The Voice and Leading of

God

By

Grace Ryerson Roos

Copyright © 1971

by Grace Ryerson Roos

Published by

A Glorious Church Fellowship, Inc.

aka Billye Brim Ministries

aka Prayer Mountain in the Ozarks

P. O. Box 40

Branson, MO 65615

(417) 336-4877

Chapter I

Many write wanting to know, “What is a

leading of the Spirit? When God talks to you is

it in an audible voice? How do you recognize

the Holy Spirit’s leading?” It is to answer these

questions that this is written.

The first requirement, I believe, is faith that

He will do the leading and will lead you right.

“For without faith it is impossible to please Him: for

he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and

that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek

Him.” (Hebrews 11: 6). Faith is the coin of the

Spirit and is the medium through which we

acquire every sort of need. No matter how

much God seeks to lead us, if we do not have

faith to follow as He leads, He is stalemated.

TO DOUBT HIS FAITHFULNESS TO GUIDE

US IS A GREAT STUMBLING BLOCK TO

SPIRITUAL GROWTH. We must trust Him

completely to be led by His eternal wisdom.

When we ask for bread will He give us a

serpent? No! We are His children and He gives

us only what is good for us. So, when I began

seeking earnestly His guidance in all the details

of my life, He took me at my word and began to

move in simple ways.

5

Sitting in a service one night, I felt my spirit

leaving my seat and go to the platform and

stand behind the pulpit. The other me (the

physical body) was still sitting in the

congregation. This moving was both felt and

seen, a mental picture accompanying it. The

inner urge to rise and follow this “mystical me”

was very strong. Of course, the enemy fought,

“Don’t make a fool of yourself! What are you

going to do when you get behind the pulpit,

you have nothing to say!” But here is where

FAITH MUST DO HER PART. She must move

out whether or not she makes a fool of herself.

In learning lessons in school we occasionally

make mistakes because of incorrect

understanding, but we do not quit and give up

because we do not work problems perfectly the

first time. So with this attitude, we learn the

lessons in the Spirit also.

I left my seat and did exactly what I felt

moved to do. I reached the pulpit and there I

stood seeking for more understanding. Here

again FAITH MUST OPERATE. The enemy

would throw us into a panic because we do not

instantly know what is next, but REFUSE to be

rushed, pressured, or embarrassed. This is very

important! Whatever the Spirit has is well

worth waiting for, even if someone (not

initiated in the ways of the Holy Spirit) grows

6

impatient with us. We are students in the realm

of the Spirit and we do not grow into finished

scholars overnight. We must be patient and

tolerant of ourselves.

So I waited, sure God had something more.

I had taken the step in faith and faith pleases

God, so He would finish the leading. He did!

My mind received the thought of the total

power of the Blood of Jesus as a covering

against the powers of darkness and its greater

virtue and might to overcome them. I began to

share with the congregation this glorious truth

and as I yielded myself, the anointing of the

Spirit took over and great liberty of expression

was given. I was blessed, the congregation was

blessed, and I had recognized a leading of the

Spirit—the thing my heart had been crying for.

The next time this same experience

happened, I was better prepared to follow. This

time I saw myself (this mystical me again went

out ahead of me) going to an individual in the

congregation and laying my hands on her and

praying for her as the Spirit led. I did this and

God again met me by giving me a ministry to

this tried soul. I prayed the prayer that came to

my mind even when the requests were strange

and seemingly unfounded, but I reminded

myself quickly I was yielding to Him and He

7

knew what He was doing.

Even today (many years later) this type of

leading God frequently uses. While visiting a

friend in a hospital I was introduced to another

visitor. This stranger expressed a deep hunger

for God in our conversation, and again I felt the

familiar moving of my spirit reaching for her. I

arose and laid my hands on her shoulders and

began to pray as the Spirit filled my mind. I

asked the Lord to satisfy every longing of her

heart, giving her her family, and even prayed

for a daughter which up to that moment I did

not know existed. This bit of revelation was a

great comfort to this mother who knew it had

to be God who had given this knowledge.

Certainly I was crawling out on a limb praying

for a daughter I did not know she had, but God

does not make fools of His children. The

responsibility of the leading is His when we

yield ourselves with all the spiritual

understanding we possess.

Do I ever make a mistake—yes! Sometimes!

