Friday,
January 17, 2020
Oh, the joys of those who trust the Lord, who have no confidence in the proud or in those who worship idols. O Lord my God, you have performed many wonders for us. Your plans for us are too numerous to list. You have no equal. If I tried to recite all your wonderful deeds, I would never come to the end of them. You take no delight in sacrifices or offerings. Now that you have made me listen, I finally understand— you don’t require burnt offerings or sin offerings. Then I said, “Look, I have come. As is written about me in the Scriptures: I take joy in doing your will, my God, for your instructions are written on my heart.” Psalm 40: 4-8
I guess one of the reasons this devotional
is named “Rocky Road” is because I’m (painfully) aware of the pathway; in my
life I have so often learned the hard way. King David indicated he had this same
character deficiency when he wrote, in what seems a tone of resignation: Now that you have made me listen,
I finally understand….
Life’s road is mostly not a cakewalk, but
it’s a much rockier road when you learn the hard way. Scripture is full of backup to this
thought. Solomon learned from David that
a child’s life is much more likely to hold success and fruitfulness if he
listens to what a loving parent tries to share.
Listen to the father-son chat:
“And Solomon, my son, learn to know the God of your ancestors intimately. Worship and serve him with your whole heart and a willing mind. For the Lord sees every heart and knows every plan and thought. If you seek him, you will find him. But if you forsake him, he will reject you forever. 1 Chronicles 28:9
In marriage, men do well to listen to
their wives (I speak here from personal, and at times painful experience of failing
to hear with open ears). Often God tries
to get through the thick exterior covering the husband’s brain, and a loving
wife just might be God’s voice.
In business or government, leaders that
learn the hard way rarely get to stick around for re-election encores, or franchise
expansion.
In church, pastors who begin to believe
the press reports of how wonderful their sermons are, or how wise they
are, flirt dangerously with the worst kind of pride; Scripture declares that is
the prologue to the un-gluing of your ministry!
Pride goes before destruction, and haughtiness before a fall. Proverbs 16:18
In any discipline of life, we can learn
from David’s wise words that life itself is a gift. Making that life a valuable
contribution to the lives of others and God’s Kingdom is a sacred
responsibility. And it becomes abundantly
more achievable when one’s heart and mind remain humble enough to stay off the
rockier path of going it alone.
If you have
had enough of life’s rockier road, seek God’s will in Scripture. And a trusted mentor wouldn’t hurt.
Most of all,
remember that God gave you two ears and only one tongue; that suggests a good
ratio of use…you learn much more when you hold that one tongue and use those
two ears.
No comments:
Post a Comment