When It All Goes Wrong... Failed Discernment

March 3, 2018

THANK YOU, Lord Jesus, for helping us recover when we have failed in discernment and find ourselves adrift without direction. You're always there to catch us when we fall.

Dear friends, I can't think of many things that are more painful than making a big mistake in discernment. How does this happen? Well, there are many ways. But one thing is for sure--if He allows it, He is humbling us and causing us to pay much closer attention to what we get in prayer and how pure our motives and relationship really are.

For me, it is a time of being crushed into fine powder and having to completely re-think my relationship with the Lord.

I ask myself, 'Wow. Have I had a relationship with the Lord, or a familiar spirit?? How did I get so far out of line that He had to allow such a big mistake in discernment?'

Sometimes, this is His last resort to get us to go deeper, examine our hearts to see what we are missing that needs to be confessed. When we are moving along, feeling really good about ourselves and the direction we are going in, we can be so relaxed that we miss the little signals that something is not quite right here.

That's when He allows the big mistakes; He is trying to get our attention.

Just because you interpreted a Rhema a certain way does not mean God had meant it the way you interpreted it. Satan often uses this tactic to mislead you. He sees how God is speaking to us and twists it--just a bit--to fit the circumstance he is going to inject into our lives to throw us off track. 

He has done this to us countless times. Just because things line up as a confirmation... does not mean they were sent as a confirmation for what WE are thinking it confirms.

Two things are possible here. Perhaps the Lord allowed us to be deceived to humble us and draw us closer to His Heart, keeping our heads down low. Or, the rhemas were confirmations for something altogether different. But in our zeal for the Lord, and our own way, we assigned them to the wrong situation. 

The devils are opportunistic, looking for ways to slant things to their advantage. And if you have any attachment or desire to see things go a certain way--that can seriously infect your discernment.

They are total geniuses in reading your attachments. Believe me, they have a file and a history on you that you just can't even believe is so accurate. And they have that file, that history on you, so that they know how to manipulate you when they want to bring you down. They love to work against spiritually-minded Christians. Because we see the Lord's hand in so many things, we can easily be led astray by a few wispy confirmations that, really, are NOT from Him.

"Oh, look at that bumper sticker!! It's says 'Maryland' on it. I knew we were supposed to go there!"

lol... Don't laugh too loud--it happened to me...

"Oh, look! They called! That means that we're really supposed to be involved in their mission!"

Watch out, guys. That thing called 'self-will' is a monster! And the demons know exactly how to make that monster bring you down.

When everything is said and done, there is only ONE SURE way to discern--and that is the outcome and the fruit. The fruit doesn't lie, unless you twist it a little to make it fit your slant. But even if you do, sooner or later it's going to pop open and be revealed as something different than what you thought it was. You can't twist it in the wrong direction for too long. Truth has its own anointing and its own way of opening up something that was misunderstood. 

One key component to this is stepping back and looking at the situation from a distance and measuring it against the known will of God: when dealing with people, we look for attitudes and actions. Not to judge the person, but to measure what a person says against how they behave, what they do or do not do. Pay attention. If they pay attention or drift.

When you see cracks around the edges, that indicate a lack of sincerity or application, you can begin to put together a puzzle, yet not judging the person. Observing these things carefully, without assigning motives to the soul, gives you insight into the true direction they are headed in.  

In the end, when you find yourself saying, 'Something's not right here,' that is a caution from Holy Spirit. 

In a recent situation, I had to pay attention to that 'something'--which the Lord also confirmed in the last message I posted. I tend to overlook things, because I don't want to assign motives. However, the Lord told me not to discount these observations, that He allowed them to reveal something.

You see, the devils will play on your sense of responsibility to influence you with false guilt to follow through on something that just doesn't set right with you. 

"I ought to do that - that would be the right thing to do."

"I really should do it, but something doesn't feel right..."

That's when you need to stop and take another look--a long look.

The Enemy uses your compassion and love against you. They try to influence you with 'What will people say if I do that?' Or 'What will people say if I DON'T do that?'

They involve the opinions of men and religiosity in your thinking--whispering to one another, "Let's play the guilt card, 'What will other Christians think if you do that?' That will stop her."

I have made so many mistakes like this, that I really get firm when I realize the 'guilt and what will people think' cards are being played on me--because I have seen this tactic so many times before... and fallen for it, flat on my face--with very unpleasant consequences for everyone.