Not often, just often enough to remind me that I

am just a vessel and not infallible. Only HE is

infallible. Of course, Satan fights us over

failures, but we cannot afford to be occupied

with these because then he would stop all our

endeavors to yield to the Lord and stunt our

8

spiritual growth forever. This we must not

permit! We can afford to be wrong once in

awhile, but we cannot afford to stop growing,

stop trusting, stop trying! With each passing

year our ability to follow increases, our

understanding is much more, our sensitivity to

the Spirit grows. It is ever a walk of faith. The

Lord Jesus was ONE with the Father from the

beginning, but we who have been rescued from

a fallen state have learned to be one with the

Mind of God, and we do it by faith.

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Chapter II

God leads in several ways. Sometimes He

speaks deeply within us, but most of the time

He moves through our thoughts and

inclinations. When we have committed our

lives to Him and seek only for His leading and

His glory, then we are under His guidance and

supervision and what WE THINK TO DO is

invariably His leading. We feel INCLINED to

write a letter, make a phone call, speak to

someone, perform an act of kindness—yet the

leading was not outstanding; in fact we thought

it was our own idea until the end-result

revealed God’s guiding hand.

Make Paul’s words to Timothy (1: 14) your

own, and daily commit your thoughts and

inclinations to Him to control. “For I know whom

I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to

keep that which I have committed unto Him against

that day.” Faith says this committal is complete.

When we commit anything to anyone we turn it

over to them and they are responsible for its

safe-keeping. So God KEEPS our thoughts,

inclinations and desires and we can be guided

by them daily without fear. To me, this is

having the MIND OF CHRIST: His Mind

11

overruling our minds, thinking His thoughts

through them, inclining us in His way and

ways, walking with Him, communing with

Him and doing His will. It is important that we

follow the leading of the Spirit always AWARE

that His mind does rule in our minds, and seek

to please Him in the little acts of daily life; for

this is our school, later it will be too late to

learn. By that time following His leading

should be the ingrained habit of our lives. We

will have acquired so much experience in

following His leading that we shall have no

trouble determining His will.

A prophecy by the Spirit channeled through

Anna Lee Carlton of Arcadia, Florida confirms

much that has been written above:

My children, I have called thee to dwell

in Me and My Spirit is to dwell in you. At

first this begins as an act of faith, but as you

begin to put action to your faith it becomes a

living reality. Your mind when given

completely to Me becomes My Mind and I

am able to direct through thought. This is

greater and much more glorious than being

directed by outward circumstances which I

use before your mind is turned completely

to my use.

It is indeed a great thing for one to say,

‘The Lord directed me and caused things to

12

happen to show me His leadings.’ But I say

unto you it is far greater to Me and of much

joy to My Father when the Holy Spirit

speaks the word of advice to you and you

obey at once to do that which was told unto

thee.

Many so-called friends, and those who

live near, will not understand this at all and

you will receive persecution for this; when if

the circumstances moved you to make

decisions these would understand that. Do

you not comprehend the spoken word of

My Spirit is a greater manifestation of My

power at work within you than the guiding

of the ‘hand of providence’ as some call it?

As you dwell securely and with

confidence in Me, and as you allow the

Spirit His free control of your mind and

body, you will be more certainly led

through the spoken word.

I have this to tell you. When you come

fully to the place of knowing to listen and

fully to the way of hearing and obeying,

then you will be able to act at once without

putting out the fleece. This you will need to

do no longer.

Worry not because you are not yet in

this place. Does it do a small child any good

to worry because he is not the size of his

father? Yea, he truly longs for that day and

just as surely as he continues to live and

13

grow, so he will some day come into the

development of manhood. So with you, too,

My children. Some will come ahead of

others and this, too, is a natural thing. Envy

not one another here, but pray for one

another and practice your faith—put it to

the test. My Word is true. Believe this?

Does God speak to one in an audible voice?

God does speak to us but it is a voice that only

our spirit hears for “God is a Spirit: and they that

worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in

truth.” (John 4: 24). Thus He deals with us on

the plane of our spirit. There He who is THE

SPIRIT of all spirits communicates with our

redeemed spirit and makes His will known to

us.

The Spirit of the Lord has wakened me

early in the morning by the LOUD RING of the

telephone. I would wake up thinking the phone

was ringing, but as I lay there it did not ring

again and I realized I heard the ring IN THE

SPIRIT not in the natural. It was God calling me

to seek His face. This has happened many

times.

