Counsel

There is a sad narrative from 1st Kings chapter 12.  Rehoboam has become king over Israel, and we
read:
6 Then King Rehoboam consulted the elders who stood before his father Solomon while he still lived, and he said, "How do you advise me to answer these people?"
7 And they spoke to him, saying, "If you will be a servant to these people today, and serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be your servants forever."
8 But he rejected the advice which the elders had given him, and consulted the young men who had grown up with him, who stood before him.

This actually led to Israel becoming divided.  Rehoboam rejected good, wise, and experienced counsel, to his detriment.  We have to make sure that we are seeking Godly wisdom - going to the Word, our source of truth and direction; and then, as He leads, if necessary, talking with others who you trust in order to make a good decision.  And, we can be prepared to be used of the Lord - as He has directed us and we have obeyed, we can be willing to share our experience to help someone else.

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The book of Proverbs offers some insight and criteria for good, or wise, counsel.  Consider this verse
from Proverbs 11:
14 Where there is no counsel, the people fall; But in the multitude of counselors there is safety.

Or, these verses from Proverbs 19:
20 Listen to counsel and receive instruction, That you may be wise in your latter days.
21 There are many plans in a man's heart, Nevertheless the Lord's counsel--that will stand.

Ah, the trials of an American President.  Donald Trump continues to face a relentless torrent of bad press, whether it be due to the Russia investigation, rhetorical missteps, or the latest response to the Charlottesville conflict.  And, it can be sometimes painful to watch as the President appears to shoot himself in the foot, the foot that has been inserted all-too-often in his mouth.

It all goes to show that imperfect people are sometimes called to do seemingly impossible tasks. Certainly, you or I are not perfect, and there probably have been times when we haven't felt quite up to the task.  But, the God who raises up and deposes "kings" or leaders is still on the ultimate throne, and He is certainly not through with Donald Trump.  And, if someone is discouraged by his prose, perhaps he or she can find encouragement in some of the policies he has enacted.

The Charlottesville situation presented a real challenge for the President.  Initially, on the day of the conflict between white supremacists and counterprotesters, he took to Twitter to condemn both sides. On Monday, after his response was deemed insufficient, he directly criticized these white supremacist groups in a prepared statement. Tuesday, he went off-script, or rather, invented a script and once again returned to the "both sides" position - that there was responsibility on both sides.  And, the expectation became that only the white racists should be criticized, even though there were elements of left-wing extremist groups who showed up in Virginia that day.

The dangers posed by groups such as Antifa and Black Lives Matter, who showed up in various cities over the weekend, according to Conservative Review, chanting derogatory and threatening slogans about police officers, are certainly fair game for a national discussion. But, to try to criticize the left-wing protestors appeared to downplay the so-called "alt-right" demonstrators, so perhaps separate discussions need to occur.

We are seeing "advisers" to the President, members of various boards, who have been resigning in the wake of Charlottesville.  And, there are those who are watching the President's evangelical advisory board, comprised of a number of church leaders, many of whom have been very strong in decrying racism.  One board member resigned recently - A.R. Bernard, pastor of New York City's Christian Cultural Center.  According to The Atlantic:

“It became obvious that there was a deepening conflict in values between myself and the administration,” the pastor of New York City’s Christian Cultural Center wrote in a statement. He had been quietly backing away for months, he wrote. Trump’s reaction to Charlottesville seemed to be what it took to make Bernard’s decision official.

He is the first - and only - to leave this group since the President took office, the article points out, even though James MacDonald had stepped aside last fall.

Bernard, in an interview with MSNBC's Joy Reid, said that “I don’t think he’s racist. I think he’s ill-advised. … His vacillation … from one position to another simply indicates to me that he never established a set of core values that guides his thinking and a moral compass.”  Bernard is an African-American pastor, and another black pastor, Mark Burns, took a different approach, telling Reid, according to the story:

As long as evangelical leaders have “a seat at the table,” he said, “it is our spiritual obligation to be a voice of God to the ear of the president of the United States.” And, he added, “I believe God has called me to this.”

Much of the Atlantic article was devoted to comments from Tony Suarez, described as "a pastor who serves as the executive vice president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference." He called “the racism and hate being spewed by the alt-right and white supremacists … an insult to Christianity and our country.” The article states that, "Many other members of the advisory council put out similar statements."

While critics believe that the evangelical council is "willing to explain away anything Trump does, even when he creates controversy and potentially exacerbates painful situations," as the article puts it, Suarez related that there is open, even frank communication between council members and the White House:

“If I’m invited to a table … where I’m given the opportunity to be a voice for the voiceless, share my convictions, and share my heart, then I need to go,” he said. While journalists and evangelical critics pointed out that members of Trump’s business councils resigned in protest of his Charlottesville comments, Suarez said he didn’t understand why pastors would do the same. “Why would I abandon someone now? I wouldn’t do that to someone in my congregation,” he said. Business leaders answer to shareholders, but pastors have a calling to speak from a faith perspective. “If there was ever a time that we need to give counsel and advice,” he added, “it’s right now.”

Today, I want to consider the role of an adviser, in the context of who we seek advice from, and who we give advice to.  The Bible addresses the concept of a "multitude of counselors."  When we are seeking advice, we have to keep certain criteria in mind - is it someone who is wise, someone who is experienced, and someone who can be trusted. Someone whom we can take into our confidence and know that the information we share will not be spread.

Now, let's flip the script and think about how we can be good advisers to another person.  We have to make sure that we demonstrate Godly wisdom, that we have working knowledge of various subjects. We can develop expertise in certain subjects so that we can give learned advice to someone.  Our life's experiences and what God has taught us in and through certain situations can provide a basis for giving good advice to another.

And, if a person comes to us, we need to make sure that we are a good confidant - not spreading information about someone to others.  We need to make sure we positioned as a person who can be trusted.  For instance, most of President Trump's faith advisers are not prone to go out and criticize him publicly, and that shows a degree of mutual respect.

We also have to make sure we are available when someone seeks us out, and willing to make an investment into the life of someone else.  We can take what God has entrusted to us in the form of wisdom and experience and use that knowledge to help someone in need.