth Pastor, Josh, is having a lot of fun programing it and being creative with the graphics and images. The messages and pictures are colorful and eye-catching, and numerous people have mentioned it. But beyond that? Well … something interesting did happen.

Like most churches, during the pandemic our attendance dropped way off and we struggled just to hold our ground. Then (again like most churches), in the post-pandemic period we struggled to regain what we had lost. For more than a year we tried everything we could think of to recover, but for the most part, we were stuck in the mud – we just couldn’t seem to move forward and after more than a year of trying, we were still stuck at about 70% of our pre-pandemic attendance.

Oh, and our sign was falling down.

But then we purchased the new digital sign and … we started to grow – and we haven’t stopped yet. Today our average Sunday attendance is better than even before the pandemic.

Now let me be very clear, I am not saying the new digital sign is the reason for our growth. I don’t know of anyone who decided to join our church because they think we have a cool sign. I can show no direct cause-and-effect between the sign and the growth. All I can do is report the chronological chain of events that occurred at our church. Before we got the new sign, we were stuck in the mud and couldn’t seem to grow no matter what we did. Shortly after we got the new sign we started growing and we haven’t stopped yet.

Those are just the facts, ma’am.

Coincidence? Perhaps. But over almost thirty years in church leadership I’ve noticed a trend that when God’s people diligently seek His guidance about important issues, a lot of coincidences seem to happen. Assign to that any meaning you like, but as for me and my family, we will praise the Lord!

By the way, did I mention that we have a really cool digital sign? You should drive by and see it. Maybe on a Sunday morning, say around 10:00. And while you’re here, why not stay for the service?

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville)

Laying the foundation for the church of tomorrow

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Hearing from God”

Our Bible verse for today: “I have become all things to all people, so that I may by every possible means save some. Now I do all this because of the gospel, so that I may share in the blessings.” 1 Corinthians 9:22-23 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Laying the foundation for the church of tomorrow”

Let’s return now to our discussion from yesterday regarding how our congregation arrived at a difficult group consensus about an important issue without allowing the dynamic of groupthink to drive the outcome. As I noted yesterday, it took us three-and-one-half years to decide the issue of what kind of new sign we should purchase for the church. During that time God spoke to us about it in numerous ways.

First, the circumstances pertaining to the situation changed over time. The old sign continued to deteriorate to the point that we could no longer delay replacing it. Something had to be done. Second, during that time the financial position of the church improved significantly. It had always been strong (we weren’t in debt and we did have reserves), but it had improved to the point where we could easily write a check for the most expensive option (the digital sign) without it having a significant negative impact on our savings.

The third thing that happened is that in one of our meetings about the sign, we considered the importance of the lesson the Apostle Paul taught in 1 Corinthians 9:19-23. In that passage Paul explained how he constantly adjusted his methods of ministry in order to be most effective with whatever group he was attempting to reach. Whether it was Jew or Gentile, old or young, rich or poor, educated or uneducated, Paul adjusted his methods accordingly. The message never changed, but the methods of communicating that message had to change in order to effectively communicate with different groups of people.

That example in the Bible was God speaking to us about our sign. We needed to consider generational and cultural issues. The fact is that we live in a digital age now. Technology is a big deal and it is an effective means of communicating with young adults, teenagers, and children. Even if a digital sign doesn’t seem important to the older generation, it does matter to the younger ones, and one of the most important jobs of the older generation in any church is to help lay the foundation for the church of tomorrow. As decisions are made in a church, they have to be made with an eye towards the future. The entire two-thousand-year history of the Christian church is a textbook example of that. The Holy Spirit overcomes generational, cultural, language, and geographic boundaries as the message continues to spread. The message has never changed, but the methods of communicating it have continuously changed.

As we did our research and sought counsel on the issue, we discovered that multiple studies confirm the effectiveness of digital signs in communicating with the younger generations – which is why so many businesses, organizations, schools, and churches, have moved to digital signs.

