Seek Counsel of God

The book of Joshua tracks the path of the Israelite's entry and conquest of the Promised Land.  God gave His people the land, and He called them to drive out or destroy all the inhabitants of the land.  They were forbidden to make a league with the inhabitants of Canaan.  When the people who lived in Canaan heard about how the children of Israel crossed over Jordan on dry ground and the fall of mighty Jericho through the power of their God, they were afraid.  They gathered together to fight against Israel in battle.  The people of Gibeon, however, took a different tack.  They cleverly disguised themselves as foreign ambassadors who had been on a long journey, having heard of the might of Israel and their God.  To add credence to their story, when questioned they appealed to their appearance.  Joshua 9:12-14 says, "This bread of ours we took hot for our provision from our houses on the day we departed to come to you. But now look, it is dry and moldy. ¹³ And these wineskins which we filled were new, and see, they are torn; and these our garments and our sandals have become old because of the very long journey." ¹⁴ Then the men of Israel took some of their provisions; but they did not ask counsel of the LORD."

Based upon the false "evidence" presented, Joshua agreed to make a covenant with these people who turned out to be Gibeonites who lived nearby!  This is a classic case of the oft repeated mistake we all make of walking by sight instead of by faith in God.  The inference is that if Joshua had sought the counsel of the LORD, the ruse would have been revealed and this grave error prevented.  The error of walking by sight created a chain reaction which led to troublesome future consequences.  When I read this, I was convicted for all the times I pray about problems or dilemmas but do not explicitly ask counsel of the LORD and seek an answer in His Word.  I pray about things, sure:  but praying about a problem is very different than seeking counsel with intent to obey.  Sometimes we are like those who want to vent but don't necessarily want advice on how to rectify their situation.  We prefer sympathy over being told what to do.  God does not cast pearls of wisdom before swine.  If we want to wallow in indecision and doubts like a pig in the mud, God will allow us to do so.  But if we will ask counsel of the LORD, seeking to perform His will, He will speak and empower us to carry out what He requires of us.