Proverbs 3:3–8 ‘Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.’ (vv5–6)
Making our way through life is distinct from finding our way in life. Regardless of circumstance or feelings, we intentionally navigate each day’s events. We turn holy aspiration into effective action, a process that always demands discipline. When we rely solely on our own understanding, we’re subject to the internal and external pressures of everyday life.
Too often we rationally conclude that life’s mountains are unscalable. Yet we have the encouragement of the incarnate Jesus, who endured mortality to realise God’s purpose, so no surprise that we are daunted at the thought of living a God-filled life. God has no hands and feet but ours and Jesus promised we would do greater things than He did (John 14:12).
God invites us to choose a life personally carved from time and experience with its foundations in God’s Word, as opposed to the many voices of reason that counsel the good rather than the best. With God ‘nothing is impossible’, so something must happen (Luke 1:37, KJV). We all struggle with the conflict between freely available guidance built on the values and assumptions of our social norms and the risk of designing a different path through conversations with God and born from the discomfort of obedience.
This was the path chosen by Mary, mother of God when a teenager. Her risk brought Jesus into the world. Not an easy path, the consequences of which were hidden from her as she said ‘Yes’! Her decision, for which God took responsibility for all outcomes, was not without confusion and pain.
SCRIPTURE TO CONSIDER:
Exod. 20:1–21; Deut. 6:13–25; Luke 1:26–38; 2 Cor. 1:18–24
AN ACTION TO TAKE:
How do you evaluate risk? It is essential to maintain a continuous conversation
with God and grow your confidence in His ability to support you in your destiny.
A PRAYER TO MAKE:
‘Lord, like Mary, may I discover how to hand my life over to
Your purpose and so give birth to Your eternal possibilities. Amen.’
