Why Every Instruction from God Will Be Tested by an Alternative
🌿 Why Every Instruction from God Will Be Tested by an Alternative
“Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you. Do not deviate from them, turning either to the right or to the left. Then you will be successful in everything you do.” — Joshua 1:7 (NLT)
On this page
- Don’t turn left or right
- The alternatives God calls turning
- The devil rarely asks you to abandon God
- The choice you make decides who you are before God
- The still small voice that calls you back
- Hannah refused the shortcut
- What your key responsibility actually is
- Don’t murmur when the path gets hard
- Prayer
Every day, life places alternatives before us. Some appear wiser. Others seem easier. Some promise quicker results, greater comfort, more security, or a faster breakthrough. They are not always sinful. In fact, many of them appear perfectly reasonable.
But the question is not whether they look good.
The question is, did God tell you to take them?
Don’t Turn Left or Right
When God commissioned Joshua to lead Israel into the Promised Land, He did not begin by handing him a strategy for battle or a list of military tactics. Israel stood at the edge of a land filled with fortified cities, giants, and armies far more experienced in warfare than a nation that had just spent forty years wandering a desert. If any moment called for tactical instruction, this was it.
Instead, God gave Joshua one simple instruction:
“Do not deviate from them, turning either to the right or to the left.” — Joshua 1:7
Why would God skip strategy and go straight to obedience?
Because God knew that the greatest threat to Joshua’s success would not come from the enemies before him. It would come from the alternatives around him.
Jericho’s walls were a visible problem. A voice suggesting a slightly different approach, a shortcut through the wilderness, a treaty instead of a battle, would be an invisible one. Walls fall to obedience. Deviation does not announce itself as danger. It arrives dressed as good judgment.
People of God, every instruction from God will eventually be tested by another option. Fear will tell you to turn one way. Human wisdom will tell you to turn another. Pressure will tell you to take a shortcut. Delay will tempt you to create your own solution. Even well-meaning people may encourage you to choose a path God never told you to take.
This is how many believers lose their way. Not because they rejected God completely, but because they slowly exchanged His instruction for a better-looking alternative. Nobody wakes up one morning and decides to walk away from God. They simply take one small turn, then another, until the straight path is no longer in sight.
“When you see the choice to serve the Lord as a necessity, you will not see any value in any other choice than the choice to serve the Lord.” — TB Joshua
That word “necessity” carries the whole weight of Joshua 1:7. A necessity is not something you weigh against alternatives. You do not compare breathing to other options. When obeying God becomes that kind of necessity in your life, every other path simply loses its appeal, not because you fought it off through sheer willpower, but because your eyes are no longer scanning for alternatives.
The Alternatives God Calls Turning
God wants us to focus all our attention on the instructions He gives us. Focus on obeying every one of them. As God gave man the right to live, within that right was discretion, that is, the power to choose his own course of action. In other words, man is given the freedom to choose from many alternatives that surround him. These alternatives are what God refers to as “turning either to the right or to the left.”
“Turning to the right or to the left” represents every alternative that competes with the instruction God has given: fear, impatience, human reasoning, pressure, shortcuts, attractive opportunities, or advice that sounds sensible but moves us away from God’s direction.
Consider how ordinary these alternatives look in daily life. Fear says, “Protect yourself first, then obey later.” Human reasoning says, “This makes more logical sense than what you sensed from the Spirit.” Pressure from family or friends says, “Everyone else is doing it this way.” Delay convinces you to stop waiting and build your own plan instead. None of these voices identify themselves as enemies of your calling. They present themselves as wisdom, caution, or common sense. That is exactly what makes them dangerous.
The straight path is not always the easiest or fastest path. It is the path where God’s Word remains the final authority, regardless of how attractive the alternative looks or how long the wait becomes.
The choice we make determines who we are before God.
“Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.” — Galatians 6:7–8
When you recognize who you are before God, you will always see the need to consider His will in whatever decision you make. Man’s greatest privilege is to enjoy God’s presence. Remember there is a God, the cause of all things, the fountain of all perfection, without parts and dimensions, filling the heavens and the earth, pervading, governing, and upholding all things. That is the Most High God.
The moment God gives you an instruction, every alternative becomes a test of focus.
