Dear Friend,

As a pastor who likes meeting people all over the world through ICQ, I have noticed more and more that people have more struggles than ever before in their normal course of a day.  I have talked with people who are near suicidal; people with permanent physical pains; accidents; difficult marriage situations; teens and children constantly in trouble or causing troubles; parents that even cause difficulties and hardships on their children and kids involved with gang activity but think they can't get out.  There are Christians who are miserable within their own church - there are people who are miserable at their workplace.  All in all, the majority of people today - Christian and/or non Christians are more miserable than they have ever been.

Up to now, I have felt helpless with so many of these folks seeing how I can not visit them in their home.  May I now invite you to continue reading this page as I have written some encouraging material on how we can get true, honest and genuine guidance, direction which should give you comfort - from God Himself.

First of all, like Job found out with his friends when tragedy hit his entire household, his friends were really not very good friends.  The Bible is clear to remind us that there are not any 'true' friends out in this wicked, confused and Godless world.

Reproach hath broken my heart; and I am full of heaviness: and I looked for some to take pity, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none.  Psalm 69:20

As a Christian, we must always remind ourselves that not only does the world not want to give us direction, they actually want to see us fall.

All my familiars watched for my halting, saying, Peradventure he will be enticed, and we shall prevail against him, and we shall take our revenge on him.  Jer 20:10b

 And in nothing terrified by your adversaries: which is to them an evident token of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that of God. For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake...Phil 1:28

Why do they want to see us fall - to stumble?  Well, because they have no direction in their life by living without God, when they see you as a Christian, they certainly don't want you to have any direction either.  They want you to think that your God is a liar. They want you to believe like they do that God is not real & can not give you direction.

I have written this page to show you how that is so untrue.  God does want to give us direction.  He makes a great effort to guide us in our difficult times.  But as you will see in the following material, it is not God that is holding back with His direction - quite often it is us staying away from Him.

Remember, when you are in need of direction or a friend or some comfort, etc. do not go to the world.  Do not go to the scholars of psychology - the teachers of new morals - even your unsaved friends or any of the believers of any god other than the one God in Heaven - the God of the Holy Bible.

Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help; and stay on horses, and trust in chariots, because they are many; and in horsemen, because they are very strong; but they look not unto the Holy One of Israel, neither seek the LORD!  Is 31:1

 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.  Psalm 1:1

Many people get frustrated when they are told that God will direct them.  They are told to turn to the Lord for that direction, etc.  How do we do that?  Do we 'feel' something in our heart?  Do we 'hear' something or someone speak to us in the room when we are alone?  Do we see some sort of vision or does a guardian angel come by and pat our backs and offer us a loving hug?  How do we receive God's direction?

The answer to that question is so simple, you would think more people would understand God's true direction.

There is an instant process that takes place when we receive Jesus Christ as our Saviour.  If you have truly asked Jesus Christ to be your Saviour - and if you believe that you are a sinner, then you had to believe in your heart and ask from your mouth that Jesus Christ be your Saviour.  It you have done that, then you can apply this material about receiving God's direction.

For your own salvation, if you are trusting on your good life, church attendance, baby baptism, adult baptism or the sacraments taken within your own church, then you must first realize that according to the Holy Bible, you have been deceived on what your salvation is drawn from.  You must please consider this verse, For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.  Rom 10:3.  You will not be able to claim the rest of this material if you are not part of God's family.  Ye must be born again  John 3, in order to be part of God's family.  You want God's direction?  You must be one of his children.

I am continuing this article with the assumption that you are saved - born again & washed in the blood of Jesus Christ. You are redeemed - justified - sanctified - you have the faith of Jesus Christ and the righteousness of God.  If that is the case, then here is how God gives you the direction you desire.

If you do not believe that you fit the last description of a true Bible believing Christian, get back to me right away, and I will be glad to show you what the Bible says about salvation.

First of all, we must start with Jesus Christ.  In order to receive direction from God, we must know Jesus Christ.  God gave us His son as it says in John 3:16 - a verse that many people are familiar with: For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

The following verses remind us the importance of Jesus Christ in relation to us receiving anything from God, the Father.

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.  John 14:6

And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.  John 6:35

 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.   John 10:9

 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.  John 10:11

There are many many more verses that show us that our only contact to God the Father is through His son Jesus Christ.  We can know Jesus Christ by asking Him to be our Saviour.  Here are just a few more verses to show that we need to go through Jesus Christ, not our own works.

For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.  Rom:5:6

But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.  Rom:5:8

For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;  1Cor:15:3

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.  Romans 10:9

Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us  Ti:3:5

Next, once we receive Jesus Christ as our Saviour, we must realize that we instantly also receive the Holy Spirit. When Jesus knew He was about to be arrested and crucified and be killed - then to spend 3 days in Hell, come back and eventually rise to 'sit at the right hand of God the Father', He said that He will leave us with the Comforter.  The Comforter is the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit has many jobs to do with us.  In this case, be our Comforter - direction.

And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you. Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also. At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.  John 14:16-20

But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
John 14:26

But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:  John 15:26

Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.  John 16:7

We have the Comforter - the Holy Spirit dwelling within us at the moment we are saved. There is no scriptural basis for anyone telling you that you have to speak in tongues in order to prove your salvation, etc.  If you are saved, you have the Holy Spirit dwelling in you right now! In fact, speaking in tongues today is scripturally considered from the devil.  Stay away from speaking in tongues people.  If you want to know more about speaking in tongues, let me know, and  I will be glad to show you about that.

But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.  Romans 8:9

If you are saved, you have the Holy Spirit - if you are not saved, you do not have the Holy Spirit. Obviously, the opposite is also true:  If you have the Holy Spirit, you are saved, and if you do not have the Holy Spirit, then you are not saved.

By the way, if your Bible says the word "helper", or "counselor" instead of Comforter, then you have a corrupted Bible.  You do not have God's words.  That is all dealt with in another study, suffice it to say, you need to get a King James Bible - and not a New King James Bible (NKJV) - a KING JAMES 1611 Holy Bible.

Jesus Christ, just before He was to be arrested, was asked how He was going to show Himself unto us and not unto the world. In other words, how can a Christian see and understand all that Jesus Christ wanted us to see and understand.?

Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world? John 14:22

The answer Jesus gave to him is tremendously important for us to understand in todays world.

Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's which sent me.  John 14:23,24

We are to keep his "WORDS".  Keep does not mean "obey". If God wanted us to 'obey', He would have said 'obey'.   We are to keep - hang on to, cling to His words.  The Bible says in Psalm 12:6,7, God promises to preserve His words from generation to generation.  That is exactly how Jesus Christ was to talk to us directly and not to the world.  Before you were saved, you did not understand the Bible - you were not even interested.  Once you are saved, that Bible is like no other book on this earth.

The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.  Psalms 12:6,7