Fruitful Living
Five ways God guides you (Part 1)
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you. – Psalm 32:8
Introduction
God designed you with a purpose in mind. God loves you. He has a specific, unique and glorious destiny for you. He promises to guide you. God’s purpose for you is bigger than your mistakes. I have made many mistakes in my life, but God has not stopped guiding me.
When we go on a journey by car we use a GPS. When we take a wrong turn, it reroutes us. But it never gives up until we reach our destination. You can ignore it or switch it off, but if you follow it, it makes your journey more enjoyable and peaceful. Eventually, it will say ‘You have reached your destination.’ Of course, this is not a perfect analogy. God is not a machine but a person who is with us on the journey. God wants to communicate with you and has promised to guide you.
There are five main ways in which God guides us (the five CSs):
• Commanding Scripture (the Bible)
• Compelling Spirit (the Holy Spirit)
• Counsel of the Saints (the church)
• Common Sense (reason)
• Circumstantial Signs (providence).
In each of today’s passages, we see first something general about the way in which God guides us, and then specific examples of each of these ‘five CSs’.
a) Promise of guidance –
Psalm 48:9-14
God promises to guide us all the way through our lives: ‘He will be our guide even to the end’. But how do you receive this guidance? The secret is a close relationship with God. It involves spending time in his presence meditating on His ‘unfailing love’.
1. Counsel of the Saints
Guidance is not an individual activity. It is significant that the psalmist says, ‘Within your temple… we meditate on your unfailing love’. The temple was where the people of God came together to worship God. We receive guidance in the context of community. On our own, we can sometimes get things very wrong (The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, But he who heeds counsel is wise – Proverbs 12:15). God can speak to others, as well as to us, and it is always wise to seek advice about major decisions. Lord, thank you for your promise to be my guide and that you guide me in the context of the community of your people.
a) Model of
guidance – Luke 19:45-
20:26
As in every other area of life, Jesus is our model for how to be guided by God. Living under God’s guidance does not lead to a trouble-free life. Jesus was constantly under attack from the ‘religious police’ of his day. He did not shy away from controversy and confrontation.
Indeed, in the parable of the tenants Jesus shows that God’s servants can expect trouble. The servants were beaten, sent away empty-handed, treated shamefully, wounded and thrown out. When the son was sent they ‘killed him’.
Divine guidance led Jesus to the cross. However, it also led to the resurrection. Behind it all was God’s purpose and his victory. What Jesus did had the appearance of failure but Jesus accomplished more in his life, death and resurrection than any other person in history. Of course, much is said in the New Testament about the way in which God guided Jesus. In the passage for today we see:
Rev. Dr Joyce Aryee, the author
Saying no to sin becomes easier when love leads the way
Though each of us faces temptations periodically, saying no to sin should not always be a long internal debate. Saying no becomes easier when we remember that saying yes hurts someone whose love we cannot live without.
Love is a powerful motivator. When you deeply love someone, you do not want to disappoint them or break their trust. In the same way, when we truly understand God’s love for us, obedience becomes a response of love, not merely a religious duty.
Jesus did not die for us because we were perfect. He died for us while we were still sinners. His sacrifice at Calvary was the ultimate demonstration of personal, sacrificial, and unconditional love. Every drop of blood, every wound, and every moment of suffering was endured so that we could be forgiven, restored, and given eternal life.
When we keep the cross before our eyes, sin begins to lose its attractiveness. How can we casually embrace what nailed our Saviour to the cross? How can we take lightly what cost Him everything? This realisation does not produce fear—it produces devotion.
Living with eternal accountability
Romans 14:7–12 reminds us that we do not live to ourselves and we do not die to ourselves. Each of us belongs to God, and each of us will give an account of our lives before Him. This truth is not meant to terrify us, but to sober us.
Our choices matter. Our words matter. Our actions matter. Not because we are trying to earn salvation, but because our lives are meant to reflect the One who saved us. Christianity is not a casual commitment; it is a lifelong surrender.
Living with eternal accountability helps us make wiser decisions. It teaches us to think beyond the moment and consider eternity. It helps us resist temporary pleasures that can cause lasting damage to our spiritual lives and our witness.
Conclusion
No one is too wicked, too broken, too unlovable, or too far gone for Jesus to love. His grace reaches deeper than our failures, and His mercy is greater than our mistakes. The way to life is always open, and the invitation of grace still stands.
Walking in the way of life does not mean we will never stumble, but it does mean we will never walk alone. Christ walks with us, strengthens us, forgives us, and leads us forward. And as we keep our eyes on the cross, may our hearts remain anchored in the love that saved us and continues to transform us.
By Rev. Dr Joyce Aryee
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Responsibility extends beyond our homes to our environment and communities.
Allah says: “It is He who has made you successors upon the earth.” (Qur’an 6:165)
As khalīfah (stewards), we are entrusted to protect and preserve the earth. Unfortunately, activities like illegal mining (galamsey), poor sanitation, and deforestation have become threats to our land and water bodies.
Dr Julian Agyeman and Bob Evans (2004) in Just Sustainability argue that environmental justice is deeply tied to social equity we cannot claim moral uprightness while destroying the environment that sustains others.
Every responsible man must see the environment as an amānah (trust). Picking up litter, planting trees, conserving water, and speaking against galamsey are all acts of faith. As the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said:
“If a Muslim plants a tree or sows seeds, and then a bird, or a person, or an animal eats from it, it is regarded as a charitable gift.” (Bukhari, Hadith 2320)
True responsibility therefore includes ecological consciousness for to destroy the environmentis to destroy the future we claim to build.
5.1 Environmental stewardship under the 1992 Constitution of Ghana
The 1992 Constitution of Ghana establishes environmental stewardship not merely as a governmental obligation but as a moral and civic duty of all citizens. It integrates environmental protection into the nation’s vision for sustainable development, justice, and intergenerational equity. Three key articles Article 36 (9), Article 41(k), and Article 269 outline this framework of responsibility.
1. Article 36 (9): Directive principles of state policy
“The State shall take appropriate measures needed to protect and safeguard the national environment for posterity; and shall seek cooperation with other states and bodies for the purpose of protecting the wider international environment for mankind.”
This article establishes that environmental protection is both a national and global responsibility.
It commits Ghana to sustainable use of natural resources including land, forests, water, and minerals for the benefit of future generations.
In essence, it means that every Ghanaian must act with intergenerational consciousness, ensuring that today’s development does not destroy tomorrow’s heritage. This principle directly condemns harmful practices such as illegal mining (galamsey), deforestation, and pollution.
By Imam Alhaji Saeed Abdulai
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