Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
This passage of scripture teaches us that we should not attempt to live or think independently of God, for we have limited knowledge and understanding of both the spiritual and physical worlds, of which we are a part. One of the greatest temptations to fallen man occurs when God has blessed us tremendously with material, intellectual, or spiritual blessings, for then the tendency is to gradually eliminate God from our thoughts and decision making processes, since we are very prone to feel that it was because of our own wisdom and acumen that success came our way. This tendency is in all human beings without exception, adversely affecting the hardened infidel, as well as the most spiritual saint, because independent thought and action is one of the by-products part of our fallen nature.
But this disposition should be addressed and uprooted from our hearts by the grace of God, for it will ultimately lead us into false and dangerous paths, which could then put our eternal salvation at risk. Whatever may seem right in our eyes should always be brought before God first, that we may get His counsel and instruction on the matter in question, for although He has granted us intelligence, yet our intellect was never intended to operate outside of the God factor, because loss, sin, and death are the inevitable results of any such course of action. This sobering truth is written in the word of God so that we may be humble enough to consult with God first before any decision or action is taken. Let's read:
Proverbs 14:12 There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
After Samuel was called to the priesthood, God gave him special tokens of His presence so that the hearts of the people would respect his God-ordained appointment, and so that they would understand that he was serving under God, to do His pleasure and not his own will. The serious impression made upon the minds of the people by the tokens of God's presence with Samuel can be observed by His approach to a town where the next king of Israel was to be anointed, for the scripture says that the people were quite uneasy by his visit. The reason for this was that God let not the words of Samuel fall to the ground, meaning that when Samuel spoke or prayed, something was going to happen. Let's read:
1st Samuel 16:4 And Samuel did that which the Lord spake, and came to Bethlehem. And the elders of the town trembled at his coming, and said, Comest thou peaceably? 5 And he said, Peaceably: I am come to sacrifice unto the Lord: sanctify yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice. And he sanctified Jesse and his sons, and called them to the sacrifice.
1st Samuel 3:19 And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground. 20 And all Israel from Dan even to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the Lord.
But even in Samuel's case, the same tendency to think and act independently of God surfaced on the occasion of the anointing of one of the sons of Jesse, for when Samuel saw the firstborn son Eliab, he immediately stated that he was the one chosen of God, a statement which proved to be incorrect, and which obviously caused some embarrassment, for if as stated before, God let none of his words fall to the ground, then the next logical question in this instance would be, was he speaking of his own volition by stating unequivocally that Eliab was the chosen one, or did God make a mistake through him. The obvious answer is that he spoke of his own will, for God never, ever makes any mistakes or miscalculations. Let's read:
1st Samuel 16:6 And it came to pass, when they were come, that he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely the Lord's anointed is before him. 7 But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.
In our own personal experiences we also need to walk humbly with God by submitting our ways unto him for confirmation or for disposal as He sees best. When God has blessed us intellectually of financially, the tendency after a while is to think and act on our own without consulting with God first, and this then presents a mouth-watering scenario for satan to now bring serious temptations our way, which we almost always fall for, since his intelligence quotient is much greater than ours, and because of this he can, and will hammer us in many unexpected times and ways, until we learn the most important lesson of our lives, that of not leaning unto our own misunderstanding.
In all of the thoughts, decisions, and actions of life, let's remember to seek God first, not only for His advice, but also for His will to be done, and let us always be willing to follow where He leads the way, for He sees the end from the beginning, and therefore can plan and execute with a thoroughness and exactness that can never be matched by any fallen, finite beings. We therefore end with a passage of scripture which confirms this sacred truth, and it is the will of God that from here on out, we may walk humbly with God in all things, in order to avoid the errors and mistakes that are so often made without His guidance. Let's read:
Isaiah 55:8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. 9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. 10 For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: 11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.
May God add His blessing to the study and practice of His word. "Good night" and God bless!