This means that as one created with a difference, as the greatest product of the Holy Spirit, there is a responsibility before you. Apply yourself to your business and duty as a Christian soldier, bearing in mind that we struggle with the common calamities of human life. We have a role to play in order to remain strong and steady in the Lord, and that role begins with recognizing which voices around us are actually alternatives dressed as counsel.
The Devil Rarely Asks You to Abandon God
The devil rarely begins by asking us to abandon God. He simply asks us to look elsewhere.
Think of how temptation actually works in Scripture. In the Garden, the serpent did not tell Eve to stop worshipping God. He simply asked her to reconsider one instruction: “Did God really say?” One question. One small redirection. That single turn to the side was enough to unravel everything.
This is the pattern the enemy still uses. He does not need you to renounce your faith publicly. He only needs you to turn slightly off course, confident that the turn itself is harmless, reasonable, even spiritual. He is patient. He knows that a small deviation, left uncorrected, becomes a permanent detour.
But God’s will has never changed.
Keep your eyes on Him. Keep His Word in your heart. Keep His instruction before you.
Don’t turn to the right. Don’t turn to the left.
Stay on the path He has chosen for you.
Hear it from Prophet Isaiah:
“Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it.’” — Isaiah 30:21
We are taught here that life never completely closes the door to opportunity. It is all about choices and how we respond to every situation. A Christian, standing in the will of God, is in a position that offers no true alternative apart from faith in God. Every other option, however dressed up, is still just a version of turning right or turning left.
The Choice You Make Decides Who You Are Before God
If you can trust the Holy Spirit, keep His Word in your mouth, in your heart by meditation, and in every conversation this day, you will eat the good things the land produces.
In other words, God Almighty is reminding me, Samuel, and you of our key responsibility, the same responsibility He reminded Joshua of. God Almighty is telling Samuel, Joshua, and you to see Him as the only reason for living and for doing all things. This indeed is the plan of success God has given to you and to Samuel.
“Joshua’s consistency and obedience to God’s instruction are a challenge to all Christians today, especially the busy elites of the www.com generation.” — TB Joshua
That quote lands with even more weight today than when it was first spoken. We live in a generation defined by speed, by notifications, by instant alternatives available at the tap of a screen. Every distraction, every competing voice, every “better” option is now one click away. The temptation to turn right or left has never been more accessible, and the discipline to stay on the straight path has never been more necessary.
Therefore, as Christians, our key responsibility is to trust the Holy Spirit, keeping His Word in our mouth, in our heart, and in every conversation. His words are our weapons, with which we become victorious in our confrontation with satan and his evil forces. Those who make the choice to serve the Lord in truth and in faith a necessity are at home with Him. They are always conscious of the fact that one day they will return to Him and rest in Him. You are bound to do what the best do, not in material terms but in terms of self-actualization, self-fulfillment, self-contentment, and the joy of the Lord.
The Still Small Voice That Calls You Back
However, if it happens that we deviate, or choose a different course of action, or pursue other alternatives that surround us, God does not simply abandon us to that detour. Listen to that still small voice of the Holy Spirit pointing us back to the right way. That voice reminding you to run the straight race with God.
This is one of the mercies embedded in Isaiah 30:21. God does not promise that we will never feel the pull to turn aside. He promises that even when we do drift, a voice will be behind us saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” The correction is available. The question is whether we are still enough, and humble enough, to hear it.
Joseph heard that voice in Potiphar’s house, when the easier turn would have been to sin and stay comfortable. He chose the straight path and fled instead, even at the cost of a prison sentence he did not deserve (Genesis 39:7–20). Daniel heard that voice when the king’s food represented the easier turn, a small compromise that would have cost him nothing visible. He purposed in his heart not to defile himself, and stayed on the narrow path (Daniel 1:8). In both cases, the alternative was not obviously wicked. It was simply not what God had instructed. That is exactly the kind of turning Joshua 1:7 warns against.
Hannah Refused the Shortcut
In our spiritual walk with the Lord, sometimes it seems as if we are troubled on every side. Under such situations, many cry unto the Lord, not in faith but in fear, panic, and unbelief. It is always in our own interest to get above our fears, even when it seems impossible to get above our troubles, because fear changes focus. Though we may be silent, we should not silence our faith and hope.
