Dear friend, today the Lord is going to revive our hearts. Every time He speaks to us, we rise up in boldness. Let us hear His word from Deuteronomy 6:3: “Be careful to obey so that it may go well with you.” God stresses obedience here. This verse clearly says that if you obey, it will go so well with you and you will increase greatly in the land. Yet obedience is not easy, because we are asked to obey our parents, elders, pastors, teachers, and higher officials. We often do not like it when someone instructs us to do something, and we feel like slaves to instructions, and it does not go well with us.

But the Lord stresses the importance of obedience because He is the one who has given us those people in our lives. He has placed elders to guide us, people with higher vision and greater experience. When we follow what they say, it becomes a shortcut to rising up in life. Sometimes we may even exceed them. The one who takes counsel, the right counsel, is wise, because it helps us greatly and develops us into great persons. Many times, God’s instructions come through them. So let us value the elders whom God has placed in our lives.

In the marriage of Cana, when they ran out of wine, Mary, the mother of Jesus, who was looking after the arrangements, said to the servants, “Follow all that Jesus tells you to do.” They did not know Jesus was the Saviour or a mighty God, yet they trusted the instruction of the elder placed over them. When Jesus said, “Fill the jars with water,” they did not understand why, but they obeyed, and the water turned into wine. Many times, we do not understand why we are asked to do something, but when we obey, a great miracle and increase come out of it. Even in my own life, I have been blessed by obeying the opportunities my father gave me. Though I did not like it sometimes, when I said okay, the Lord used me mightily and opened big platforms. My friend, it is God who gives you this opportunity to obey so that you will rise up. Would you take it right now?

PRAYER: 
Loving Lord, please give me an obedient heart. Help me to humble myself before You. Even when I do not understand why, even when I cannot see the big picture, give me the grace to obey You. Let the right counsel come into my life, Lord, and give me a heart to accept it willingly, even instructions that correct me, instructions from my elders and higher officials, and help me to obey Your voice through them. As I choose obedience, honour me, bless me, and increase me with divine blessings. Let me become great in the land, and let Your promises come true in my life. Thank You for shaping my heart, Lord. In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen.