DAY THREE || He will make our paths straight.
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not depend on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight."
Proverbs 3:5-6
One of the most universal things we all face in life is having moments when we don’t know what to do. Maybe it happens when you're deciding what college to attend or what job to choose. Maybe it happens when deciding if you should marry someone or not. Maybe it happens when you find yourself in the midst of a devastating situation and have to figure out how to pick up the pieces of your life. When we find ourselves in these moments, I think it’s safe to say we all desire to make the “right choice." But how do we know what is the right choice? How do we know we are on the right path? In Proverbs 3:5-6, King Solomon gives us the very wisdom we need to know when we don’t know what to do. Wisdom, if applied, leads us to the right choice and down the right path every time.
TRUST IN THE LORD WITH ALL YOUR HEART
The world has taught us to “trust ourselves” and to find “our truth." But God says, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?” (Jer 17:10). We can’t trust ourselves. Instead, we have to trust God and His word to be “our truth” and give us the counsel we need to live righteously and make right choices. And to do it with all your heart, means completely, not half hearted. We trust with child-like faith, confident that our Father knows best. Resolved that He deserves our complete trust because He is faithful and good. When you trust God with all of your heart, you will desire to follow and obey His word no matter the cost. You will trust that His ways are higher and better than your own. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." Isaiah 55:8-9
DO NOT LEAN ON YOUR OWN UNDERSTANDING
Have you ever done a trust fall? It’s the act of blindly falling backwards with no restraints, while someone stands behind you and promises to catch you. Either you will completely trust falling in their arms, or you break your fall midway because you don’t trust that they will catch you. Much like leaning on our own understanding instead of God’s, we can either whole-heartedly fall into God’s wisdom and trust He knows best, or we can “break mid-way” and figure things out on our own. Either way, we quickly discover who we trust. If doing the “right thing” is only determined by our knowledge and understanding, we can be sure it will eventually lead us in the wrong direction. When we are longing to understand what God is doing in our lives, we will find it in His word. God’s plans and counsel for our lives never violate His word. When we know His word, we build a reservoir of truth in our hearts to draw from when faced with making decisions about our lives. If your decisions or plans line up with the word of God, you can be assured you are on the right path. You also have the gift of the Holy Spirit, our great Counselor, the One Jesus left for us to give us wisdom and understanding. He longs to be in your life, helping you make wise and right decisions that please the Lord. And when you don’t understand what’s happening in your life, or what to do, just go back to God’s word and follow him. It will never lead you astray.
IN ALL YOUR WAYS ACKNOWLEDGE HIM
I think it’s safe to assume that 2020 and even 2021, forced all of us to change our plans and learn new ways to function. It also quickly revealed whether or not God was involved in those plans. When the world shut down in March 2020, I immediately went into auto-pilot mode. My goal was simple - just survive. Like everyone else in the world, I was juggling working from home and homeschooling my children all at once. However, it quickly became apparent that “my plan” wasn't working out well. I had to stop, invite God into my stress and ask him for a better plan. After some prayer and counsel, my husband and I felt like God gave us some clarity on how to make changes in our schedule and our children’s education. They were changes I wouldn’t have naturally come up with because they were outside of my comfort zone. They required faith and trust. Very quickly it became apparent that those changes were vital to our family flourishing in an unexpected season. To acknowledge someone is to be aware of their presence and engage with them. It means including them in on what you are doing. To be a follower of Christ, means you are no longer the captain of your ship. You no longer decide what is the best way by yourself. You relinquish that power. God is now the navigator of your life. He decides where you are going and how you will get there. Otherwise, you can guarantee that without His direction and wisdom, you will shipwreck your life.
HE WILL MAKE YOUR PATHS STRAIGHT
I get car sick very easily. Curvy, winding back roads are my enemy. As a result, I prefer staying on straight paths. They are smooth and don’t make me sick. Much like following Jesus, when we chose to follow His narrow, straight path, we find the ride of life is much smoother. It doesn’t mean we escape curvy roads or unexpected detours. It just means that we have the peace and joy of God with us on the journey. And that’s not all. It also means we don’t travel alone. It’s often said that, “life is better with a buddy”. It’s true. We are meant to be in relationship with Jesus, the Holy Spirit and Godly men and women. To invite them to do the journey of life with us. And when we are doing life together, we are less likely to end up on the wrong path. When we find ourselves doing the journey alone, we often get off course and the path gets crooked.
When we find ourselves on the wrong path or at a dead-end, we can’t keep going. We have to stop and get directions. We have to ask Jesus to help us navigate our way back to where we need to be. The Holy Spirit becomes our real-life GSP and helps us figure out where we got off-course.
Repentance is the key to auto-correcting and re-aligning our hearts with God. It’s what gets us back on track. When our hearts are right with God, we desire to follow Him and do things His way. As a result, He promises that our paths will be smooth and straight. Our lives will be filled with peace and wisdom. A promise we all need and want. A promise that gives us wisdom to know what to do when we don’t know what to do. Wisdom, if applied, leads us to the right choice and down the right path every time.
GOD PROMISES TO REMEMBER
Psalm 16:11
You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
Psalm 119:115
Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.
Luke 3:5
Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low; and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways shall be made smooth;
Jeremiah 17:7-8
Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.