Straight Paths

I don’t have a good sense of direction. Sometimes when we’re travelling I feel we’re going in the wrong direction. Occasionally we are, but usually we’re not. In any event, it’s an uncomfortable feeling.

The other day we were walking in the local forest, following a map. The problem was that the paths weren’t at all clear, and most of the way we were plodding through bogs and avoiding fallen branches. It was hard going! Noticing that the light was fading I began to get concerned that we’d lost our way and I wondered if we’d still be walking around after it got dark. We hadn’t seen another person on our journey so we decided to retrace our footsteps. Still unsure we eventually met a man walking his dog and asked him if he knew where we were. He pointed ahead to a straight path which, he said, would take us in the right direction.

You can lose your way in life too and feel you’re going nowhere. But God has provided a straight path and given clear directions how to find it. When the Bible talks of straight paths they’re paths God’s designed. They’re good paths and they’re safe, though they may not always be easy. You never walk alone on God’s straight path because He’s always with you. Our text for today gives us instructions for walking the straight path.

Firstly, we’re to trust Him; to have faith in Him, knowing we’re helpless without Him. It’s the simple trust of a child who knows he can’t find the way alone. It’s having a heart that believes God will do what’s good, and, because He’s wise, He’ll do what’s best. This means we can’t work out everything in our head. It’s a life of heart relationship, trusting and walking with God.

Secondly, we’re to acknowledge Him in every area of life. This is to submit to Him; His ways, His words, and His will, assured that His way is right and true. To acknowledge God in all your ways means to ask Him for His way and not design your own. It’s to ask His advice and take direction from Him.

There’s something we’re told not to do – not to lean on your own understanding. Don’t rely on your own knowledge or wisdom. This is the opposite of trusting and acknowledging your confidence in God alone.

Sometimes your path may not seem straight, and there may be times when it seems invisible. But in faith we know that God does have a plan. He sees the bigger picture and guides us every step of the way.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for Your steadfast love and for Your wisdom. You ask me to trust in You with all my heart and not to lean on my own understanding. I choose today to walk in Your ways in simple faith and confidence, knowing that You have a long term plan which You unfold step by step, as I walk with You on the straight path. Amen.