Seeking Confirmation

Verse of the Day: 1 Samuel 10:7, 9: And let it be, when these signs come to you, that you do as the occasion demands; for God is with you. 9 So it was, when he had turned his back to go from Samuel, that God gave him another heart; and all those signs came to pass that day.

Samuel met with Saul and anointed him king (v.1). However, he does not just send him off to rule over Israel. Samuel tells Saul three things he will encounter after their meeting. These three incidents will be occasions of confirmation for Saul. They will be confirmation of his calling by God, confirmation that Samuel is a true prophet, whom he, Saul, should seek godly counsel from in his role as king of Israel, and to give him assurance that God is with him as he rules God’s people. Today, as we walk with the Lord, we too should be looking for confirmation from God in respect to our service to Him and His plan for our lives. For those who seek God’s will, this is an easy one to answer. If you and I have access to a Bible, we have access to God’s will. Every time we read, “this is the will of God” or “thus says the Lord” or any form of a command in Scripture, this is the will of God. In following God’s will, we will find God’s plan. How then do we receive confirmation? First, we must prayerfully search the Scriptures. The Bible and prayer must be the first source of any confirmation. I will warn, however, that we must not search the Scriptures looking for a verse to back up what we feel needs to happen. We must search the Scriptures, truly seeking for God to lead and us to follow. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 tells us, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” The Word of God will always confirm God’s will and God’s plan because it is inspired, or “God-breathed”. All of it, from cover to cover, is profitable for what we should believe about God, man, and life in general. It convicts, corrects, and teaches us how to stay on the path of righteousness. It equips us for every task and every mission God lead us on. This means that we cannot afford to read it occasionally, or skim it “here and there”. We must meditate on it, pray on it, and revisit it over and over again. Along with prayerfully reading and studying God’s Word, we should seek godly counsel. God can certainly use others to confirm our prayers and His plan for us. We need to seek wise counsel from people who are truly wise, and not people who will just tell us what we want to hear. Proverbs 11:14 says, “Where there is no counsel, the people fall; but in the multitude of counselors there is safety.” Proverbs 12:15 also says, “The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but he who heeds counsel is wise.” Finally, God can use circumstances as a way of giving us confirmation that we are on the right path. We see this again and again in God’s Word; those “just happened to be” moments that lead God’s people to exactly where He wants them. When Joseph was searching for his brothers, “there just happened to be” a random stranger in the field ready to give him direction (Genesis 37). While Saul was looking for his father’s lost donkeys, Samuel “just happened to be” in the same area. This is where I must caution each of us. In seeking God’s confirmation for what we should do in any given situation, or when we are seeking confirmation for how we should be serving or which direction we should be moving in life, know that we have an enemy who wants to derail us. Our enemy, Satan and his devils, wants to draw us away from God. He wants to destroy us and rob God of His glory, worship, and praise, we give Him. John 10:10 reminds us, “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” We must not allow our emotions and feelings to override God’s truth. If what we feel, as we seek God’s confirmation, is contrary to God’s Word, then our feelings and emotions are wrong. The devils love to play on our feelings of guilt and regret to make us feel unworthy and derail us. If we face troubles for standing up for what is right, even within our own family, remember that Jesus said this in Matthew 10:34-39, “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword. 35 For I have come to ‘set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law’; 36 and ‘a man’s enemies will be those of his own household.’ 37 He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. 38 And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. 39 He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.” Know that regardless of what we face, God will always give the confirmation we seek, if we are truly seeking it.

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His gift of salvation (Rom 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive Him and His gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).