God is Your Guide
How and why does God guide you?
Verse of the Day
‘He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to his name.’
Today’s Devotional
The difficulty of studying the psalm in pieces, or verses, is that taking them one at a time removes their connectedness. God renews your strength when you learn to follow him to the green meadows and peaceful streams that we discussed yesterday. Then once you have followed Him there, you actually rest.
Once we have rested, which we were able to do because He brought us to a place conducive to rest and He handled all of the obstacles, THEN it is time to move. Notice the inherent pattern here: Rest in God first, which will give you strength, then follow Him.
As we begin to learn to follow God, there is a very human desire to know all of the steps, the details of where we are going, how long it will take, what detours will happen along the way, and the “why” behind it all. But we MUST remember that we are sheep. Sheep with free will, but sheep nonetheless. A sheep does not need to know where it is going. A sheep only needs to know where the shepherd is at all times. And so it is with us. We only need to keep our eyes on the Shepherd.
As we follow where God is leading us, it’s important to remember the answer to the “why” question. For we have already been given the answer. All paths we are on are for the expressed purpose of bringing glory and honor to God. Our existence and purpose is to bring honor and glory to God. It’s why we are here. It’s who we are.
How do we do that?
Love.
It’s really that simple, but not all that easy. Because our humanness and selfishness get in the way. We tend to think if we could only have our desired set of circumstances, then we could live for God. But God’s economy is not the same as ours. What if our desired circumstances are not even possible until we start following God to a place where our lives are lived for the glory of God and the good of others? What if, as we start to live for the glory of God and the good of others, our desires for certain circumstances begin to change?
What I am learning is that God wants me to follow where He guides. He wants me to trust Him enough to take the next step without knowing where we are headed. He wants me to choose to follow wherever He guides. He wants me to let go of myself and my desires and live my life for His glory. As I learn to do that, desires are fulfilled that I didn’t even know I had. Peace, life, purpose, and joy flow in. As long as I keep my eyes on the Shepherd. Because He is a very good Guide.
Journal Prompts
Answer only the questions that seem relevant to you today.
How can you shift your pattern to one where you rest in God first before you move?
What path does God have you on today?
How can you live exactly where you are for the honor and glory of God?
How can you trust Him to take one small step in the direction He is leading you?