Courageous Obedience

My devotion today came out of Acts 21:1-16.  It stirred up some amazing feelings in my heart and left met with some questions I'm hoping all of you can help me with.  The part that jumped out at me initially was Acts 21:13  "Why all this hysteria?  Why do you insist on making a scene and making it even harder for me  You're looking at this backward.  The issue in Jerusalem is not what they do to me, whether arrest or murder, but what the Master Jesus does through my obedience.  Can't you see that?"  (Message) OR "Please, you're breaking my heart. I know exactly what I'm doing.  I'm fully prepared to be bound, and more--to die for the name of Jesus, the King"  (The Voice)  This is Paul speaking and my gut reaction was to want this kind of obedience, to follow the Lord no matter the consequences, and to do it without fear for myself.  This is basically what the footnotes in both Bibles talk about too.  The thought is that we should focus on what God wants us to do and not be influenced by peer pressure.

Then I reread Acts 21:4; "The Spirit moved them to tell Paul not to go on to Jerusalem'" (The Voice) and "Their message to Paul, from insight given by the Spirit, was 'Don't go to Jerusalem.'" (Message).  So how do we determine when we should follow what we believe to be what the Lord wants us to do and when to we listen to those around us who have heard from the Spirit.  How do we know what is right and what God wants us to do?

I would really love your thoughts on this today.

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Thanksgiving for today:
28.  Finding my sister's book on Amazon
29.  Freedom of speech
30.  Seeking God's wisdom in finding an appropriate youth group for our daughter before she gets there
31.  Children feeling comfortable to share challenges with parents and accept help
32.  Adults at school that help the kiddos with challenges they face
33.  A pastor willing to help us struggle through life's challenges and find solutions
34.  My daughter finding clothes in my closet to wear for special events