Discerning My Man Of God

Scriptures for study, meditation and prayer:

A) 1 Samuel 16:6-7 (CEV)

_When Jesse and his sons arrived, Samuel noticed Jesse's oldest son, Eliab. “He has to be the one the Lord has chosen,” Samuel said to himself. But the LORD told him, "Samuel, don't think Eliab is the one just because he's tall and handsome. He isn't the one I've chosen. People judge others by what they look like, but I judge people by what is in their hearts."_

B) 1 Samuel 16:6-7 (NET)

_When they arrived, Samuel noticed Eliab and said to himself, “Surely, here before the Lord stands his chosen king!” But the LORD said to Samuel, "Don't be impressed by his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. God does not view things the way men do. People look on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."_

C) 1 Samuel 16:6-7 (TLB)

_When they arrived, Samuel took one look at Eliab and thought, “Surely this is the man the Lord has chosen!” But the Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by a man’s face or height, for this is not the one. I don’t make decisions the way you do! Men judge by outward appearance, but I look at a man’s thoughts and intentions.”_

H) 2 Corinthians 5:16 (TLB)

_"So stop evaluating Christians by what the world thinks about them or by what they seem to be like on the outside. Once I mistakenly thought of Christ that way, merely as a human being like myself. How differently I feel now!"_

I know these scriptures seem a lot but please go back and read every line word by word. Even if you end up not reading my post, you would have caught the entire meat of today's prayer focus.

Don't you just love the Bible? And I so looooove to play around with a lot of translations. They shed more perspective and will help you understand a passage from different angles. You should try it a lot often in your Bible studies.

D) 1 Samuel 16:6-7 (MSG)

_When they arrived, Samuel took one look at Eliab and THOUGHT, “Here he is! God’s anointed!” But God told Samuel, “Looks aren’t everything. Don’t be impressed with his looks and stature. I’ve already eliminated him. God judges persons differently than humans do. Men and women look at the face; God looks into the heart.”_

E) Proverbs 3:5 (TPT)

_"Trust in the Lord completely, and do not rely on your own opinions. With all your heart rely on Him to guide you," and He will lead you in every decision you make."_

F) 2 Corinthians 5:16 (CEV)

_"We are careful not to judge people by what they seem to be, though we once judged Christ in this way."_

G) 2 Corinthians 5:16 (TPT)

_"So then, from now on, we have a new perspective that refuses to evaluate people merely by their outward appearances. For that’s how we once viewed the Anointed One, but no longer do we see Him with limited human insight."_

We need discernment as we make critical decisions in life, and marriage is no different. We need to be able to distinguish between good and bad, good and better (or best) and also between good and God. Because we don't merely want to marry good men. *We want our "men of God" - who have been prepared privately by God and now presented to us in public. Men who have been tested by God, and He has proven them to be faithful. We want men that God trusts that they are worthy of the hearts of His daughters. We want men who are perfectly suitable for us both in the now AND in future. And that can't be judged using metrics that meet the eye.

We know no man after the flesh! We dare not trust our human understanding. We can't afford to go by our lists. No matter how fancy or spiritual it looks. We cannot afford to trust our interpretation of a "spiritual" man. Our yardsticks may be faulty. Looks are deceptive. He may be putting up a front. He could be Amnon who wants you just because of selfish reasons. You sure you can be able to tell all the time? Can you read hearts of men? Leave all the exaggerated sense of your ability to judge body language and character. You may still be wrong.

Back to the topic at hand. To DISCERN means:

To perceive, recognize, or comprehend with the mind

To distinguish something as being different from something else; to differentiate.

To perceive differences.

To see, recognize, or understand something that is not clear:

To come to know or recognize mentally.

This is why we pray. For in prayer, we humble ourselves and admit before God that our human senses are limited and we are not good judges of character. In prayer, we recognize God's ability to see through the depths and crevices of human hearts and we relinquish control to Him. In prayer, we reaffirm our decision to trust Him fully knowing that His plans for us are good and never evil. And because He knows the future, He will give us an expected end. This is why we pray!