When you see your friend going down the wrong path and making the wrong decisions, you’re going to try and talk to them. We hand out advice to those we care about, desperate for them to change direction. We all do it. But we can’t force them to listen or to put into action the advice we’re giving. So, what do you do when they refuse to take your advice on board? Once we’ve tried our best, we’re left with two things to do. The first is love the person. While we may get frustrated that they’re not listening, we can still be there for them. And the second? Pray. It might seem obvious but pray that they’d be open to God’s direction. There’s also the possibility that your advice won’t match up with God’s will. In Acts 21, Paul is given a prophecy warning him about what would happen if he went ahead to Jerusalem. ‘Coming over to us, he took Paul’s belt, tied his own hands and feet with it and said…“the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem will bind the owner of this belt and will hand him over to the Gentiles’” (Acts 21:11 NIV). Paul’s friends were understandably worried and tried to tell Paul not to go but Paul was determined that it was God’s will for him to go to Jerusalem. In the end, Paul’s friends had to give up. ‘When he would not be dissuaded, we gave up and said, “The Lord’s will be done”’ (v.14). Sometimes, we just have to step back, love and pray, leave it in God’s hands, and let the will of God be done.
What now?
Whenever you need to take a step back and just leave someone with God, write their name on a bit of paper. Find a bowl and put the paper in it. That’s to remind you that you’ve left them in God’s hands. Pray over the name in the bowl each day, but don’t take it out of there.