It is well to keep our minds under the

sanctifying power of the Blood of Jesus,

filtering out the natural mind and submitting

our spiritual mind to Him to think through. Do

14

not misunderstand and go overboard in doing

whatever comes into your mind, and count it as

the leading of the Spirit. There is a constant

“looking unto Jesus” for such guidance; there is

a life of prayer behind it, and real fellowship

with the Lord also. If we qualify on these three

counts THEN we can believe that He works

through our thoughts, ideas and inclinations to

bring His will to pass. They will come to us as

our own thoughts, but they will be more than

that, they will be born of the Holy Spirit.

When I say I “see” this or that in the Spirit, I

mean I have been given a mental picture of it

by the Spirit. I needed to have a personal talk

with someone close to me and they were

avoiding me. I knew God wanted this talk and

so prayed for the opportunity. As I prayed I

had a mental picture of myself talking to her in

the bathroom of my home. I knew then that

was the opportunity God was going to give me.

Hours later in visiting with them, this person

got up and went to the bathroom. I was

watching for this and followed immediately,

going in and shutting the door behind us. We

had our talk as God ordained.

I was upset one time over a very important

matter to me. I wondered about a person that

was coming into close contact with me, and

15

naturally I was desirous to know what spirit he

was of. I took the matter to the Lord, asking for

a revelation, an insight to his heart. One night

we were talking, sitting opposite each other

when suddenly I was aware of the Presence of

the Lord and I “saw” my spirit rise up and go

toward him. At the same time I saw his spirit

come out to meet mine and when we met we

blended and became one spirit. God showed

me we were of the same spirit and there was

nothing to be alarmed about.

A friend brought her friend to visit me who

apparently was hungry for the deeper things of

God. We talked and prayed together and

sought the Lord with all our hearts, but in the

midst of this I saw this lady standing in front of

our front door, put her hand on the door knob

and open it—she was leaving. Thus the Spirit

revealed that in her mind she was finished with

her visit and was only seeking an opportunity

to gracefully leave. I gave her this opportunity

and she left.

God is NEVER going to let us function in

any other way except BY FAITH. NEVER will

He permit us to be independent of Him. To be

guided by the Holy Spirit, faith must be

exercised and must not be restrained from

operating even if we make mistakes. Faith must

16

be strong to believe that God WILL “work all

things together for our good” (Romans 8: 28) and

our spiritual growth and stature. Nothing is

ever attained in the Spirit without our personal

faith being exercised.

When He is truly our HEAD, and dictates

every decision and move of our day, THEN we

can say we are Spirit-led. “As many as are led by

the Spirit of God, they are the (grown-up) sons of

God.” (Romans 8: 14). Hence, being led by the

Spirit is true spiritual maturity. “Can two walk

together, except they be agreed?” (Amos 3: 3). Thus

one must lead and the other follow. The

Apostle Paul called himself the bond-slave of

the Lord Jesus Christ. But this is a slavery of

love, respect and appreciation. Never do we

lose our real dignity; rather the submission we

render elevates us to a high care-free walk with

our minds kept in perfect peace. (Isaiah 26: 3).

17

Chapter III

Some manufacturers of furniture called in

their designers and told them to forget

everything they ever knew about a chair, table,

etc., and approach the product from an angle

never considered before; and starting from

scratch see what they could come up with in

new ideas and innovations. They called this

CRASH THINKING. We have reaped some of

the benefits of their original approach in more

comfortable chairs contoured to the body, and

so on.

The spiritual parallel is written in Isaiah 43:

18-19. The Amplified Version gives it this way:

Do not (earnestly) remember the former

things, neither consider the things of old (note:

not guided by antiquated interpretations of

men!) Behold I am doing a new thing; now it

springs forth (note: now means TODAY!) Do

you not perceive and know it, and will you not

give heed to it? I will even make a way in the

wilderness and rivers in the desert.”

Here is spiritual “crash thinking.”

When we seek to walk with God all our

normal concepts of such a walk must CRASH—

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be cast aside. Organized religion would

regulate this too, for they have put men in strait

jackets for generations. Everything must be

according to their pattern, for any departure

from their norm is instantly branded heresy

and you will be regarded with suspicion from

then on. Yet, to walk with God is an

INDIVIDUAL MATTER not controlled by any

church board, minister-pastor in the pulpit, or

the denominational headquarters. God has no

desire to make us alike in any way except in the

spirit. As His eternal plan for us individually

develops, we will experience variations in His

leading throughout the Spirit-led body of

believers (and I mean SPIRIT-LED body). We

do not require our own children to be exact

copies of each other. We allow them to develop

their own personalities and be distinctly

different from each other.

In following the leading of the Spirit for

preparation for the Last Days, this “crash

thinking” is an absolute necessity! God would

have us start from “scratch” and utterly depend

on Him alone for guidance and moment-by-

moment leadership. He delights to take charge

of us and direct our steps in His ways hitherto

unknown to us. So do not let this original

thinking of His scare you. Just know you will

come up with new understanding and spiritual

20

experience that will put strength in you and

make you stand tall. Isaiah 44: 3 (Amplified

Version) assures us, “For I will pour water upon

him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground:

I will pour My Spirit upon your offering and My

blessing upon your descendants. And they shall

spring up among the grass (note: grass is a type of

people, or among the people) as willows or

poplars by the water courses.” (Note: they shall be

more than grass, they shall stand as trees in the

midst—towering in spiritual understanding

and power above the grass-type of people).

The fundamental reason for the leading of

the Spirit is to increase our growth, to develop

us into SONS of God, and to deepen and

broaden our fellowship with The Father.

Romans 8: 14 states, “For as many as are led by

the Spirit of God, they are the (grown-up) sons of

God.” Being led signifies maturity, having left

the adolescent stage and walking now on the

level of responsible Sonship. The leading of the

Spirit matures us much more rapidly than any

other means of growth. It is kin to other means

of grace—prayer and Bible study. These three

are interwoven into a threefold cord, not to be

easily broken. It is in this walk of obedience

that we need perfecting more than any other.

As I see it, there is no perfection apart from this

leading. Revelations 14: 4 declares, “These are

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they which follow the Lamb whithersoever He

goeth.” This was the outstanding characteristic

of this great company of overcomers—

following obediently every move of the Spirit,

completely submitted to and controlled by

Him.

The leading of the Spirit also brings us a

great sense of security. We cannot miss the

highway of His perfect will when He leads us

every step of the way. There is no fretting,

worrying, or carnal planning in this high walk.

All we do moment-by-moment is follow His

voice, tug, inclination in every situation.

Being led will bring forth some strange

solutions, some startling revelations (crash

thinking!) concerning them, as well as train us

to cast behind us all the natural mind involved.

Again I stress this is a walk of faith. “Faith

worketh by love” and this love He provides,

besides the grace necessary to refuse all natural

conclusions, that He might have the

preeminence in our lives. It sustains us in the

face of severe criticism when obedience to the

Lord creates misunderstanding by others who

question our leading. There will always be

people who do not see eye-to-eye with us in the

way we follow the Lamb, so faith must operate

to hold us steady, ministering peace to us.

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The leading of the Spirit is also our means

of emancipation, for He is the Spirit of Liberty.

He sets free. Following His voice, obeying His

will, disciplining ourselves under His strict

leadership will free us of self and its limitations,

besides freeing us from bondage to man and his

interpretations. We will experience that we are

indeed EAGLES with power to soar above it all

and enter into intimate fellowship with our

lovely Lord Jesus!

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Chapter IV

Raymond Russel of New York City shared

this nugget of truth with us some years ago.

One time when in much meditation and prayer,

the Lord spoke six very significant words to

him: TRUE GUIDANCE IS MOMENT BY

MOMENT. Thus we are made to understand

that the guidance of the Spirit is a continuous

experience, not a specialized treatment for

certain occasions, but an every-day, every-

moment-of-the-day happening in the life of the

Spirit-led child of God. He ABIDES within us to

lead us moment-by-moment. This is thrilling

and heartening to faith. Because His overall

guidance abides, we willingly submit the

government of our daily lives to Him and He

moves to control them. Many of His leadings

are insignificant in that we are hardly aware of

them as leadings. They are the natural reactions

to a heart and mind that are blended with HIS.

Occasionally He pinpoints a leading to teach us

further, and this is what He did when I was

visiting my son and daughter-in-law in

Colorado Springs early one summer.

Most of us know that Colorado Springs is

one of the wonder spots of our great country.

25

The great handiwork of the Lord in nature

staggers one’s vision and mind. Pikes Peak

towers over the city in the distance, an

awesome sight. The Royal Gorge became a

great lesson in His ways are higher than our

ways and His thoughts than our thoughts. Our

ways and thoughts follow the bottom of the

gorge, walled in on both sides by steep rocky

walls, unsurmountable. A thousand or so feet

above, the unique suspension bridge spans the

gorge and represents God’s higher and

unrestricted ways and thoughts. Everything I

saw radiated with spiritual meaning and

seemed personal to me. THEN the Lord let me

know He had sent me to Colorado Springs to

His private school. Here I was to receive

specialized training in following His voice and

since it was a concentrated course, I MUST pay

close attention that I learn my lessons quickly.

