In yesterday’s meditation, we were enjoined not to be pressured into seeking guidance in the wrong way. How then should we go about it? The text for our meditation today has a clue. We are not supplied any extra details of the character in this verse, other than the fact that he was described as a man of God. The important thing here is the reference that he went to Bethel “by the word of the Lord”. This emphasis implies that the man could have gone to Bethel by some other means. He could have acted on the word of man. Or, he could have gone there to fulfill family or business obligations; but he went by the word of the Lord. There are two other instances in the chapter where this particular phrase “by the word of the Lord” was used. Verse 2 says “he spoke by the word of the Lord”, and verse 5 caps it by saying “he gave sign by the word of the Lord”.  This gives us insight into how prophets operate. They do everything by the prompting of the Lord through His word.

We must never go with the impression that it is only prophets who can enjoy guidance by the word. If that were the case many people would be cut off from divine flow, since not all are prophets. While all cannot be prophets, everyone can live the prophetic life. The prophetic life revolves around the word. If you can obtain God’s word before you speak or act, you will live a prophetic life. To live the prophetic life is to enjoy the full benefits that God bestows on prophets, among which is protection. He gave a command to the nations not to do the prophets any harm. In addition, God upholds every word that you speak and will never allow them to fall to the ground.