Whose Understanding Are You Leaning On?

Have you ever tried to help God to work out His plans for your life? I unfortunately have on several occasions and the fruit from my labour has not been good - confusion, frustration and wasted time worrying! Today’s scripture screamed out at me when I read it, and I heard the Holy Spirit say ‘Stop leaning on your own understanding Sue and look to God’. Only He knows the end from the beginning and therefore knows what doors need to be opened before us and what doors need to be kept firmly shut.

In our futile attempts to bring about God’s purposes for our lives and His Church, we sometimes stand outside heavily padlocked and firmly shut doors, and knock with all of our might. ‘Surely this is the way to our destinies’, we reason and God just sits back on His throne and patiently waits. I have been guilty of this recently as I tried to pursue avenues that God had not ordained. There were gaping holes in my itinerary, which I decided needed rectifying immediately, and thus started making plans that leaned on my own human understanding. I failed to trust solely in God for direction. How foolish I was!

If God really is Lord of our lives, then He also needs to be ‘Lord of our plans’. Often we are guilty of marking out our own roads to follow and expect God to ‘rubber stamp’ His approval on our choices. This is not His way though, as He is the God who opens up the way before us, closes doors outside of His will, and directs us on routes He has pre-ordained for us to walk. Trusting God and leaning on our own understanding stand in conflict with each other. I encourage you today, as a fellow believer and sojourner, to ‘Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths’ Proverbs 3:5-6.

Prayer: Father God, sometimes I try to run ahead of You, instead of trusting You to unfold Your will for my life, one step at a time. I am guilty of leaning on my own, weak, human understanding that falls far short of Yours. Forgive me Lord I pray. Would You help me to tune in my spiritual ears to Your voice so I will know that ‘this is the way’ and ‘walk in it’ (Isaiah 30:21).