Waiting on the Lord for Direction

God speaks to his people by his Spirit and he makes his voice clear to us: “Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, ‘This is the way, walk in it.’ Whenever you turn to the right hand or whenever you turn to the left” (Isaiah 30:21).

Some people ask, “How can I hear his voice?” The voice of God’s Spirit comes to us primarily through scriptures. But before we can hear his voice of direction, God requires something of us. We must stand still and wait upon him to act. This is not a suggestion, but a commandment. And it is the secret to our total victory and deliverance. On many occasions the Lord commanded his people to stand still.

After Samuel anointed Saul as king, at one point he said to him, “Stand still here awhile, that I may announce to you the word of God” (1 Samuel 9:27). Samuel was saying, “Saul, I’ve just anointed you and already your mind is racing. You’re thinking, ‘What is God doing? How can I know his voice, his will?’ Stop striving, Saul. Do you want to hear from God and get his direction? Then stand still and listen.”

We see another instance of waiting on the Lord for direction in King Jehoshaphat. Judah was being invaded by a coalition of mighty armies and Scripture says, “Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah” (2 Chronicles 20:3). The people began to cry out to God. There is nothing wrong with being afraid; in fact, God is longsuffering toward us and does not hold our fear against us.

“Then the Spirit of the Lord came … in the midst of the assembly” (20:14). Here is what the Spirit commanded: “Do not be afraid nor dismayed … for the battle is not yours, but God’s … You will not need to fight in this battle. Position yourselves, stand still and see the salvation of the Lord, who is with you” (20:15-17).

We may fail in our discernment, our hearing, our decisions. But we can rejoice in our God, who is our strength! He will make us to walk in the right way. It is all his work. And we must simply yield, stand still and see his salvation!