Love Adheres to Godly Advice

Scripture: Ruth 3:6-8

So she went down to the threshing floor and did according to all that her mother-in-law had commanded her.  When Boaz had eaten and drunk and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of grain; and she came secretly, and uncovered his feet and lay down.  It happened in the middle of the night that the man was startled and bent forward; and behold, a woman was lying at his feet.

Insights: Yesterday we learned we need to seek out godly advice.  Today, however, we go one step further.  I have known people who have come to me for advice, and at times on a fairly regular basis, but at the end of the day, they have not adhered to the advice I had given.  In many of these cases all the individual wanted was someone with whom to unload their woes.  In other situations, they were coming for advice, but with the intent to tell me what they were going to do.  When this scenario occurred, it was because they wanted me to grant them my blessing.  The sad part is, in most of this second situation, the person was asking me to condone his/her sinful decision.  In those situations I had to tell the person I was incapable of supporting his/her decision.  Beloved, here is the point.  After receiving godly advice, Ruth “did according to all that her mother-in-law had commanded her.”  Here is a woman who adheres to the advice and models for us the proper response to godly wisdom.  When I think about Ruth’s proper response, it make me evaluate my life and the council I have been given in the past.  There have been times in which I have listened to this advice and there have been other times in which I have not.  I believe this is true for all of us.  I would encourage, however, to be more on the receptive side of adhering to godly advice.  These individuals with whom we have been given council are not living in some ivory tower somewhere spitting out platitudes which are not relevant to our daily lives.  These individuals are often in the trenches.  They have faced what we have faced and made it through to the other side.  They have sought the Lord God through His Word and they themselves have often times been mentored along their life journey as well.  Let us listen.  Let us prayer.  Let us read God’s Word.  Let us adhere to what we have learned.

Questions:

1. When you are given godly advice, do you adhere to it?

2. If you don’t, what do you think is the reason for rejecting such advice?

Prayer: Father, thank You for the people You have put in my life to give me advice which honors You.  Grant me the courage to listen and follow the advice given to me.  Amen.