All of that helped us to hear from God on the issue and to arrive at a group consensus based upon what we were hearing from Him. And how did that work out for us? I’ll have some final thoughts to share with you about that tomorrow. For now, as your group seeks to hear from God on an issue, I encourage you to take your time and do your homework,

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville)

The Holy Spirit will unite us

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Hearing from God”

Our Bible verse for today: “Teach me your way, Lord, and I will live by your truth. Give me an undivided mind to fear your name.” Psalm 86:11 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “The Holy Spirit will unify us”

At Oak Hill Baptist Church we needed a new church sign out by the road in front of the church. The old one had been there for decades. It was discolored, parts of it were broken, the lights only worked intermittently, and the brick frame was crumbling. We had tried several times to clean it up and repair it but it was too far gone. It had to be replaced.

We appointed a committee to do some research and they came up with several proposals. We could replace the existing sign with a simple static wooden sign. Or, we could get a new version of the existing sign that lights up and allows us to display a static message that could be manually changed. Or, if we were willing to spend the money, we could purchase a modern digital sign.

When the results were presented to the church in a business meeting, I was surprised at how little consensus there was. There were groups in support of each of the three options and some people had strong feelings about it. This was unusual in our church life. Usually, we quickly arrive at a consensus and seldom do people get firmly dug in regarding one option or another on any issue.

So, we agreed we would not move forward on the project until there was a strong majority consensus on one of the options. We also agreed that we would not attempt to pressure each other to change our minds (we wanted to avoid the groupthink dynamic). Instead, we would table the issue for a while, giving the Holy Spirit time to quietly work among us.

It ended up taking three and one-half years to resolve the issue. During that period, we discussed it three additional times but always in a spirit of peace and love, and each time, in an effort to avoid dissension, we chose to table the issue. We also did not want to go forward with an option that might achieve a majority but which still was opposed by a large segment of the congregation.

How we eventually arrived at a group consensus without allowing the dynamic of groupthink to drive the outcome is a story that will have to be completed tomorrow – there’s too much to tell in a single devotional message. But the point to note so far is that we didn’t rush it. We were patient and we were determined to do it right. It needed to be the Holy Spirit who unified our thoughts and brought us to consensus on the issue.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville)

How to avoid groupthink in the church

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Hearing from God”

Our Bible verse for today: “So they said to one another, “Let’s appoint a leader and go back to Egypt.” Numbers 14:4 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “How to avoid groupthink in the church”

In Numbers 14:1-4 the Israelites had just heard the report from the twelve spies who had been sent by Moses to scope out the Promised Land. You remember the story, ten of the spies brought back a negative report and argued that the land could not be conquered, despite what God had said. Only Caleb and Joshua, then joined by Moses, were positive and urged the people to obey God. But after all the arguing was done, the vote was overwhelming – the people decided to turn around. This is a classic example of “groupthink” leading a group to a very bad decision.

“Groupthink” is a dysfunctional decision-making process whereby one influential person convinces someone else of something; then the two of them go to work on a third person; and then the three of them convince others; and soon, everyone is coming to the same flawed conclusion. But they’re doing so because they have been influenced by others and the more who come into agreement, the more powerful the argument seems because so many others agree with it. In a church setting the group will usually conclude that “this is obviously the will of God because we are all in agreement.”

How do we avoid the slippery slope of groupthink? It’s not that hard. As a group, simply listen for the voice of God in the five ways we have learned about this month. First, check the group consensus against Scripture. The Holy Spirit will never lead us as individuals or as a group to do anything that is out of synch with the Word of God. Whatever conclusion the group has arrived at must have solid Biblical backing. Don’t try to do this from memory. Open the Bible and read the passages and principles that apply to this situation. Whatever conclusion the group has arrived at must be clearly and directly supported by passages and principles as they appear, in context, in the Bible. And if it does not, then the group consensus is mistaken. God’s guidance will always be consistent with the Bible.

Likewise, consider the circumstances of the issue carefully and prayerfully. Just as God is amazingly consistent in our individual lives, He is very consistent in our church life too. A spiritual map works just as well for a group as it does for an individual.

On important issues of church life, it is also wise to get counsel from outside sources who have expert knowledge in the issue being considered. Then, after having done “due diligence” by carefully seeking God in the Bible, and considering the applicable circumstances, and seeking counsel, now go back to prayer, discussion, and voting.

