Handlebars for Taking Life Advice

We share life advice all the time in everyday conversations, sometimes without realizing we need to measure what is said against God’s Word. When we do it with fellow believers, we can blindly trust that their advice is on point. Just because someone is spiritual doesn’t mean their counsel is sound; sometimes, even well-meaning people can be completely off-track.

Let’s clarify when it makes sense to apply the handlebars I am about to share. If you ask for a secret to baking a delicious cookie, the tip might be to add cornstarch to the recipe. A coworker might show you a new app to stay organized, or a mechanic might tell you to change your oil more often. Those are just helpful opinions based on practical experience. Whether you take the advice or ignore it, there are zero spiritual consequences.

However, some advice can impact your life and have lasting consequences. The moment advice shifts from fixing a recipe to managing a relationship or making a moral choice, it enters spiritual territory. Because those choices directly affect your walk with God and potentially your relationship with others, they require biblical discernment.

Handlebars for Seeking Godly Life Advice

Begin with Prayer: You first should pray for God to guide you through His Word and through His mature disciples and ministers. Anyone giving you advice should regularly be praying and seeking Him. They need to know how to hear His voice. (John 10:27 and Ephesians 6:18)
Choose Advisors Wisely:
- Consider the character and spiritual maturity of the one advising you, because sound counsel flows from a life that shows the fruit of the Spirit. (Galatians 5:22-25)
- Advice should come from a place of humility and be spoken in love, never from pride, arrogance, selfish ambition, or rivalry. (1 Corinthians 13:1, Galatians 5:26; Philippians 2:3; Proverbs 27:6)
- A godly adviser uplifts and encourages you to do what is biblical and avoids mean-spirited critiques (1 Corinthians 13:1 & 1 Thessalonians 4:18)
- When things remain unclear, seek the advice of multiple mature counselors. (Proverbs 11:14)
- If the life advice being offered by multiple advisors is truly from God, there will be unity in the message. (Ephesians 4:2-3)
Determine the Trustworthiness of the Advice:
- Advice must be completely aligned with Scripture, the ultimate standard for truth; any counsel that contradicts it must be rejected. Do not be afraid to ask for Scripture that backs the advice you are being given. (Proverbs 1:7; Isaiah 8:20)
- Sound advice upholds God’s general will to Love God, Love Others, and fulfill the Great Commission, so if the advice contradicts this, it is not of God. (Matthew 22:37; Matthew 28:19-20)
- Godly advice leads to order, clarity, and peace rather than confusion or anxiety; when unsure, be still and seek clarity from God. (1 Corinthians 14:33; Psalm 46:10)
- Make sure the counsel reflects wisdom from above, pure and peaceable, rather than mere human pragmatism. (James 3:17)
- Weigh whether following the advice will draw you closer to God and help you grow in holiness or whether it distracts from your faith. (Philippians 1:9-10)
Possible Signs of Misleading Advice:
- One of the first signs you might be getting misleading advice is that your advisor has lost objectivity. If they become highly emotional, like angry or sad about what is happening to you or around you, they may unintentionally misguide you.
- They use phrases that may reflect their personal opinions instead of biblical truths, like:
  - I think you should do…
  - If I were you, I would…
  - In my experience…
  - I believe God wants you to…
- They tell you exactly what you want to hear.
- Their advice points you toward the most comfortable or convenient path.
Do Your Research
- Do not accept counsel blindly just because the person is a believer; test every spirit to see whether it is from God. (1 John 4:1)
- Open your Bible. Look up the references the advisor gives you and study them yourself. Make sure they are not taken out of context.

As you search for the right path to follow, those who are seeking God’s best for you will help hold you accountable to “rightly divide the word of truth” and follow God’s lead. (2 Timothy 2:15, KJV).

However, at the end of the day, you are ultimately responsible before God for your actions and decisions, so make sure all that you do is out of love for the Lord and for His glory (Romans 14:12, 1 Corinthians 10:31).

My prayer for you is that you consider these handlebars as you seek to make godly decisions and that you grow in your faith and discernment (2 Peter 3:18).