What Leads You?

 Those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God~ Romans 8:14 NIV

We have a new member of the Price family. She came to us in early December after our dog Chloe died of a sad combination of old age and overfeeding. Chloe was mostly my dog and after her death I was heartbroken. My husband, who hates to see me miserable or suffering, found Mollie Mae and brought her home.

 For the most part Mollie has been a delightful addition to our family. She’s a charming little thing with floppy black ears, bulgy eyes, and an adorably smushy face. It astonishes me that a dog who weighs in at twelve pounds has so quickly stolen our hearts and taken control of our household. Mollie is not only adorable—she is also a wickedly smart, cuddly little terrorist with some serious control issues.

 Mollie’s antics have earned her the nickname Mollie Mayhem. Our eleven-year-old pug, Bruno, is appalled by her conduct. He will find me and bark until I go and check up on her. When I find her, she is invariably up to no good. She poops where she pleases, chews on anything and everything she finds (including people) has no regard for personal boundaries and has taken custody of all the stuffed animals in the house.

Thankfully, we’ve had a couple of breakthroughs over the past weeks where we’ve seen a sweeter, calmer, more submissive Mollie beginning to emerge from the egotism of puppyhood.

 The new Mollie tends to show up at random intervals when her desire to please us overwhelms her baser instincts. Watching the new Mollie materialize got me thinking about the power of what leads us.

Dogs are instinctual creatures that can only be guided by one of two things: their physical drives (instincts) or a longing to please the humans around them. People, on the other hand, make choices and form beliefs based on all sorts of different yearnings and needs.

The majority of people appear to be led primarily by one of two factors: popular opinion or emotions. Christian people are designed to be led by the Spirit of God but are often led by a dangerous combination of God, emotions and popular opinion.    

 Whatever leads us ultimately defines us. It molds us into its image, radically affecting how we live our lives, treat the people around us, interpret information and respond to difficulty, stress and pain.

Popular opinion is a dangerous leader for Christians because opinions are always changing and evolving. The accepted beliefs and opinions of a decade ago may no longer be recognized as truth today or a year from today. When we allow the-ever evolving opinions of the masses to lead our decision-making we will inevitably live lives marked by unrelenting doubt and anxiety. We will doubt God, the Bible and our own ability to make sound decisions. Any time a Christian is led chiefly by popular opinion they end up becoming the embodiment of the man or woman described in James 1:6b…

The one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.

Emotions are another common driver that can mislead a Christian. Feelings are powerful, fickle, deceptive and a dangerous thing to be led by. Unfettered emotion will quickly and easily reject the voices of reason God has placed in our lives. Emotions can hoodwink us into believing that we are justified in what we are doing or believing even when conscience, reason and the word of God argue otherwise.

The merging of emotion and popular opinion is perhaps the most toxic of all for Christians who wish to be led by the Spirit. A careful study of history will show that in eras when Christians have blindly bought into popular opinion and emotional propaganda, evil and foolishness have flourished.

Being led by the Spirit is not easy. It requires a commitment to continuous self-examination, a pursuit of holiness, passion for Scripture and willingness to repent when wrong. In return for our sacrifice we are given abundant life, freedom from fear, peace in midst of turmoil, and the title of sons and daughters of God.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law~ Galatians 5:22-23 ESV