Your Word is a Lamp

During a recent holiday in the Swiss Alps, we walked a great deal; through forests, by rivers, up hills, into valleys and across fields. Along the route there were regular sign posts pointing out the different directions with indications of how long the journey would take. In some places there were also markers showing the degree of difficulty of the walk.

As I walked I set to thinking about life and the numerous crossroads we face. On first reflection I wished our life’s path had signposts with indications of direction, time and degree of difficulty. So often life seems anything but clear and the options appear confusing rather than exciting choices. This is especially so when we rely for our choices on our own understanding, knowledge and ‘worldy’ wisdom.

As I reflected further, however, I realised our life’s path really is well signposted after all! God’s Word gives us plenty of guidance and direction. In the Ten Commandments alone, there are several signposts. We’re instructed not to steal, commit adultery, murder (this can be taken to apply to abortion and euthanasia in our modern society) or worship idols (this could be understood in the wider sense of worshipping money, power, success, or our bodies and our minds).

It’s possible to breach all the commandments of God if we rely on our own human understanding, rather than finding out what is acceptable in God’s eyes by studying His Word. As a result we fall into crevasses and over cliffs. They may not be physical crevasses or cliffs, but they certainly are mental, emotional and spiritual ones. At Ellel Ministries we regularly have the privilege of ministering to people who have fallen along the way because they didn’t heed the signposts, sometimes deliberately and sometimes through ignorance. Whatever the cause, they were injured and often badly so.

Through the redeeming work of Jesus on the cross, they have a way out of the crevasse and up the cliff, but it’s frequently a painful and slow climb back. Those we minister to often tell us that they wished they had heeded the signposts in the first place. God’s Word is full of guidance to us for our own well being and protection. It is indeed a lamp to our feet and a light to our path.

Prayer: Father I want to turn to Your Word as a signpost for my life, rather than rely on my own judgment and understanding. Please help me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.