Have you noticed how, even when your friends get away with wrong-doing, the cops always seem to catch you? You also know good Christian men and women whom life constantly pummels. Even Christians who are living by grace are not exempt. Wonder no more why good men suffer. King David – the man after God’s heart – understood the dynamics at work. He knew that the cops nab you for every wrongdoing when God overrides your will.
God Overrides Our Will For His Name’s Sake
Now, I appreciate that you think that is an oxymoron since God created us with free will. But stay with me here, you are about to become a man after God’s heart. And of course, that special status comes with a lot of blessings – earthly as well as eternal.
In Psalm 23, King David explains that God leads us in the path of righteousness. He does not leave the choice of which path to tread to you and I. And here is how He reaches that conclusion to lead us in particular, sinless paths. It is for His name’s sake.
You see, God is jealous for His name. 
Therefore, as soon as you bear His name, He leads you. God firmly takes your hand in His and leads you willy-nilly. You no longer have a say in where you go. He will not allow you to bring a reproach to His name the way King David did at some point. Naturally, if you do not take on His name, you can do as you please. God will leave you severely alone.
He Overrides Our Will For Our Good
Think about this for a moment. The child of even the most despised head of state has to behave with a certain level of decorum. In the same way, God insists that all his children – not the pretend ones – behave with decorum. And if they balk at His leading, then He recruits the cops to teach them the necessary Kingdom protocol.
The other night, I blew past an almost-red light. Looking frantically in my rear-view mirror later, I observed that the cops were not on my tail. However, as I quietened my heart, I knew to pray. And the prayer was, “Father, don’t let me make a habit of blowing past a late-
yellow light.”
I knew, with the help of the Holy spirit, that should this becomes a habit, it will spell the end of me. One day, I will run a fully-red light and die at the intersection. The sage who said that God loves us too much to let us remain the way we are is totally right.
God Saves Us From Hell When He Overrides Our Will
Rather than moan about suffering, we should rejoice, while the others should covet Divine trouncing. Because if God allows you to get away with bad behavior, it means you are not really His child. Ultimately, such pretend Christians land in hell – sometimes described as having their way for ever.
Compared to being caught by the cops, ending up in hell is undoubtedly much worse. That is the reason that If you are His child, God regularly overrides your will. You can bank on it. And He does so in order to save us from eternal damnation.
Occasionally, He Makes You Do Inconvenient Things
It gets even better or worse, if you like – He makes you to lie down, according to the psalmist. Lying down anywhere implies being still; it means we are not active, we are waiting. How we hate waiting, you and me both. And this is not like we choose to wait; God is forcing us to wait. Can you just visualize the amount of chomping at the bit that goes on as we wait impatiently?
Waiting, waiting and waiting some more is what God makes us do. And although He usually makes us wait in a good place, such as a green pasture, we are unsatisfied. God overrides our will to make us feed on the lush pasture. But instead of appreciating His kindness, we itch and ache, always wanting to be on the go.
If you are none of His, He allows you to get up and leave, even if you are still starving. However, if He is your shepherd, trust me, He will compel you to lie down there until your soul is fully restored. As you can tell, most of this study is from Psalm 23. Please find time soon to study the entire chapter. It will do your Christian journey a world of good.
We Can Stop God Overriding Our Will
Paradoxically, it is when God forces you that you know you are truly His child. Of course, the longer you have Him as your Father, the easier the relationship grows. It becomes less likely that He will need to deploy His compulsion tool.
You learn of Him, get to understand His likes and you voluntarily perform them. By now also, you know His dislikes and willingly make them your own dislikes. Like Job, you learn to shun evil. You no longer need the cops to stop you sending yourself to hell.
If God Is Still Overriding Our Will
If, after years of walking with Him, God is still having to override your will, something is vitally wrong. You either do not know His mind or you are living in rebellion. How can you know the mind of God? How do you discover His likes and dislikes? Easy. A systematic study of His word will reveal the mind of God to you.
The Psalmist says that he hides God’s word in his heart; it prevents sin. Or, in our context here, it helps you to identify God’s likes and dislikes. You do not even need to be in a church to systematically study the word of God. Do it on your own, thanking God for the easy availability of the bible. If you find a partner, it is so much easier, of course.
And then, whatever He tell you to do, do it. When that happens, you will find that God no longer needs to override your will. That is because your will is His will and His will is your desire.
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Maranatha!