The object of all these spiritual lessons was

freedom to choose His will above and beyond

my own. He would not choose for me. Tests

came from the most insignificant things; eating,

drinking, conversation, etc. Staying alert to the

moving of His Spirit helped me immeasurably

to ascertain the will of God. Once He indicated

His perfect will, I found He did not change His

mind when I met the situation again. But to

keep me encouraged and to emphasize the

26

seriousness of this school I was in, He promised

me, “Pass this test, Grace, and you will begin to

deliver your children!” With a promise of that

kind, it was a worthy prize to reach for with all

the strength and purpose of heart I had.

One day He almost shocked me with this

word of wisdom: “Be selfish; be utterly selfish

for your own spiritual prosperity. Let nothing

turn you aside. Have a one-track mind. Guard

your speech and let your words be few—yea,

be utterly selfish and concentrate on your

progress in the Spirit.”

About eleven o’clock one night I wakened

from sleep feeling a light touch on my shoulder.

The voice of the Lord was speaking, “Grace, I

have a proposition to make. Would you be led

by My Spirit in the strictest sense all day

tomorrow?” Carefully considering this and

appreciating the importance of my decision, I

replied slowly, “Yes, Lord, I’ll do my best!” A

swift sense of His approval flashed over me

and He assured me, “THEN I WILL GIVE YOU

A TASTE OF WHAT THE LAST DAYS’

LEADING IS GOING TO BE LIKE!”

Since “true guidance is moment by

moment,” I looked for Him moment by

moment all that day. As the day wore on with

nothing unusual happening, I became

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burdened in prayer. I was praying when

suddenly I heard myself exclaim emphatically,

“I will render unto Caesar the things that are

Caesar’s and unto God the things that are

God’s,” and I knew I was going to have to make

a difficult choice involving people. What I did

not know was my son and his wife had planned

a surprise birthday dinner at a very fine

restaurant in my honor. I knew I could have no

part in this lovely event and still obey the Lord

in keeping my words few. What to do? The

Spirit illuminated my understanding instantly

and I knew I must beg off. Would I render to

Caesar the things that belonged to him (my love

and my cooperation with love-inspired plans!)

or would I render unto God the obedience that

was HIS. There was only one answer, so I

explained the best I could that I had a great

burden of prayer and please let me renege and

call off my part of it. Both of these precious

people were very understanding and lovely.

Then they decided they would celebrate my

birthday at home and we would eat our

birthday dinner together. But I knew I must f-a-

s-t and so I just kissed them both and said,

“You two celebrate my birthday for me. I’m not

going to eat!” This they also accepted

graciously. (Bless them!)

I was led then to go to my room where the

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Lord showed me plainly to retire for the night

(at 5: 30 in the evening! ) But I obeyed, rejoicing

that God by His grace had enabled me to make

the RIGHT decision.

Settled in bed, the Lord spoke again. “The

day (of my spiritual school) is far spent and the

night (closing of it) is at hand, so be very

careful, my daughter. Be a woman of few

words; stay aloof from people. Be led by the

Spirit. Stay to yourself going home. (I was

leaving the next morning). Let it be a fast of

words, speaking only necessary words. This is

your discipline. Bring your speech under rigid

control, become master of it. Then, thou shalt

have joy unspeakable!” I am going to the bus

station with John and I will HAVE to talk to

him! I know, I reasoned, I’ll write my

expression of love and thanks for everything in

a letter, and then hand it to him when I get

ready to board the bus. Somehow the Lord will

control the situation so I won’t hurt John. So I

sat up in bed and wrote a letter, pouring out

my heart on paper, feeling a sweet moving of

the Spirit as I did. Finished, I tucked it in my

Bible and went to sleep.

Sometime before daybreak I wakened with

the thought pressing down on me that I must

pack my bags and leave without disturbing my

29

loved ones. I recoiled from the suggestion. I

would not want to treat them that way; they

would never understand. Then “render to God

the things that are God’s” came fresh to mind,

and so I meditated over it. The suggestion was

so strong. I thought, I’ll just “try this spirit,”

and so stole into the other room and called the

bus station and asked when the earliest bus left

for Dallas! Ten-ten! was the cheerful reply.

THAT was the bus I was planning to take,

surely that settled the matter. But moment by

moment we are led. Then came the order, “Pack

your bags and get ready to leave!” I argued

with the Lord that it was an impossibility. My

daughter-in-law would be getting up and

getting ready to go to work in just a little while.

