Daily Devotion

Follow Directions

‘But his mother told the servants, "Do whatever he tells you."’ John 2:5

On my desk, on a little apple that I got at one of the career fairs I recruited at, I have a list of 5 things for a “Great, Blessed Day”. Attached to my monitor stand I have a variation of that list with a different title, “Steps To A Good Day”. I noticed that I have these directions for myself to avoid being angry or in a bad mood, that I don’t always follow. Here are the two lists:

Steps for a Great Blessed Day
1. Seek God first. (Matt 6:33)
2. Be positive. Find the good in every situation. (1 Thess 5:16)
3. Stop worrying. (Matt 6:34)
4. Realize that there are things for which you have no control.(Col 3:15)
5. Have faith, believe you have received it, and let it go.(Mark 11:24)
“If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.” John 15:7

Steps To A Good Day
1. Remember you are blessed and highly favored(Prov 3:4, Prov 8:35)
2. God never puts more on you than you can bear (Matt 11:28, 1Cor 10:13)
3. God will give you the desires of your heart if His word resides in you. (Jn 15:7)
4. Have faith! (Mark 11:22, Matt 21:21, Heb 10:39)

Yes surprisingly I was able to find scriptures in support of all I have written, but honestly I didn’t follow the directions I set for myself. I allowed the things that happened some days to dictate how I would feel. I did not follow these basic, simple directions. I let my mind tell me what to do—obviously that did not work because plenty of days I would leave agitated or aggravated.

That is one of the first things we are taught to do in school. Follow directions. On homework assignments, in class, in dealing with other people, following directions is stressed. If you follow the directions on the assignment, you are likely to get a good grade. So why don’t we carry that over into our spiritual lives? Why don’t we do what God tells us to do? Why don’t we listen to Him like we listened to teachers and bosses? I won’t dare say parents because we all have disobeyed our parents at some point or another, or we have even done something we saw them doing. Why don’t we do what GOOD doctors say? For the men folk: why don’t we even follow the directions for putting something together?

If you read the passage John 2:1-11, you will see that the servants above followed Jesus’ directions and brought the wedding party the best wine afterwards. They did exactly what He said.

It is in our natural, fleshly behavior to be disobedient. Like a teenager, it is second nature to rebel against the instructions of a parent. How can you expect breakthrough if you don’t do what God says? How can you expect any of God’s promises to hold true for you if you are disobedient! I’m definitely talking to myself, because I wake up nearly every morning at 6:15am and go back to sleep when I should get up! But I want to keep growing, keep progressing, and keep moving forward so I cannot do the same things and expect anything but the same results. It’s time to change and read the directions, and follow through this time around.

‘If someone claims, "I know God," but doesn't obey God's commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth.’ 1 John 2:4