July 18th, 1962 “God’s Thoughts Guiding Our Way” Late Mr. N. Daniel

Psalm 139:5&6. 'Thou has beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon me; Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it. '

How does God be behind and before us? He has placed His thoughts behind and before us. Who makes heaven? It is God's thought. It is completely controlled and governed by God's thought. In heaven you will find God's thought in action. God made Eden as a small heaven. God alone was coming and sowing His thought in that couple there. They were very safe and the atmosphere of heaven was there. They were getting filled with God's thought. There came another person there who began to sow his thoughts and create doubts in God's thought. You must be careful whom you talk to and whom you associate with. They may sow poisonous thoughts into you. All your thoughts must be tested by God. During my individual prayer God used to sift my thoughts and remove the thoughts which are not of God. Some thoughts were getting established in me, just at that time. I got a good place and chance for deep prayer. Then God got an opportunity to show me that those thoughts were wrong thoughts. But for that I would have been ruined. Satan sowed many thoughts in me that were just like God's thoughts. Then God warned me. 'Take them away, they are not of me.' I was delivered.

What is hell? When Satan's thoughts get established in us then we are in hell and the emotions of hell rule in us. That was how Adam was deceived. Satan's thoughts got established in Eve and she acted on them. Wrong thoughts may come to you, but when you act on them concrete hell comes into you. Wherever you go you will sow those thoughts and you will be a danger to others. Eve was like that. She went and tempted Adam. They could have waited till evening to consult God about the counsel of Satan. When Satan puts his thoughts into people he goads them with his haste, so that they may be destroyed for ever. In marriage, Satan tries to deceive many. He tries to hurry them and make them to observe a kind of secrecy about it. He wants to bind them for life to the wrong person. What need is there to hurry? Why not put it to the test of the counsel of God? David says God has beset him behind and before. God is wise.

(Vs.l7) 'How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! How great is the sum of them!' Who has the greatest success in his life? ... he who has God's thoughts established in him and acts accordingly. Jesus always worked out God's thought. Paul did God's will. Acts.18:9 'Then spake the Lord to Paul in the night by a vision, 'Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace.' When he had to go to Europe, a man from Macedonia came and spoke to him. Once a prophet took his belt and tying his hands said Paul would be bound that way. Paul said he was not afraid of death. God's thought was that he should go to Jerusalem and he would go at all costs. There was once a young man here. I encouraged him to preach. In a certain place they kept on inviting him again and again. I thought there was something strange about that. That boy was not particular about God's will. Soon the man who was inviting him got him married to his own daughter. There are people who view God's work with many motives - selfish motives. God's kingdom is not their concern. Many look at godly young people with selfish motives and sow wrong thoughts into them. Sometimes even missionaries offer good opportunities in a worldly way. How can young men be preserved for God? God the Holy Spirit is sowing into your heart God's thought and is building up your thought life.

My relatives did not have God's thoughts for me. My father alone did not give me counsel because I was doing God's will. Be careful about the store house of your mind. 'Search me O God.' 'Are all my thoughts God's thoughts? Have I any motives of earthly gain?' When you are careful in this way, your prayer will have the power to reach heaven. Nehemiah once had to go back to Babylon to extend his leave. During his absence a priest had married his son to Tobiah's daughter. A room in the temple- where the incense and holy things were kept was cleaned and given to Tobiah. Nehemiah came back from Babylon and saw the temple defiled. Nehemiah got Tobiah's things thrown out and Tobiah's son and all others that had intermarried with the heathen were driven out. Nehemiah got the gates closed to stop business on Sunday. Merchants from Tyre and Sidon waited by the wall for the gates to open. But Nehemiah stopped that also. He warned the people about disobedience. Be careful about your thoughts. As Nehemiah threw out the things that belonged to Tobiah, let us throw out the devil's thoughts. Let God's thoughts be behind and before us.