I could never leave unobserved. I thought again

that settled the matter. But again moment by

moment revelation is given, and this time I

KNEW that I must be ready to leave the house

right behind her if I was going to render my

obedience to the Lord. Was not this A LAST

DAYS’ LEADING, so named by the Lord

Himself? I reminded myself.

I packed my bags, dressed, and when I

heard the door close behind her as she left the

house, I went to the phone and called for a taxi.

I wrote a hasty note, placed it on the bed (the

Lord would not let me leave my letter of love,

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declaring to me that I must not “add to His

leading nor take away from it!” So I carried my

letter away with me). I took my bags to the

patio (my son was still asleep) and watched for

the taxi which arrived in a few minutes and I

was on my way to the bus station. My heart

was a tremendous mixture of a shout of victory

and a throbbing ache for my dear ones left

behind. Yet, OBEDIENCE always brings its

own reward, so I left my reputation with my

son and dear daughter-in-law in the hands of

the Lord and trusted He would again be the

GOD OF ALL FLESH and handle this for my

sake.

I kept aloof from people all the way home.

One woman seemed determined to talk to me,

and I had to be rude to her (so contrary to my

nature) but I was determined to obey the Lord

and do things HIS WAY. I only spoke the very

necessary words and refused to encourage any

conversations. When we arrived in Dallas I was

supposed to have a two-hour lay-over but as I

was leaving the bus I heard the driver tell a

woman the bus in the next lane was leaving

right away for Shreveport by way of Tyler. The

Spirit indicated that I should take it. In Tyler I

expected another wait, but the Lord had my

bus waiting again in the next lane and I was

soon on my way. It was the same thing at the

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next change stop and I arrived home two hours

and forty minutes ahead of schedule. I sat in the

bus station waiting for my son to come after

me, and the Lord said, “You may talk freely

now!” and the ban on speech was completely

lifted. A great sense of release flowed over me

and with it a great flood of JOY. I was on

wings! I was soaring in the spirit! Yet, at the

same time I had the sensation of having come

through a fiery hot furnace in which I had left

my fetters and bonds and I was FREE! Free in a

way I had never experienced before.

Last Days’ leadings are going to be as

strange and inexplainable as those the Lord

gave above. God will move in many strange

ways and we must be prepared to follow Him

without question, neither “adding to or taking

away from His leading” but faithfully following

hard on the heels of the Spirit with the

determination and concentration of an Elisha

pursuing Elijah clear to the Jordan and beyond.

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Chapter V

Recently the Lord renewed a truth that He

taught me years ago. It is this: “FIRST

IMPRESSIONS ARE THE BEST IMPRESSIONS.

CONSIDER THIS TO BE A 'RULE OF THUMB’

UNLESS OTHERWISE LED!” This rule is for

those who are filled with the Spirit and who are

seeking to be led by the Lord, whose minds are

under the Blood of Jesus and are blended with

His Mind in an endeavor to be ONE with Him

in all things.

The FIRST impression, or thought, or

leading that He registers upon our minds is

invariably His best leading in the matter. If we

follow our first thought, He will meet us in the

solution. He called it “a rule of thumb”—in

other words here is a rule we can go by without

straining, without being legalistic about it. A

thumb measure is not an exact measure.

Thumbs vary in size, therefore, this rule is not a

hardbound one. It allows for differences and

variations, BUT IT WILL WORK FOR US THE

MAJORITY OF THE TIME.

I needed a new pair of shoes. My first

inclination was to go to a certain store to

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purchase them and I was satisfied this was the

leading of the Spirit. When I reached the store,

the thought persisted, maybe I ought to go to

B’s and see what they have. Instantly, however,

I realized that was “adding” to my leading and

would only work confusion. I reminded myself

the Lord had said from the start one certain

store; so resisting this suggestion I obeyed my

first leading and found exactly the pair of shoes

I was searching for.

I had a similar experience buying a small

gift for a friend who had been especially lovely

to me. I wanted my gift to please her in a real

way, so I talked to the Lord about it since He

also knew my limitations financially. Instantly a

certain gift came to mind and also where to

purchase it. Driving into town, thinking about

it, I experienced the same thought of “adding”

to my leading by going to another store—a

discount store. Again I reminded myself my

FIRST leading was completely the opposite. So,

I went to the store that had first come to mind

and found exactly the gift the Lord had

mentioned—and it DID please her.

