What is the craziest bit of advice you’ve ever been given? I’d love to hear it! My dad always used to tell me: “Keep your eyes open, son…otherwise you’ll bump into things.” It was decent enough advice. Getting good advice can be very beneficial in our lives; Proverbs 12:15 says “The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise person listens to advice.”
On the flip-side of that, sometimes in the context of spiritual guidance we can feel pressured by advice we receive. We’re going to be reading Acts 21:1-16 this Sunday, and Paul is going to get a lot of advice from some influential people and friends.
Why do you think the people around Paul were urging him to not go on to Jerusalem? What was motivating their advice? How do you think we can discern the distinction between good intentions and God’s will?
Sometimes we can advise people directly from God’s word on issues, such as moral ones, that apply to all of us under the divine directive. But what are some of the decisions we have to make in life that the Bible doesn’t cover, and how should we approach getting or receiving advice in those cases?
What did Paul have as his highest good when it came to his decision? How can that guide us in handling the advice people may give us?
Have you ever felt pressured to follow someone’s advice? How did you respond?
Here’s some unsolicited advice from me: you should come to Eastgate this Sunday because this is an interesting topic to explore! Also…weather-permitting….we’ll try to do Surf-N-Grill again this week! Hope to see you there!
WONDERWHAT 
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