You are very much welcome to another episode of the Fireplace. Today’s session is going to be a question and answer edition on divine guidance. Over the past four episodes, we have gone through lessons on how to be guided and directed by God in the journey of life. Lines upon lines, precepts upon precepts, we have explored scriptures and built understanding on how God desires to lead His Children in the pathways of life. To wrap up this amazing series, we have a closing charge for you and a number of commonly asked questions on the subject of divine guidance and direction. Get ready to learn and be instructed once again! Welcome to the fire experience.
Divine guidance is directly linked to inquiry. One of the things that made David stand out among many biblical characters was his constant ability to inquire of the Lord. David didn’t fight battles based on assumption; he asked the Lord for direction every step of the way, whether to go, when to go, and how to go. David fought the Lord’s battles, not just by strength, but by direction. He understood the weight of divine instruction. The reason many people struggle in life is because they attempt to function by human logic alone, ignoring the necessity of God’s counsel. When you walk without guidance, you risk stepping out of divine alignment.
The reason many people struggle in life is because they attempt to function by human logic alone, ignoring the necessity of God’s counsel.
One of the things we seem to have lost in the body of Christ today is the discipline of inquiry. Perhaps it’s because we have pastors and prophets around us, and we’ve subconsciously delegated our access to God to them. But God still expects us to come boldly into His presence and ask Him anything. God wants sons and daughters, not clients. In Isaiah 30:21, the bible says, “Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, ‘This is the way, walk in it,’ whenever you turn to the right hand or whenever you turn to the left.” Divine guidance is not just a spiritual luxury; it’s a necessity. It affects our everyday decisions-from where to go, what to do, who to relate with, and even when to speak. One important reason why divine guidance is so important is because it is meant to be part of our daily life, not just something we tap into during crisis. Romans 8:14 (AMP) explains this well. It says, “For all who are allowing themselves to be led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.” The condition in this verse is not just being a Christian; it’s allowing yourself to be led. That means submission is key. Divine guidance will not force itself on you. God is gentle. He knocks; He doesn’t barge in. Until you come to a place where you surrender your control and invite the Holy Spirit to lead you, you’ll keep navigating life by trial and error.
Until you come to a place where you surrender your control and invite the Holy Spirit to lead you, you’ll keep navigating life by trial and error.
Proverbs 3:5-6 (NKJV): “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” This Scripture is both an instruction and a promise. It tells us what to do; trust God and acknowledge Him and it tells us what God will do in return; direct our paths. When we trust God, we’re saying, “Lord, I may not understand, but I choose to follow You anyway.” Proverbs 16:1 says, “The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, is from the LORD.” The Message translation explained it deeper; “Mortals make elaborate plans, but God has the last word.” This is a clear message from God! You can plan all you want, but it is only what aligns with God’s will that will stand. This is why we must prioritize seeking His face before taking steps, especially major ones. Before you say yes to that job, that relationship, that journey, ask God first.
When you walk without guidance, you risk stepping out of divine alignment.
In my personal walk, I’ve experienced God’s guidance over and over again. One of such moments happened during a personal retreat. I decided to go on a tongue-stroll (praying in tongues as I walked). While doing that, the Holy Spirit began to bring mental pictures to my heart. I saw a vision of gathering younger people in a camp in Iseyin, teaching them about God, and leading them to pray. I didn’t ignore the vision. I wrote everything down. This was how the vision for Student Prayer Retreat, one of the arms of my ministry was birthed. Before we even had our first meeting, there was no publicity, yet 70 people came. God moved powerfully in our midst and many were consecrated to God. What that experience taught me is that God doesn’t give empty instructions. His instructions are always tied to destinies. That gathering wasn’t just about me. It was about the people God had prepared to encounter Him through the platform He gave me. When God leads you, it’s never just for your benefit; it’s always for others too. The key was divine guidance and my willingness to yield. Whenever God leads you, He will finance and sustain what He’s leading you to do. Student Prayer Retreat was a full-day program and we needed to feed everyone. Naturally, it didn’t seem possible, but God miraculously provided. I learned that if it is God’s vision, then provision is guaranteed.