One of the important things we must learn

about a Spirit-led life is that we DO NOT ADD

anything of ourselves to this leading neither do

we TAKE AWAY any phase of it. We do what

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we are told to do IN THE WAY we are told.

This is absolute obedience to the Mind of

Christ, no matter how the natural mind “falls

out” with it.

Many years ago in a Sunday night service,

the Lord moved me to go to a young man in the

church and invite him to the altar. He needed to

surrender his life to God. That was all the Lord

told me to do. I went to him and told him the

Lord said to invite him to the altar for prayer

that he might give himself to HIM in full

surrender. He was surprised at such an

invitation and worded in that fashion, however,

he quietly refused. So following my leading, I

left him.

I did not argue with him or seek to change

his mind, for that was NOT what the Lord sent

me to him for. I was just to extend HIS royal

invitation to come into His Presence. It was

completely up to him what he did with the

invitation.

Recently a dear friend prophesied to me, “to

stay flexible in the Spirit and to have no

preconceived ideas!” One meaning of flexible is

“easily managed; willing to yield to influence

or persuasion.” Preconceived ideas can harden

our flexibility and make it very difficult for us

to be pliable in the hands of the Lord.

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Preconceived ideas are the natural functions of

the mind—it is we deciding beforehand just

how the Lord will move. He did it this way

yesterday, so today He must do it the same

way; only He DOES NOT, and if we have acted

on such natural reasonings we might very well

find ourselves in trouble—trouble of our own

making. I remember one such occasion years

ago when I had to go to the Lord and admit,

“Lord, I got myself into this—but You will have

to get me out. I am helpless!” In His grace and

goodness, HE DID!

One friend testified that the Lord had told

her to buy a much needed couch for her living

room. She did. Later she wanted some end

tables to go with the new couch and she

purchased them. Paying for the couch was easy,

but paying for the end tables presented many

difficulties because she “added” to her leading.

But all these lessons “work together for good”

because through them we learn how to walk in

the Spirit without “adding” or “taking away”

from His leading. This is not done overnight,

but if we are apt students we will learn quickly

that His timing is all important to His plan.

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Chapter VI

More Experiences

A truth demonstrated will be remembered

far beyond a truth just taught or explained—so

we tie them to experiences to encourage us all.

A friend was sitting in her car in a city park

waiting for her children. In the midst of her

reading, the suggestion came, “Why don’t you

move your car three or four places back?”

Without debating the matter, she reparked her

car. About fifteen minutes later, a teen-age

driver came tearing through the park at a

terrific speed and briefly lost control of his car.

It swerved wildly into the place where her car

had been parked. It took all of his skill to bring

it out of there without turning it over. Relating

the experience she added, “I sat there with a

heartful of praise to my God for preserving me.

I could have been killed.” This demonstrates

how important obedience is to the leading of

the Spirit. What if she had not obeyed?

One Sunday night just before service time, it

came to me that we should have a communion

service. I mentioned to my husband we needed

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to send for some grape juice because we had

none. He casually replied, “Oh well, we do not

need to have communion tonight, we can wait

until another time!” I walked away and tried to

forget the whole thing. However, it would not

be forgotten. The thought came, God told ME to

provide for a communion service, He did not

talk to Carl and was not dealing with him. That

settled it. I sent my son for the grape juice and

God built our whole service around the

communion service in a very precious way.

In a business transaction with a man years

ago, he explained why he could not go through

with our business. Deep within me my spirit

heard the Holy Spirit say simply, “He lies!” My

son, John, was with me at the time and I

remarked as we returned to our car, “John, the

Lord said that man lied to us. You watch and

see if time does not prove it to be so.” Time did.

At another time I lost 3-year-old Peter while

shopping. Somehow we got separated. I

searched everywhere for him, finally becoming

alarmed. He was such a little fellow—where

could he be? Realizing my need to be calm I

found a chair in the shoe department of the

store and grew quiet before the Lord. When I

was still, I said, “Lord WHERE is Peter?”

Quietly my spirit heard the words welling up

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from within, “He is in the car!” and, of course,

that is where I found him.

I wanted very much to comfort a friend

who had just lost a beloved son, yet I knew

without the Spirit’s leading I would only

multiply words that would minister no life. So,

I waited on the Lord as to His time for the visit.

Days went by and still no leading, then

suddenly I KNEW to write a letter of comfort

and sympathy under the anointing of the Spirit

and God would use THAT to accomplish His

purpose. I wrote with great freedom as the

Spirit poured out His comfort in His chosen

words, and later I heard that the Holy Balm of

His love poured over the wounded heart with

healing virtue.

