The Discipline of Guidance is the third Corporate Discipline.
Back to topGuidance vs Discipleship
The Discipline of Guidance as described by Foster is similar to, but somewhat different than the concept normally described as Discipleship. Guidance is seeking out what is God's will for the direction of my life, and the path he intends for me to travel through it. Discipleship is more focused on learning to live a life obedient to God's word and plan. In perhaps over simple terms, Guidance is dealing "big picture" topics, and Discipleship is more daily concepts.
Guidance needs to begin, and end, with an inward looking to hear God's calling and personally hearing what his Spirit is telling us, while Discipleship is based on interacting with another Spirit-filled person who can help see into you, and show you, ways you can grow spiritually and follow God's way better.
Back to topForms of Guidance
One thing that can make Guidance (and Foster's description of it) a bit confusing is that Guidance is actually multi-faceted in scope. There are several somewhat different situations and methods described in this chapter.
Who is seeking Guidance
The first thing to notice is that Foster describes two different sorts of "Entities" that should be seeking Guidance, We can be an individual seeking Guidance for some direction in our life, or we can be part of some "Corporate Body" (like a congregation) seeking Guidance collectively.
The Individual
The main focus for most people, is the getting of personal Guidance, and this is what I will focus mostly on too.
The Organization (Church Body)
Corporate Guidance (the Guidance of a Corporate - organizational body vs the "Corporal Discipline of Guidance") deals with the way that a organizational body seeks Guidance for how it should proceed. The decision to seek such Guidance falls to the "leadership" of that body. The rest of the members are often still involved in the process of seeking the Guidance. The book of Acts provides a number of examples of the early Church reaching out to get Guidance when "big questions" came up. These can give us examples of how to seek similar Guidance in our own life.
One important thing that Foster points out, and which I agree, is that when a body seeks Guidance, it shouldn't come down to a "vote" with majority rules, but should be striving to reach "Agreement", where everyone (or nearly everyone) comes to agreement. Foster's description of the "Hold out" humbly asking help to see the reasons, and the rest humbly working with them is a powerful example of how the Body is supposed to work. n the other hand, it takes some spiritual maturity to understand if someone isn't actually working in the process, and not to let them "veto" the idea.
Note also, agreement doesn't mean that everyone things that in their opinion it is the right action, but that they agree that this seems to be the direction that God is directing them to, even if they don't understand how/why it is the right thing to do. This can require a trusting of your partners, and Faith in the power of God.
Where is Guidance Sought from?
Directly from God (Self-Guidance)
Though others
Spiritual Director
Another source of Guidance is through a "Spiritual Director". When you seek a Spiritual Director, you are not asking them to give you the Guidance themselves, but to help guide you through your journey to get your Guidance from God.
Back to topGiving Guidance
The first thing to remember when someone comes to you for Guidance (as opposed to advise) is that it isn't what YOU think that is important, but they are asking you to seek an answer from God himself. As such, you should resist answering right away, as unless God has been putting the answer on your heart before you were asked, you don't yet really know what God will tell you. And even then, you probably want to spend at least some time in prayer and meditation to confirm that this is the question God was talking to you about.
The answer might come quickly, or it might take a bit, but you must earnestly seek the Will of God for this request (assuming you have accepted the request). You also should not be afraid to after a reasonable time, if you don't get an answer, to let the person know. Don't try to "guess" what is God's will.
Back to topLimits
It is very important when seeking Guidance from another, to first make sure you understand what Guidance you are seeking, and that the person you are seeking it from is themselves guided by the spirit, and trustworthy. It doesn't help to be guided by someone who doesn't really know where they are taking you.
Also, you should seek Guidance from a variety of people, with different backgrounds, and not just from "leaders". Foster points out how "bad" leaders can "abuse" Guidance, as a way to manipulate and control. That is not its purpose.
Lastly, when you do get the answer from others, you need to test the answer yourself. You don't need to understand why you are being directed in a given way, but you do need to be able to accept that this direction is from God. Ultimately, we are individually responsible for the decisions we make, and can't blame others for giving "bad advice".
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