The secret to becoming a vessel that blesses others is to allow God to guide you, even in the little things.
There’s always provision attached to divine instruction. When you live a life that lacks God’s guidance, you’re not only harming yourself, you’re also harming the destinies connected to yours. In the school of purpose, your primary purpose is that you are made for God, and your secondary purpose is that you are made for others. If God is empowering you, it’s never just about you. He’s using you as a channel. Think of people like Esther, Joseph, and Paul. Their obedience had generational consequences. That’s why we must never trivialize what God tells us no matter how small it seems. You must also be ready for God to move you from the familiar into the unknown. Many times, I’ve had to speak or minister without knowing what to say and God simply told me, “GO.” The secret to becoming a vessel that blesses others is to allow God to guide you, even in the little things. Sometimes divine guidance will seem inconvenient, but obedience is worth it. This very blog is a testimony of divine guidance. I started The Fireplace Blog in 2019 but didn’t launch until 2020 because I didn’t receive the go-ahead in 2019. And the testimonies have been nothing short of powerful. Divine instruction must be obeyed, but also at the right time. The Lord will minister wisdom to your heart as you ponder on these words. The questions and answers are documented in the following paragraphs.
Divine instruction must be obeyed, but also at the right time.
QUESTION 1: How do you trust God when it seems like He doesn’t make sense?
ANSWER: One thing you must realize is that tribulations will come and when it comes, you will need to trust God even when nothing makes sense. The foundation of divine guidance is the revelation of God. Until the person of God becomes real to you, you cannot fully trust or be guided by Him. It didn’t make sense for the three Hebrew boys to trust God in the face of the fiery furnace, but they did because they knew the God they served. This revelation only comes through encounter. Apostle Joshua Selman once said, “Encounters sharpen our reality about God.” When God doesn’t make sense, look back. Recall His promises, revisit your encounters, and remember His faithfulness. Don’t let your emotions rewrite what God has already told you. You can also use the search button on the top right corner of the homepage on our blog here to search for the post titled: “Trusting God: When God fails to Show up”. It will help you.
QUESTION 2: Can you follow all the principles of divine guidance and still fail in an area of life?
ANSWER: No. If you genuinely follow the principles of divine guidance and open every area of your life to God, you cannot fail. The problem often is that many people only surrender some parts of their lives to God and only those parts function properly. David had structure and order. He had prophets, seers, and counselors. If you don’t want to fail, you need accountability. Get a discipler. You need someone to walk with you, someone you’re accountable to. Don’t live your life in isolation. You need a spiritual father, someone you’re connected to, who cares for you and can give instructions. If you’re the only one maintaining the relationship, something is off. Ask God to guide you to the right father figure, and remain submitted. Sometimes what keeps us grounded in divine direction is the voice of someone God has placed over us.
QUESTION 3: How do I hear from God through the Bible?
ANSWER: There are five ways God speaks through Scripture. Before reading your Bible, ask yourself: Is there a lesson for me to learn? Is there a promise for me to claim? Is there a commandment for me to obey? Is there a blessing for me to receive? Is there a life example I can learn from? The Bible is a speaking book. The Holy Spirit breathes on it when your heart is open. Approaching the Word of God with these questions opens your heart to receive instruction and direction through the Scriptures.
QUESTION 4: Do divine instructions get outdated?
ANSWER: Some divine instructions are time-bound. When God gives you an instruction, you must seek to know when to act on it and how long it’s valid for. Not every instruction is for immediate execution, and not all are for a lifetime.Some instructions are seasonal, while others are permanent mandates. This is why we must continue to ask God for clarity. Ask Him what He wants you to do per time. A past instruction must not be followed blindly in a new season. Sensitivity is key. God is a God of seasons. What He told you in the last season might not be His present emphasis for your life. That’s why you need to stay close and keep listening.
