Our steadfast provision

26
Nov

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 (Proverbs 3:5-6)

Here is an oft-repeated story –
The only survivor of a shipwreck washed up on a small, deserted island. He prayed fervently for God to rescue him. Every day he scanned the horizon for help, but none came. Exhausted, he eventually built a small hut out of driftwood as a shelter and a place to store his few remaining possessions. One day, after scavenging for food, he arrived home to find his little hut in flames. Smoke billowed up to the sky. Everything was lost. Stunned with grief and anger, he cried, “God, how could You do this to me?” Early the next day, he was awakened by the sound of a ship that approached the island to rescue him. “How did you know I was here?” the weary man asked. “We saw your smoke signal,” they replied.
Yes, the man prayed fervently. He even questioned God about the destruction of his shelter. But God had better plans for him – to be rescued and home safe than to stay in a small hut till maybe someone would chance upon him.

We never understand or know God’s ways; they maybe mysterious to us. But we have faith that God’s ways are best. His plans for us are plans to prosper and not to harm, to bring us a hope and a bright future (Jeremiah 29:11) When we have this in mind and trust this truth, it is easy to trust God with all our heart and to submit to God in all our ways. We will then be obedient to God and His ways for us which will result in His promise to us – “and He will make your paths straight”.

God straightens our crooked paths when we go astray and God helps us do the “right” things because he is the Righteous One. No matter what we go through, we can trust God to provide us with our direction. God will make a way for us through crooked, rough, or thorny paths. God will make the path seem straight (easy) for us because we will always have Him with us. God is with us through our good times and bad, in all the areas of our lives, if we let Him. Is it better for us to try with our might, our skills, our wisdom, our strength or would it be better if we totally submitted to and relied on our Shepherd to lead us? Keep your gaze on Christ, our Shepherd, and continue to praise Him. Thank God for His steadfast provision because He loves you and is with you through it all.