In order to have a prosperous walk and journey with God, every believer must learn to hear, obey and focus on doing the will of God.

In last week’s episode, we highlighted the importance of hearing God, and gave pointers on some of the tested and trusted ways of hearing from God. Read here This time around, armed with the knowledge of God’s will, the need to focus on what he has said becomes important.

James 1:22 – But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.

As human beings, there are many things that take our attention away from our Creator, and twice as many things that take our focus from doing what God wants us to do.

God is always speaking, but to discern alone is not enough. Remember, it is in doing the will of God that the blessings attached shall be made manifest.

The devil is forever opposing the true children of God. And in a bid to frustrate and lead all into a starved and unfulfilled life, the enemy has deployed a gargantuan amount of distractions from what truly matters and the unfortunate situation is that quite a number of believers have fallen into this trap.

In this context, some of those distractions include but are not limited to the following;

1. WALKING OUT OF THE WILL & PLAN OF GOD.

The first deliberate attempt of the devil to rob you from leading a life that pleases the Lord is to spiral you out of the will of God. When the devil succeeds in taking you away from God’s grand plan and purpose for your life, he has played a fast one on you.

For instance, The Lord might have called you to a life of an accountant, and in the plan of God, that is the route to your living a prosperous life in Christ. In order to hinder God’s purpose, the devil fights tooth and nail to hinder you from going towards that path.

In this situation, he might go as far as giving you a scholarship to study as a medical doctor, anything to make you lose focus on what God has said, proposed, or desired for you!

2 CLUTTERING THE HUMAN MIND:

Has God given you a directive? Maybe a definite plan and path he is leading you to journey through? Best believe the devil will try everything within his forces to clutter your mind and push you in the opposite direction.

The devil is always seeking to know what God has said in order to cause unsuspecting children of God to disobey and grieve the spirit of God. A typical example of this could be seen in the story of Adam and Eve.

God gave a clear directive, commanding them (Adam & Eve) not to eat the fruit of the tree in the midst of the garden.

Genesis 2:16-17 ” And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.”

When the devil struck, he cluttered the mind of Eve, and deceived her to think it was wise to disobey God’s direction.

Genesis 3:6 – “And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.”

As a result of her cluttered mind, the devil was able to bring about the first fall of man. In your case, this might look like him putting other ‘good’ ideas in your mind that rivals God’s express directive or leading.

The devil is that spirit that aims towards killing, stealing and destroying God’s people. The moment you give him an opportunity to convince you to do something other than what God has said, like Adam and Eve, the repercussions are always great.

3. BEWARE OF YOUR FLESHLY DESIRES:

1 Corinthians 16:9 – “For a great door and effectual is opened unto me, and there are many adversaries.”

On our journey to becoming what God has said, rest assured that there are many adversaries. One of the adversaries of our successful walk with God is our flesh. As children of God, we must be aware of the dangers our fleshly lusts and desires can pose to our living a fulfilled life in Christ.

Paul the apostle knew this fact which prompted him to put his fleshly lusts and desires under subjection.

1 Corinthians 9:27 – “but I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.”

God is a spirit and in order to walk with him prosperously, we must like Apostle Paul, curb the impulses of our flesh. The flesh will always seek its own pleasure and comfort, most of which are never profitable to our faith.

Fleshly lusts might come in the love of money, love of the world, personal desires, wants and goals, etc.

The flesh is forever in a battle to neutralize the ministrations and operations of the spirit, so when you see yourself having other goals, needs and sometimes urges to do certain things that are out of God’s direction, it is a plot from the pit of hell, sent to distract you from what God has said.

Having highlighted some ways the devil distracts unsuspecting Christians from walking in the path God has created, here are some ways to counter attack the devil’s ploys and go on to lead a prosperous life at the center of God’s will.

1. ACT FAST / KILL PROCRASTINATION:

As the saying goes, delay is dangerous. In order to avoid the schemes of the wicked and remain focused on your journey with God, we must launch into doing what God has demanded without wasting time.

When you procrastinate doing what God has demanded, not only do we waste precious time, but we give room for the devil to creep in and sow seeds of uncertainty and doubt, in order to keep you from ever doing what God has communicated.

2 Timothy 3:7 – “Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

Remember! Only the doers of the word will receive the blessings and promises. Has God said something to you? Don’t procrastinate for any reason! Jump into it, and he will help you through it.

Do away with excuses and start in your own might. God will surely take the glory.

2. HAVE FAITH IN GOD:

Hebrews 11:6 – “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.”

Faith is essential in our walk with God. When you feed your faith in God, it becomes hard for the enemy to access you. Most at times, the devil gains access to our minds when there is fear or lingering doubt.

When you groom your faith, it becomes very easy to please and do the will of God. For most of us, we need to return to the place of intimacy and work out an unshakable faith in God in order to engage the grace to do and focus on doing the will of God.

3. PLACE GOD FIRST:

Matthew 6:33 – “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”

As children of God, we must learn the lifestyle of placing God as the topmost priority in our lives. When you place God above all things, including oneself, it is almost impossible to lose sight of God in any decision, situation or journey.

The Bible makes us understand the importance of seeking and placing God first. When we place God first, we subscribe to a life of always seeking God’s stance in everything – a life that will produce dividends of blessings and fulfillment in every area.

Are you having trouble focusing on what God has said to you? Place him above everything else! Let him be the yardstick that measures everything else about your life and you can never regret it.

Note: When you make God the center of your life, anything that is not aligned with him cannot fit.

There you have it! Tested and trusted ways of focusing on what the Lord is speaking about your season of life.

Drop a comment on other ways that have proven to be effective in shutting out the noise and doing the will of our father! Until next time my loves, keep believing.

Read article: How to hear the voice of God