Good morning! We have all heard the cliché, ”father knows best!” This phrase is repeated incessantly in family sitcoms on a weekly basis. I can just picture now a smiling father shaking his head in unknowing self-righteousness as he instills this maligned lesson upon his distraught child. As the dramatic music plays in the background and the tears begin to flow, it appears that the child has just learned a life-changing truth.
Indeed, father often does know best, but not as much as we might think, or is commonly thought. Actually, it’s more accurate to say, “Our Father knows best!”
That’s right; it’s our Father in Heaven Who knows best – for everything! So why, my friends, do we so often insist on relying on our own thinking??? Don’t we know how deceptive our own intellects can be?
Solomon certainly did; look what he wrote in Proverbs 14:12, “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” What he is saying is that if we pursue a course of life dictated by our own thinking, we will ultimately end up in certain spiritual death, and possibly a pre-mature physical death as well.
So, I guess all those Disney movies and contemporary-pop songs are wrong then. If we “follow our heart”, or “listen to our heart” we will not discern the best course of action for our lives, oh no my friend, but rather we will end up in a world of turmoil and frustration!
Surely we’ve all determined that it is not wise to listen to our own thinking when it comes to directing our lives. And we also know that we ought to listen to our Heavenly Father for guidance. But how exactly do we do this? It’s not like He is going to verbally and audibly instruct us in our ways, so how, pray-tell, do we communicate with Him?!?
There are three ways actually–The Spirit, The Word, and God-ordained authority.
See John 14:26 “But the Comforter, [which is] the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things…” Jesus is telling us the Comforter will lead us as God the Father, Himself, would lead us. So, if we simply yield to the inner persuasion of the Holy Spirit, we will essentially do as our Father knows best! Remember, He said he will instruct us and teach us in the way we should go. He will guide us with His eye (Psalm 32:8).
See Hebrews 4:12, “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword…and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” In this verse, Paul is telling us the Father has provided the Scriptures as a roadmap for determining the proper pathways of our myriad thoughts. If we use the Scriptures, captivate proper thoughts, and cast down improper ones, we will find our answers to be the answers of our Father Who knows best. Remember, the Word is a light and lamp for our pathway. (Psalm 119)
Our final means of communication with the Father can be found in Romans 13:1, “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.”
Here, Paul is teaching us if we want to obey the Father, we should heed our leadership’s leadings. There are five basic “heads” to our God-ordained leadership: parents, preachers, teachers, employers, and the government. God intends for us to use these avenues of guidance for directing the course of our lives, for He works through them to guide us. So once again, if we obey our God-given leadership, we are obeying the Father’s instruction, for only the Father knows best.
Rest assured, our Father in Heaven has nothing but the best in store for us. The prophet Jeremiah told us so, “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.”
Praise His Holy Name! When it comes to directing our lives there is no need to be pressed or stressed. Rather, be blessed as you engage with zest in your quest for rest by relying on the Father Who knows best!
Print This Post
