Seeking the Way to the Ancient Paths: A Guide Along the Path

By Octavio Rivera and Dr. Harrison S. Mungal

Summary of the Book
This book is not just simple words on paper. It combines both theoretical and practical information challenging the reader to seek the ancient paths in order to find true and lasting rest. If you know what it is like to be lost, or know someone who has been lost in the world of decisions, this book is for you. It carefully examines principles that will help you in making difficult decisions. The goal of the author is that the readers can get a better perspective on lifes decisions and use time-proven principles to realize the purpose in their life.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: May 18, 2012
• ISBN: 9781469192543

Octavio Rivera

About the Author Octavio was born in Managua, Nicaragua, during the country’s civil war. As a young boy he and his family left the war-torn nation and immigrated to Canada in 1987. He has lived in four countries, seven cities, and numerous houses. Currently he and his wife of eight years live in the greater Toronto area with their three young children. He holds two college diplomas one in electro-mechanical engineering technology from Sheridan College and a leadership and ministerial diploma from Metro Bible College Inc.

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Copyright © 2012 by Octavio Rivera.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted

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without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Unless otherwise noted all scriptural references taken from e-sword King James Bible 1769 Authorized Version. Rick Meyers. All rights reserved worldwide. Version 10.05

Scripture quotations marked NCV are taken from the New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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Contents

1 Dedication

2 Acknowledgments

3 Foreword

1 Introduction

2 A Picture Says a Thousand Words

3 Dreams That Breakthrough

4 Filtering Correctly

5 What Does It All Mean?

6 Why Are We Standing Around?

7 Moving Toward the Application

8 Standing at the Crossroads

9 Which Way Are We Going?

10 Seeing Beyond the Normal

11 Asking the Right Questions

12 Roadblocks to Prayer

13 The Ancient of Days

14 Searching for the Ancient Paths

15 Where is the Good Way

16 The Way of the Cross

17 Receiving Answers

18 Walking Along the Path

19 Avoiding Side Roads

20 Finding Rest That Endures

21 Experiences in Life

22 God is the Perfect Matchmaker

23 Who Should I Marry?

24 Choosing the Right Career

25 Choosing the Right School

26 Sound Advice

27 Better Than Any Work Agency

28 God is the Promoter

29 Scriptural References

30 Authors Recommended Reading and study sources:

31 Bibliography

32 End Notes

1

Dedication

This book is dedicated first and foremost to the living God who has made a way where there was no way. Secondly, to my lovely wife Yoandra who has been an enduring helpmate along the way going the extra mile in encouragement and motivation so I could focus on writing this book. Thirdly to my four children Noemi, Loida, Samuel, and Josué who have patiently shared their father’s time so I could finish writing this book.

2

Acknowledgments

To the living God who has guided me throughout this whole process. To my wife Yoandra for continually pushing me forward in the things of God. To my parents Luis and Adela Rivera who taught me the fear of the Lord. To Pastor Harrison and Pastor Kathleen Mungal who encouraged and believed in the call of God in my life. The inspiration of my grade two and grade three elementary teachers, Mrs. Gosso and Mrs. Headican, who instilled in me a love for reading and writing. To the Hope center for giving me opportunities to serve. To Living Water Ministries, especially the youth whose challenging and insightful questions helped put the finishing touch on this book. To the numerous ministers along the way from countless theological and cultural backgrounds who have helped me grow in my faith over the years.

3

Foreword

I was very impressed with the content of this book. It is educational and enjoyable. It makes one think about their pathway in life and where it can be leading. It captures the reader’s heart, with a thought of differentiating between the average mind-sets of people and people who pursue to achieve. This book will be a blessing to anyone who reads it. Dr. Harrison S. Mungal PhD. President/Founder of Metro Bible College Inc and Life Impact Outreach Network.

1

Introduction

People in today’s society are faced with many difficult and complex situations. They want to have meaning and purpose in their lives. They want to be sure the decisions they make are the correct ones. People want to live a life that truly means something. They want to play a positive and productive role in the society they live in.

Youth and young adults need sound guidance more than ever. They need practical solutions that work in the real world. There is a crucial need to make wise and sound decisions. What many people do not realize is that the decisions that we make today will have long-term consequences in the future that may be either good or bad. There has to be a way people can get guidance in their day-to-day life. People need tools in order to map out their ways.

Tucked in a book of the Bible called Jeremiah is a powerful yet simple verse that gives us the principles to tackle today’s difficult situations. No matter what your belief system is I encourage you to keep an open mind. Do not stop reading this book just because I mention the word Bible or connect it with spiritual terminology. The word religion simply means a set of beliefs. Hopefully after reading this book you will have a broader idea on how to make wise and informed decisions in life regardless of what they have to do with. May the principles found in this book lead you closer to the truth. May you find solutions to the questions and situations you face. Whatever part of the way you are at, I hope and pray you do not give up. Continue pressing on to reach the final mark. Whether you need extra encouragement to go on or you are in need of extra light in order to see the crossroads ahead, the 6:16 principle will help you make the right decisions.

Chapter 1 Discussion Questions

1. With so many questions in life, why is it important to make right decisions?

2. Why is it important to play a positive productive role in the community and society we live in?

3. What does sound advice and sound choices mean?

4. What does the word religion mean?

5. What are principles and why are they important?

2

A Picture Says a Thousand Words

There is an old saying that says a picture is worth a thousand words. When I was thinking of what to put on the cover page, the first idea that came to my mind was that of a path in a forest. I originally had thought of putting a picture of a forest that had to do with my early childhood. However, as I began writing the book, the picture that made the most sense was from an area in which I lived in when I was going through a difficult time in my young adult life.

The picture in the front cover is inspired from an area in a lake where I used to live in 2003. The year 2003 was a very difficult year for me. It was in this year that I faced the greatest spiritual desert of my life. Throughout that whole year, I spent countless hours walking around the lake and sharing my heart with the Lord.

When you look at the picture, thoughts of a hidden place come to mind—a place few people dare to go. Many times in life the road we must take is an uncharted one. We have to learn to trust that God is leading us through the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake (Ps. 23:3b). The picture also conjures up ideas of abandonment. Many times the paths God tells us to walk seem like there is no one else walking on them. Other times the paths that God directs us to take make no sense. We are often looking for beautiful-looking paths that take us from one point to another in the time we deem appropriate. The problem with this mentality is that we do not know the future. It is better to trust someone who knows all the paths. Jesus says, I am the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). We cannot have a better guide than Jesus.

There are two awesome passages found in the book of Isaiah that shed light on the uncharted paths we must take. When I got married I gave my parents a picture frame containing the first scripture. It says And I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not; I will lead them in paths that they have not known: I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them, and not forsake them (Isa. 42:16). There are several gold nuggets found in this scripture. The first one is in the part that says I will bring the blind by the way they knew not. This blindness represents us totally trusting God to be our guide. The book of Romans says that we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man sees, why does he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it (Rom. 8:24-25).

The second thing we see is that He will lead us through the path He brought us to. There is no better leader to lead us through any path than Jesus Christ. The next thing we see is darkness turning into light and crooked things turning straight. If we put our trust in God, we will not get unexpected surprises. God will shed his discerning light on all our situations. Psalm 119:105 says, Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. To top it off, it says crooked things will become straight. There is nothing along the way God cannot transform to His glory. Romans 8:28 says, And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

The last promise in this verse is probably the most reassuring one that promises He will never forsake us. When we are fully trusting God He will be with us no matter what. The psalmist says in Psalm 23:4, Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

The second powerful passage about guidance found in the book of Isaiah says, Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert (Isa. 43:18-19). This passage alludes to an all-powerful God. He tells us to forget and not consider the former things. Here God is trying to tell us not to rely on the path to guide us. Do not rely on experiences as well. We should not put God in a box. If God has done something in a certain way in the past, it does not mean he will do it again the same way. We serve a creative God who knows how to do things in fresh new ways. The last part of this verse is very encouraging because it hints at a God that can do anything. We must never forget, like the angel Gabriel told Mary in Luke 1:37, that with God nothing is impossible. When we are going through a wilderness experience we need to hear God’s reassuring voice telling us, I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.

Chapter 2 Discussion Questions

1. Where does God lead us?

2. Who is the way?

3. What is Isaiah 42:16 talking about?

4. Can we see hope?

5. Why is remembering the negative past bad for us?

6. Why is it important to know God is going to do a new thing?

3

Dreams That Breakthrough

People have been dreaming since the beginning of time. The first recorded dream in the Bible is found in Genesis 20:3 when God tells King Abimelech that the woman with Abram is his wife and not his sister as Abram had led him to believe. Many times dreams have warned people of things to come. Other times they have shed light on certain situations. Out of all the dreams in the Bible, I love the ones Joseph and Daniel had. Both of these young adults shared common similarities. Both were placed in strategic places in the prime of their life.

Some people think that dreams are not for today basing their opinion on the interpretation of Hebrews 1:1 which says God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets (NKJV). The problem with this interpretation is that it is not saying God has stopped speaking in various ways now. It is saying God has spoken in different ways in the past. The verse is leading the reader to the next verse that says Jesus is the maximum revelation. You will not find a verse in the Bible that says dreams from God have ceased.

Not everyone is going to have a dream that answers their present situation. On one side, we must not always seek for a dream to answer our situations. On the other side, we cannot count out the possibility of God giving us a dream to tell us something. We should not tell God how He should respond to our questions and uncertainties.

This book came out of a dream I had in January 2007. In the dream, I was driving a car down a single lane country road. As I started driving more, the road started to get flooded with water. As the water got higher, I had to stop the car because the water did not let me go forward. Ahead of the road, the rest of the way was covered with water. As I stopped, far off in the distance I could see a division in the road. In the distance I saw two highways going in different directions. On top of the two highways was the word Toronto written in the sky.

Five years later, I am writing this book because God used this dream to set the groundwork for breakthroughs in my life. It is my hope and prayer that everyone who reads this book may experience Godly breakthroughs in their life as well.

Chapter 3 Discussion Questions

1. What is the first dream that is mentioned in the bible?

2. What was the first dream about? Was it an ordinary dream?

3. Who were the two young adults who had the God-given ability to interpret dreams?

4. Who is the maximum revelation? Why?

5. What does putting God in a box mean?

4

Filtering Correctly

I included this chapter right after the dream because it is very important to understand everything in life needs filtering. Filtering means to separate something making sure the pure product stays. In our situation, the filtering element is the Word of God. It does not matter if it is a dream, a vision, a teaching, a preaching, an exhortation, a testimony, an experience, a manifestation, or a prophetic word. The Bible is clear we must prove all things. 1 Thessalonians 5:21 says Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. It also says in 1 John 4:1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. God does not want us to have our heads in the sand like an ostrich believing all things. God wants us to use our God-given mind in conjunction with His word to prove and test all things. In the physical world, instruments such as Rockwell hardness testers test to find out the hardness of a product. For the believer, our