Shopping for groceries one time, I felt such

a moving of the Spirit within me that I stopped

where I was and looked to Him. He said, “You

do not need that sugar yet (I had enough at

home to last until the weekend!), neither do you

need the milk now. You have plenty of cookies

at home and you will not need the rolls.” I

looked at my grocery buggy and re-evaluated

its contents. THE LORD WAS RIGHT! Picking

up the commodities He had named I replaced

them on their shelves and went to be checked

out, thanking the Lord for His concern for my

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grocery bill. That night as I went to bed, I

experienced the wonderful sweet, deep

pleasure of the Lord because of my obedience

in this thing.

For many months my husband and I had

prayed about buying a new car—we so needed

one! We had no money to buy one but that

would not stop the Lord from giving us one.

There are no lean times with HIM. Finally, one

early morning I woke up with the name,

“Kendricks!” ringing in my spiritual ear. My

heart quickened. It was the name of a car dealer

whom we had done business with before. I told

my husband, “Carl, it is time to go buy our

car!” So immediately we made preparations to

go. We still had no money, but WHEN THE

SPIRIT LEADS THAT IS THE TIME

APPOINTED TO HAVE THE NEED MET! We

went looking to the Lord for whatever HE HAD

FOR US. Although there were many cars on his

lot to choose from, there was only ONE that I

had eyes for. I recognized it as God’s choice.

The price was staggering to one without

money, but we knew this was GOD’S TIME and

whatever the car cost HE would underwrite the

expense because it was His leading. We went to

the office to fill out the papers and complete the

deal. I wrote a check for nearly $500 to cover

the money needed right then. We told the

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dealer to hold the check until Monday (this was

Saturday) and the money would be in the bank

to meet it. Monday morning I went to the bank

and they gladly advanced the money to my

checking account to cover the check. We knew

they would give us the loan because THE

LORD WAS LEADING and He had prepared

their hearts in advance. The monthly payments

on the new car would have been staggering at

any other time; but not so when THE SPIRIT

LEADS. Whatever obligation involved was HIS

obligation—and He has faithfully provided

month after month without strain or concern on

our part. It was the easiest debt we have ever

paid for, yet the most expensive car we have

ever owned. What is the difference? —HIS

LEADING, HIS TIMING AND HIS

PROVISION.

Some years ago a friend gave us a nice

mattress which she suggested should be re-

worked. So we took it to a mattress company

and ordered them to do the work, including

making a box spring to match it. For three

months we daily prayed for the money to pick

up the finished mattress and spring, which we

really needed. But no money and no word from

the Lord came, until one morning the Spirit

whispered deeply within, “You will NEVER

have the money, Grace—take it by faith!” I

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realized the Lord was telling me that if I paid

for it at all, it would be strictly by faith. Quite

excited over this revelation I went to the

telephone and ordered the mattress and spring

delivered. I paid for them with a check. Where

the extra money came from to cover the check I

will never know, but it was JUST GOD

handling the matter He had taken

responsibility for. GOD’S LEADING,

COMBINED WITH GOD’S TIMING ALWAYS

BRINGS GOD’S PROVISION!

We could add many more such experiences,

but feel this covers all the Spirit of the Lord

wishes dealt with at this time. We trust you

have received encouragement and help in your

own walk in the Spirit—to be a little bolder, a

little more confident, and that wherever He

leads you, you KNOW that you can follow.

We hear the expression, “Nothing ventured,

nothing gained.” It is true in the natural and

doubly true in the spiritual. If we never venture

out on the promises of God, we will never gain

a knowledge of what He can do through us. If

we sit around and do nothing, excusing

ourselves on the grounds of inability, we will

always belong to the tribe of the “fearful and

unbelieving.” We are no credit to ourselves,

and no credit to God.

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Other books

by

Grace Ryerson Roos

Spiritual Warfare

Handfuls of Purpose

Prayer Letters

Nuggets

On Eagles Wings

Love

The Blood

Available from:

Billye Brim Ministries

P. O. Box 40

Branson, MO 65615

(800) 972-3447

Document Outline

- The Voice and Leading of God

- Chapter I

- Chapter II

- Chapter III

- Chapter IV

- Chapter V

- Chapter VI

- More Experiences

Table of Contents

The Voice and Leading of God

Chapter I

Chapter II

Chapter III

Chapter IV

Chapter V

Chapter VI