Following God's Leading

By Paul Chappell

"And a vision appeared to Paul in the night; There stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him, saying, Come over into Macedonia, and help us. And after he had seen the vision, immediately we endeavoured to go into Macedonia, assuredly gathering that the Lord had called us for to preach the gospel unto them."

Acts 16:9-10

Dr. Bob Hughes spent his life spreading God's Word as a missionary in the Philippines. Once while home in the States, he spoke to a group of college young people. Dr. Hughes had been diagnosed with cancer, and the doctors had given him little time to live. He said to the young people, "I have gone. I have given my life, but it looks as though the Lord will call me home soon. I need someone to go and replace me in the Philippines." In that crowd was a young man named Rick Martin who was tender to the Lord's call and felt the Lord leading him to take the challenge of missions. Rick Martin committed to follow God's leading to the Philippines, where he ministers even today.

As a Christian, your life is guided by the Holy Spirit's work in your life, but if you aren't careful, you can often tune out God's leading. God desires to speak to you through His Word and by His Spirit. If you aren't in tune with God and daily walking in His Spirit, you can miss His leading.

Acts 16 shows us how the Holy Spirit led Paul to minister in Macedonia which led to a great work in that region. Rick Martin listened to the Holy Spirit through the preaching of Dr. Hughes and has seen over three hundred churches started in the Philippines.

Are you daily listening to the Spirit's leading? Are you reading God's Word and attentively listening to it being preached? Keep a tender heart to God's work and follow whatever direction He leads you. You'll never go wrong by following the Holy Spirit.