Remember, God wants to be heard and understood by His people. You will seek Him and find Him when you seek Him with all your heart. With just a little extra work and caution, the perils of groupthink can be avoided. Tomorrow, I will give you an example of how one congregation arrived at an important decision and avoided groupthink in the process.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville)

God speaks through the voice of the church

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Hearing from God”

Our Bible verse for today: “As they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set aside for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” Then after they had fasted, prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them off.” Acts 13:2-3 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “God speaks through the voice of the church”

The last of the five ways God typically speaks to His people in our day, as taught in the Bible study, “Experiencing God: Knowing and Doing the Will of God” by Henry Blackaby, is through the voice of the church. God typically speaks to us through the Bible, prayer, the circumstances of our lives, through trusted counselors, and by means of the voice of the church.

The most important way in which God uses the voice of the church to express His will is when He calls someone to a major ministry assignment in a church. In such cases the entire congregation needs to pray, discuss, question, pray some more, and then vote. If the process is done correctly and well, God expresses His will on the matter by means of a strong majority, or maybe even with a unanimous vote.

We read about that in Acts 13:2-3 when the church gathered to confirm the call of Barnabas and Saul to be sent out as missionaries. It is also common for a church to confer a “license to preach” upon a new preacher, or to ordain a new minister. In such cases the congregation is affirming the call of God upon that person’s life to go forth and perform that ministry. When an entire congregation of Spirit-led people arrive at a group consensus, that is a good indication that they are hearing from God.

God also uses the voice of the church to communicate with His people through preaching and teaching, and through music in a worship service. God also speaks as the congregation ministers to one another, taking care of each other in the name of Jesus. Likewise, God speaks to and works among His people as they participate in fellowship events and group ministry projects. All of that occurs within the context of the gathered church and it is a means by which God speaks.

The voice of the church can serve as a powerful megaphone in the hands of the Holy Spirit. This is one of the reasons the Bible teaches us to be so protective of our church life and to keep discord, selfishness, slander, gossip, and petty divisions out. Such things become a black cloud hovering over a congregation, quenching the work of the Spirit among them and minimizing or even silencing the voice of God in that place.

Now that we have addressed each of the five ways in which God typically speaks to us in our day, it’s time for us to return to our discussion about the negative group dynamic known as “groupthink.” I briefly addressed this in a devotional earlier in this series. There is a relatively simple way to make sure the dynamic of groupthink does not lead our group to false conclusions. We’ll think about that tomorrow.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville)

God speaks through wise counselors

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Hearing from God”

Our Bible verse for today: “A fool’s way is right in his own eyes, but whoever listens to counsel is wise.” Proverbs 12:15 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “God speaks to us through wise counselors”

There’s an old saying that goes “The man who defends himself in court has a fool for a lawyer and a bigger fool for a client.” There are many versions of that saying, and it’s an open debate who said it first – some suggest Benjamin Franklin, others insist it was Abraham Lincoln. I also understand it’s a basic rule of thumb in the legal profession (sometimes a lawyer needs a lawyer and only a foolish lawyer would be his own lawyer).

The point is that as Solomon taught in Proverbs 12:15, and which is repeated many times in the Bible, there is wisdom to be gained by listening to good counselors. This is one of the ways God speaks to us. As we have already learned, although God can speak to us in an infinite number of ways, in our day He speaks most frequently through the Bible, through prayer, through the circumstances of our lives, through the wisdom of wise counselors, and through the testimony of the church.

When seeking to hear from God (especially about something important), it’s essential that we include a small group of wise counselors to prayerfully think through the situation with us. But caution is needed here. Not every Christian is wise, and not all are equally spiritually mature. We should be careful and selective about whose counsel we’re going to listen to. They need to be people who are mature in their faith, and who are not prone to jumping to conclusions. They should be thoughtful and prayerful people who are reasoned and logical, and who are not given to being overly opinionated, rigid, or biased, and who do not try to force their opinions on others. (Also be wary of anyone who is a little too eager to appoint themselves to this role in your life.)

Once you do have a group whose wisdom you trust and who you know have your best interest in mind, be sure they know they have the freedom to speak openly and honestly to you, even if you may not like or agree with what they’re saying.

So, one the one hand you should be careful not to rely on “yes” people who are likely to simply tell you what you want to hear, and on the other hand, you want to avoid including an overly opinionated person with an agenda of their own.

Pray about this and ask God to help you identify the right people to include, and then make sure you do rely on wise and spiritually mature counselors to help you hear from God. This is one of the ways God frequently speaks to us.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville)