I Samuel 22:5
‘But Gad the prophet said to David, “Do not stay in the stronghold; leave, and go into the land of Judah.” So David left and went into the forest of Hereth.’
David is getting guidance from a different source than himself. As far as we are concerned, he planned to stay. If he were in the stronghold, we assume he was going to make a stand there. He had 400 men. Not enormous, but not tiny. The Fortress may have been best defended by that number. We can assume God didn't want him to battle against Saul and/or Israel.
We gain guidance from several sources, the Bible, our gut, others and the Holy Spirit. The Bible is the first screen that we apply to our options. Some choices aren't in the Bible. Next bath the situation in prayer. We can ask others at any point on the way. If it's a significant decision, the more people we include, the better. Other believers who have wisdom are good ones to ask. If it's not a significant decision, I do what I think is right. Sometimes there isn't a moral component, so I would do what I think is best.
Proverbs 3:5, 6 gives us more understanding on how God can guide. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and He will direct your paths." Include Him in the decision making process as well as the life process, He will guide.
Psalm 37:4 shows us how God can work in our hearts, "Delight yourself in the LORD; And He will give you the desires of your heart." As we put the Lord first He gives us our hearts desires. That means a couple of things. As the Lord becomes a priority we no longer want to do sinful things, but to do His will. He gives us new desires in the process and proceeds to fill some of them.
Acts 16:6-10 gives us an example of how God can guide us through opening and closing doors. '"They passed through the Phrygian and Galatian region, after being forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia; and after they came to Mysia, they were trying to go into Bithynia, and the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them; and passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. And a vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing and pleading with him, and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” When he had seen the vision, we immediately sought to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.'
This is an insightful passage as God's guidance is concerned. The team had no particular insight in terms of which way to go. They were passing through the Galatian region, but were prevented from sharing Christ in Asia. So they tried to go to Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus didn't allow them. We aren't told how Jesus was guiding them. Sometimes it's through closed doors. These are circumstances that don't work out. Traffic might cause us to miss the business hours or weather might interfere. We might get sick. There are thousands of circumstances that could close. Sometimes we persist and try again as it may not be God closing a door. We need to entertain that thought and pray.
A pastor shared this insight that I thought helpful. "Lord, I'm going to do this. If it's a bad idea, please interfere. Otherwise please be with me." We are being sincere and really don't know. This includes the Lord. Sometimes we get a hunch. It may be God or not. Bath that in prayer as well.
David was planning to stay at the stronghold. The Lord interrupted that plan by the words of the prophet. God can speak through the advise of others.
Lord, thank You that You want to guide us. Help us to yield to You. Give us wisdom. Thank You, Lord.