Put Yourself Under Authority

As I read through Proverbs 2, I can't help but think of the importance of being able to know who to listen to and who to not listen to when making choices.   This chapter warns us against men who turn down dark paths and women who seduce men to make poor choices.   If you are not prepared before you meet these people, you will be at their mercy.  

Girls, do you recognize men that are Godly?   Guys, do you have a built in alarm in your heart that will go off and send you running for the hills when you are around a girl that will persuade you to do things you never thought you would do?   These are things that you need to be concerned about if you are interested in God's path of wisdom.   Look how the chapter ends:  

Follow the steps of good men instead,
    and stay on the paths of the righteous.
21 For only the godly will live in the land,
    and those with integrity will remain in it. 

Follow the paths of good men.  Follow the paths of people who have gone down the road you want to go.   Follow the paths of people who have taken the path of wisdom.   Find a way to get those people around you and listen to them.  Making wise choices really begins with surrounding yourself with people who know how to make the choices that you want to be making.  

One of the first things to look for in a person who makes wise choices is their view of the word of God.   Ask yourself, what does this person think of the Bible?   Does this person base their decisions on what God thinks?  Or does this person just go with whatever is the popular trend these days?   Does this person just go with the crowd all the time?   Do they ever stand up for what they know to be right from God's word?  

Think about it for a few minutes.   If you want to become a police officer, wouldn't it make sense to get to know some good police officers and to make it your priority to learn from them?   If you want to be a good writer, doesn't it makes sense to surround yourself with people who write well?   If you want to be a good musician, doesn't it make sense to hang around a few people that are better musicians than you are?   If you want to be a good chess player, do you know what you should do?   You should play against people that are better than you and you should become more comfortable with losing.   That's how you will learn.

If you want to be a wise person in God's eyes, what do you think you need to do?  Sure, reading your bible and praying every day is part of it.  But if that's all you do and you surround yourself with people who continually make poor choices, it will not be long before you are making poor choices too.  The Christian life was never meant to be lived out on it's own.  We're supposed to be in community.  We're supposed to be learning from those who are older and wiser than us.  

I am deeply concerned about teenagers who only go to youth group but never attend church and who really don't know any older Christians.   What are you going to do when you are too old for youth group?   Where will you go for Christian community?  Who are you learning from?  Who are the strong Christians in your life that you can call on when you have a tough decision to make?   Thiink about it.  Feel free to share your thoughts.