Remember Hannah (1 Samuel 1:10, 13, 17, and 20). She knew that there was no other way opened to her but to look unto God.
At the point of great need, though Hannah was silent, her faith was not silent. God’s response was in her favor, to encourage God’s people in all ages to trust God in the midst of trying situations. In whatever situation you find yourself as a Christian, it would be too soon for you to murmur or despair without first finding out what God says about that situation. Your case may be one that God intends to preserve you for a new level in life.
Are you barren in some area of your life right now? Remember Hannah. God used her situation of barrenness to preserve her for a new level of life. Instead of taking a shortcut, she decided to wait on the Lord for her breakthrough.
Assume Hannah did not understand the principle of life and decided to take a shortcut, to look right or left. She might have had a child earlier, but not Samuel, the great prophet. Elkanah had another wife, Peninnah, who bore him children while Hannah remained barren (1 Samuel 1:2). Hannah could have envied Peninnah’s path, resented her own, or sought a different solution outside of God’s timing. She could have turned right or left. She stayed on the narrow path of prayer and waiting, and what came out of that patience was not just a child, but a prophet who anointed two kings and shaped the destiny of a nation.
As a Christian, when your miracle is delayed, you are about to receive the mother of miracles. Delay is not denial. It may simply be God preserving something bigger than what the shortcut would have given you.
What Your Key Responsibility Actually Is
As a Christian, what is your situation like right now? Focus on God alone. That is your key responsibility.
Every believer eventually faces a moment where the instruction God gave feels harder to hold onto than the alternative in front of them. Maybe it is a relationship God told you to walk away from, and a voice keeps insisting you are overreacting. Maybe it is a business decision where the shortcut promises faster profit, but you sense God has not released you to move yet. Maybe it is a ministry assignment that looks small and unglamorous, while a flashier opportunity keeps knocking. In each of these moments, the test is the same one Joshua faced: will you deviate, turning either to the right or to the left, or will you stay?
Here is what staying looks like in practice:
- Return to the last clear instruction God gave you, not the newest voice offering a shortcut.
- Weigh the alternative against obedience, not against comfort. An option can feel more comfortable and still be the wrong turn.
- Ask whether the pressure to change course is coming from fear, fatigue, or genuine correction from the Holy Spirit. These feel different once you slow down enough to notice.
- Keep meditating on the Word day and night, the same instruction God gave Joshua immediately before verse 7 (Joshua 1:8), because a mind saturated in the Word recognizes a detour faster than a mind that is not.
- Refuse to let delay talk you into building your own solution. Hannah’s story is proof that what waits on the other side of patience can outweigh anything a shortcut could have produced.
Don’t Murmur When the Path Gets Hard
In Joshua 1:9, God Almighty was encouraging Joshua not to murmur, grumble, complain, or despair when everything seemed to go contrary to his expectations. He should see every situation that came his way as it should be, by divine will. In other words, that situation should be the reason he sought God the more, prayed the more, moved close to God the more.
“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” — Joshua 1:9
Notice the order. God does not tell Joshua to be strong because the enemies are weak. He tells him to be strong because God is with him wherever he goes, on the condition that Joshua does not turn from His instruction. Strength, in this passage, is tied directly to staying on the path, not to the size of the obstacle.
Remember, God delivers His faithful servants out of trouble and puts honor upon them, and He is not far from those who worship Him in truth and faith. The same God who stood behind Joshua at the edge of the Jordan River stands behind you at whatever edge you are facing today. The instruction has not changed. Do not turn to the right. Do not turn to the left. Stay on the path He has chosen for you, and you will be successful in everything you do.
🙏 Prayer
Lord, forgive me for every time I turned to the right or to the left when You had already spoken. Teach me to recognize the alternatives that compete for my obedience, and give me the discernment to know Your voice from every other voice. Where I have been waiting, strengthen my patience like Hannah’s. Where I have been tempted to compromise, give me the resolve of Joseph and Daniel. Keep Your Word in my mouth, in my heart, and in every conversation, so that I remain on the straight path You have set before me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Good Morning 🌄 and PROSPER ✨ today!
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