How Does God Make Recommendations?

The problem started when people, or maybe the mind, placed Christianity and boring in the same sentence. Humans are quick to hang their personal sentiments on you with things like, how can you have this amount of piercings? Or why do you wear trousers? Or coloured hair for a Christian? 

But if we are going to judge by that, look at Samson, the Bible says God told his parents to not cut his hair because He had chosen him, that means this man walked about as a believer with dreads. And he didn't need to explain to any Pharisee or drop an offering to convince them that he was "Jew" enough. For today, let's allow Solomon breathe because it is still unimaginable how he survived with over a thousand women.

Does this justify immodesty? No.

But there is no one way to hear God. The Bible shows us this with the story of Moses whom he spoke to through the burning bush to Samuel with the still voice, and even to Solomon whom he appeared to in a dream. There is no straight pattern.

Personally, I enjoy reading a lot and there are two things I look out for when I read a book. Command of language and, the writer. You know those books with titles like sentences – that tell you, you're in for the best ride of your life. Because, people who can think up good titles off the top of their heads have to be demigods. 

I'm reading one of this kind of books on this day, and pages into it, I realize that I'll be tainting my spirituality by reading to the end. But the mind is the first place sin is inhabited, i like the book so much I can't stop. And then I ask myself, to show I am spiritual enough do I have to only read Christian books? 

Now, why I felt I'll be tainting my spirituality is because it is a historical fiction book on Africa. Before Christianity came to Africa, there was a mode of worship. Though sometimes contradictory, it tells about people. And you're familiar with the you cannot serve two masters at a time portion of the Bible. So how do I love this kind of books and still say I am Christian enough.

And then they are other kind of books that normalize certain things the Bible condemns, and as faith believers we are taught that whatever is a sin in the beginning is a sin up until the end. So, should we reduce our love for literature or art to ascertain ourselves righteous? How do we know the difference between spirituality and religion? 

In the book of John, Paul told the Jews of how God had accepted the Gentiles the way they were and not needed them to be anything more – as long as they believe Jesus is the son of God. When does it get to a point where being a Gentile is too much even as a Christian now? At what point does two contradictory religion meet? 

Say, all your life you have known that at the point of prayer a woman should cover her hair, and there are other believers who are as spiritual but do not think this is compulsory, how easy will it be to call yourselves brethren. 

I have learned that the best way to write your thoughts is to write them as questions. This way they're not telling or insisting, they are asking. This way, they are doubts and not facts; and no one can point fingers at you for asking questions. 

Infact, understanding God is not all perfection; the Bible is one of the most thought provoking books there is. Take for example when Jesus cast out the legion of demons from the man and cast it into over two thousand pigs, do you ever think of what became of the farmer? Imagine he had taken a loan or borrowed money to keep his farm going and Jesus sent in a legion of demons into them and the Bible never made mention of him again. 

This is one story out of a thousand disturbing stories. But how do you know when God makes a recommendation? More so, how can you discern when he doesn't approve of your choice?

How Does God Make Recommendations:

1. Through the Bible ( His word): 

In Mark 7:15; Jesus said to the crowd, "there is nothing that goes into you from the outside which can make you ritually unclean. Rather it is what comes out of you that makes you unclean".

Most times, it is just us beating ourselves up for nothing. Trying to be perfect when God made us precious. Again in Colossians 2:18-23, Paul wrote to the Church; he said "when you have died with Christ and are set free from the ruling spirits of the universe. Why, then, do you live as though you belonged to this world? Why do you obey such rules as, don't handle this, don't taste that, don't touch the other?"

This scripture feels to me like God saying, you worry for nothing child. 

2 . Personal discernment: 

Listen to your body. Pay attention to your mind. 

One of the letters that really struck me was the one Paul told the church that if you think something is wrong and you do it still, you have sinned, even though it may not be "wrong".

Say for instance, you don't feel right about going to a particular place and out of pressure you finally go there, even though nothing wrong happened. You have sinned against your body.

On this one, God help us.

3. By giving you peace:

When God approves of your decision there is a certain kind of calmness that comes with it, you're not panicking or fidgeting. It happens with ease. God brings peace and if your choice comes chaos, it is not of God. 

In conclusion; 

Remember that most of this sentiments are made from the law. And Christ died so that the law has no effect over us. Rom. 7:7a says: "Shall we say, then, that the law itself is sinful? Of course not! But it was the law that made me know what sin is".

God's recommendation is in Ephesians 5:2, "your life must be controlled by love, just as Christ loved us". Your career choice, your life choices should be controlled by love and discernment, but do not put yourself in a box. 

The meaning I got when reading the parable of talents is that God gives every one of his human creations gifts. That is, before you even decide to be born again, you have existent abilities and talents. He doesn't want you to lock them in a box and bring it back to him. The world is made so you can live in it, people's law shouldn't tell you how to be or how not to be.

Finally, "Avoid stupid arguments, long lists of ancestors, quarrels, and fights about the law" (Titus 3:9)