There are times the enemy will cause your thinking to go off track and will encourage you to do something really radical. We all can get to a point where we want something different from life and if we are 'super spiritual'--or we THINK we're 'super spiritual'...

Wow. Now there's a set-up!

...as well as discontented with where He has placed us, (another set-up) we can get it in our heads to do something way off the track.

For instance, I have had people show up here being absolutely certain that God sent them. Yet when they finally leave, there is a huge trail of disorder behind them. Did God really send them? Or are they getting mixed messages and confusing the voice of the enemy with the voice of God?

How do you know for certain that God is sending you somewhere and it's not just the enemy playing on your frustrations with where you are at?

The demons are very talented at painting a mental picture for you that really doesn't exist. But in this picture are all the things you hoped DID exist. You see all the elements that are in your heart's desire: a community with holy fellowship, rich opportunities for corporate worship, a place to stay when you get to the other end, people to affirm and bless you and unlimited time with the person you came to see.

If the enemy paints a picture like that, before you even think one more step ahead, (such as putting your things in storage, or getting directions to the location!) before you do any of that, you need to take a reality check. Like, make a phone call. Send an e-mail. Inquire and find out if that even exists?

The two people I am thinking of did not do this. They boldly forged ahead and showed up here, only to find two people living alone in a tiny house with five cats and a dog... without a community and without lodging for visitors.

But I can say from experience, I've learned these lessons the hard way, because I have only wanted fellowship and a real spiritual community and someone to counsel me and help me find direction. So, I allowed the enemy to paint a picture that didn't exist for ME--and very rashly I followed it. Only to be bitterly disappointed, leaving bad feelings behind and a trail of disorder. A mess to clean up after I left.

How can I prevent that from happening?

For one, think of the other person; think of how showing up could possibly affect them. I have told all of you, for a long time, that we are just two people, plus a couple of staff members who come during the week. We are just two people alone: no community, no events, no happenings, no fellowship. All we do is just quietly pray every day, sharing with you the wisdom the Lord gives us. I am not some kind of guru. I am a simple woman following God... making lots of mistakes and wanting to help you avoid doing the same.

If I have the responsibility to feed thousands of people every day through the simple practice of prayer and listening to God's voice--what will happen if someone shows up here needing my time? Will I be able to take care of both the visitor and the Channel?

No. The simple answer is, 'No'.

And that's not even beginning to think about the pressure it puts on you, when someone shows up and you don't want to leave them out in the cold. You want to do the right thing. But unfortunately, in order to be able to take care of Heartdwellers, the right thing is to turn them away. I don't have time like that, to spend on people. I try to put them up for a short span of time, and take extra care in discerning what's going on. And then, when the Lord reveals it to me--I have to move on it.

And so far, it's been, "I'm sorry. You can't stay here." And that's a hard thing to do. It's very hard.

But people who are needy don't always think about what their actions will do to others. They have a rosy picture painted and don't want to know ahead of time whether this reality exists; they just want what they need.

Had either one of these two people contacted me ahead of time, I would have put an absolute stop to it. But I know how it is--because I, too, have been fool-hardy and impulsive when I wanted something. I don't want to know I can't have it; I just want what I want and am willing to deal with the consequences, if I'm wrong, when I get there.

Dear ones, in your discernment, be very, very careful. Do not allow your desires to out-weigh prudence, reason and good manners. Be willing to take another look at a direction you think you are being led in. Take another LONG look and wait on God to confirm each step. Be willing to confront the reality that no such thing, you are thinking of, exists! And humble yourself before the Lord if He begins to give you warning signs that you are moving out of His will. This is so much better than dealing with the embarrassment and pain of being turned away.

The Lord knows ahead of time the direction you should take. Be willing to be stripped of all your desires in order to be free of attachments that, in the end, would be bad for you. Do not lean on your own understanding, but give your will over to Jesus, that He may lead you in the path that will bring you the greatest fulfillment and happiness. What we think will solve all our ills is very often only another side-track away from what God really wants us to do.

But no matter what happens, dear ones. In the end, remember He loves you. He has you covered. He will bring good out of the bad situation somehow. He always turns situations to good. He has you covered. He knew from the start how this would end. And He will never forsake or abandon you.

You can count on that.