QUESTION 5: How do I know if I am on the right path? Is there a feeling of some sort to know? Is it possible to follow a path, and all is working well and it’s not from God?
ANSWER: To know you’re on the right path, you must first know whose path you’re following. Did God lead you there—through His Word, prophecy, or other divine means? Another test is whether your actions and decisions align with Scripture. Being governed by the Bible means walking in God’s path. Feelings aren’t reliable guides—they can mislead—but God’s Word remains constant. So, the surest test is how closely your path aligns with His Word. Also, just because a decision works out doesn’t mean it came from God. Success alone isn’t proof. In Scripture, some appeared successful yet failed God’s standard—like Solomon, whose heart turned from God even at the height of his fame. To truly test your path, ask, is God still speaking to you on the journey? Are you learning more about Him along the way? These are key ways to evaluate if you’re walking in His will.
QUESTION 6: How am I sure that it is God leading me and just my mind? Also, do I need to audibly hear God’s voice or see something supernatural to be sure that the leading is from God?
ANSWER: This kind of confusion often happens to believers who receive God’s voice through their thoughts. It’s important to understand that God does speak this way—just like how ideas suddenly drop into your mind. To discern if it’s from God, check if the thought is unrelated to your current thinking or recent events. If it aligns with Scripture, you can consider it a word from God and act on it. Hearing God’s audible voice or seeing into the supernatural isn’t how He commonly leads us daily. While those dimensions are real and can come with deeper spiritual pursuit, God’s primary way of leading is through His Word and the still small voice in our hearts, among other methods we’ve shared in earlier episodes.
QUESTION 7: What do I do when instructions are hard to follow?
ANSWER: When the instruction is hard to follow, you must learn to surrender to God and obey despite the hardness of the instruction. This is usually a test of your commitment to God and how matured you are in the things of the Spirit. It is okay to pour out your heart to God and express how weak you are, but don’t stop there. Ask HIm for strength to obey the hard instruction like Jesus did at Gethsemane. He can supply strength to your weak heart. Also, share the instruction with a fellow spiritual friend or your discipler so you can be strengthened by their words and also held accountable till you obey.
QUESTION 8: Can God send instructions through someone without communicating it to me?
ANSWER: As a New Testament believer, God desires to speak to you and make you a prophet to yourself. Prophecies from others are primarily meant to confirm what God has already told you. However, if you’re unable to discern His voice in a season, He may use a trusted person to deliver the message. Still, it’s essential to take such words back to God in prayer for personal conviction and confirmation. This practice nurtures accountability to God in your faith journey.
QUESTION 9: Is it every of God’s plans that takes long to come to fulfillment?
ANSWER: No! The plans of God comes with different timelines depending on the peculiarity of the assignment. It is the responsibility of the bearer of the assignment to spend time with God to understand the nature of the plan and pay the price to prepare and execute the plan when the time is right. There are also plans from God that requires that the bearer of it will go on certain spiritual and intellectual trainings that will prepare the bearer for the fulfillment of it. It is important to live a life of spiritual capacity building which will prepare us to bring the agenda of God to manifestation whenever He beckons on us.
QUESTION 10: How do I shun distractions to be fully aligned with the will of God?
ANSWER: Distraction sare major stumbling blocks that prevents believers from being aligned to God’s Will. To win this battle, you need to identify the things distracting you personally and be disciplined enough to take them out. You can also open up to a senior spiritual person or discipler that will help guide you to shun these habits. Some of the major distractions are; unbelieving/ungodly friends, addictions, character flaws, past scars and traumas, and so on. Prayerfully write out the distractions and cut them out till you are free from them.
In conclusion, divine guidance is not a one-time experience. It’s a journey, a daily walk with the Holy Spirit. You are not too young or too inexperienced to be led by God. He is always speaking but are you listening? Are you willing to obey? Are you patient enough to wait for His timing? Let your heart be open. Let your spirit be teachable. And may your life be a living testimony of God’s divine direction. You are blessed!