"Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek His will in all you do, and He will show you what path to take." (Proverbs 3:5-6 NLT)
Like most humans, I tend to lean on my own understanding pretty hard: like I don’t even realize that I’m putting my full weight on it. And when it fails, I typically go toppling. Thankfully, another proverb speaks to that as well;
"The godly may trip seven times, but they will get up again." (Proverbs 24:16 NLT)
Most of us don’t realize we are leaning on our own understanding until it’s gone, snatched away by circumstance or consequence. It’s in those moments of panic, or perhaps from our humbling position on the floor, that we are become self-aware. We’ve been leaning on all the wrong structure. Hopefully we grab hold of God and get up once more.
As children, we learned to walk of our own accord. We go where we want to, when we want to. The challenge remains: our feet may fail and we find ourselves careening again. Thankfully, our loving God is ever ready to steady us again. But what if, from here forth, we refused to take so much as a step apart from the Father? What if we refused to grow up into willfulness and self-reliance all over again? What if we remained utterly dependent upon our God?
My big brother comes to mind: a full-grown man determined to make his own future. He was tragically taken down in the prime of life by a shop explosion and resulting fire. He coded multiple times and suffered oxygen deprivation. He spent six months in ICU due to his injuries. When he graduation from critical care, he moved to rehab where he had to relearn everything: swallowing, speaking, dressing, transferring. All of it. He never could quite walk again, the messaging system in his nerves simply wasn’t fast enough.
I don’t want still another tragedy to tutor me in divine dependency. I want to get it here and now, in this season. My frame is unreliable. I must learn to trust entirely, to live out the remainder or my days in divine dependency. A childhood hymn comes to mind, creating momentum as my heart makes agreement. Maybe you know it?
What a fellowship
What a joy divine
Leaning on the Everlasting Arms!
What a blessedness
What a peace is mine
Leaning on the Everlasting Arms!
"The eternal God is your refuge, and His everlasting arms are under you." (Deuteronomy 33:27 NLT)
Lord, our own understanding is a fairly weak structure. Please forgive us for leaning on it. Today may we lean in again to You. Please meet with us as we pray and seek Your presence, as we recognize Your power, authority and tremendous compassion. Have Your way here and now, but also in our hearts forever. Amen.