Proverbs 3:5-6

⁵Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; ⁶in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.

Walk up the Mountain

Have you ever walked and hiked going up a mountain? What is that farthest distance that you hiked in one day? What is the longest time that you’ve walked? If you love hiking, you might wish to join hikers in the mountainous region of the Philippines.

The northern region of the Philippines is very mountainous. At one time, we were invited to visit the home village of another church member. Our ride stopped at the foot of a mountain. We have to hike up a very steep mountain. A companion, who lived most of his adult life in the city asked, “Where is your village?” “It’s on the other side!” the answer came. We reach the mountaintop but no village yet. So, our companion asked again, “Where is your village?” “It’s on the other side!” the answer came again.

Five times, the same question asked, and the same answer came.

We passed by at least five mountains, until we reached our destination.

It says in Romans 10:15, ¹⁵“How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”

According to modern scholars, Apostle Paul may have good looking muscles on his legs when he wrote about the beauty of feet of those who bring good news. Hiking in mountainous regions where there are no available vehicles for ride builds muscles.

For older people, it may be physically challenging to walk a longer distance; but in North America, sharing the good news becomes more challenging than walking.

It is common in every spiritual endeavor to rely upon the Lord. But most often in practical aspects of life, we rely on our own effort. We should rely upon the Lord always.

1.  Rely

⁵Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;

It is expected for us to trust in the Lord with all our heart in every aspect of life.

To trust in the Lord is to have bold confidence and hope in the Lord. Doubt has no place in our heart if with all our heart we trust God. To understand everything first and foremost before we decide is not needed if we have full confidence in the Lord, right?

This godly command to trust in the Lord with all our heart can’t be spontaneously understood and obeyed very easily. Our best personal effort is not enough to love the Lord with all our hearts. So, how do we trust the Lord with all our hearts, then?

How did King Solomon personally apply this proverb anyway? How did he trust in the Lord with all his heart and not leaned on his own understanding, just as he wrote?

Keep in mind that before King Solomon performed his duties and responsibilities as king of Israel, he prayed for godly wisdom; he waited for God’s answer. After that, he did every good thing that came to his mind in relation to his duties as king of Israel.

We must pray for godly wisdom, understanding, and stronger faith also.

Job Application

When I applied for pastorate, I prayed that God may lead me to a church that he will use me as his instrument to share his message. I pray that God would also close any job opening if it’s not his will for me and even if I may apply in it. I sent application letters to several churches locally and internationally, and we are here. Was it God’s answer?

Truly, there were challenges that my family went through, but the peace of God have assured me to keep trusting his will for me and my family. Well, everything went smoothly so that I and my family praise and thank God regularly for his plan for us.

In everything I did, I made sure that I have joyful peace in all my decisions; joyful peace serves practical manifestation that the Holy Spirit guided me in the process.

Ephesians 1:17 says, ¹⁷The God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.

The Spirit of wisdom and revelation is the Holy Spirit of God that he sent into our heart when we put our trust in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. We can only avail of unlimited help of the Spirit of wisdom and revelation when we trust in the Lord with all our hearts and not relying upon our understanding. For sure, we need stronger faith.

When we grow stronger in our faith, the more frequent we obey and submit to God’s will. But why our choice and decision are similar to choice and decisions of others? When problems come, we want immediate solution; so then, we search the internet.

Complete trust in the Lord is to allow him decide for us. Pray for guidance even when surfing the internet. How may you practically recognize the will of God?

2. Recognize

 ⁶in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.

The phrase, “In all your ways submit to him,” is godly instruction that pertains to how we handle thoughts, desires, decisions and actions including words that we say or even write. With God’s help, we can make sure that our ways are godly and righteous in the Lord. The result: He makes our path and way of life straight and righteous.

Again, anything godly starts with God. Our godly lifestyle and attitude are fruit and product of the Holy Spirit of Christ in our life. We know that the Lord is actively at work in our life when, in our hearts and mind, we praise and thank God sincerely.

Apostle Paul advised in Romans 12:1-2, ¹Offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. ² Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Again, these are godly commands: To offer our bodies as living sacrifice, to do not conform to the pattern of this world, and to be transformed by the renewing of our mind, we have to ask the Lord to help us follow his instructions.

The Lord causes our path straight when in all aspects of our life we submit to him.

What is straight path? Other Bible version translates as smooth path. The Lord directs us to smooth and enjoyable path of life as opposed to rugged and disturbing lifestyle that may rob us of peace of mind. Do you sense joyful peace while obeying the Lord?

Noah

Some individuals claim that obeying God is boring and lonely. Just imagine the life of Noah when the Lord instructed him to build the ark in Genesis 6:13-14, ¹³So God said to Noah, “I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth. ¹⁴So make yourself an ark of cypress wood; make rooms in it and coat it with pitch inside and out.

Noah did everything that the Lord commanded him. It took approximately 100 years for Noah to complete the ark – that is if he started building the ark at the age of 500. The great flood came on the earth when Noah was 600 years old.

Every single day, Noah and his family cut, carried, and split trees into planks or boards according to the specification needed for structure, walls and floors of the ark.

Did Noah enjoy building the ark? If Noah did the same routine every single day over and over again until the ark was completed, he must have enjoyed it, right?

Noah did not plan for his retirement. He was faithful to his calling so that he and his family were the only human beings who were saved from the great flood.

It says in Psalm 119:1-3, ¹Blessed are those whose ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the Lord. ²Blessed are those who keep his statutes and seek him with all their heart—³they do no wrong but follow his ways.

Noah had no modern engineering education, but the ark he build keep him, his family, and the animals with them safe and secure during the great flood. He just joyfully followed the instruction of the Lord wholeheartedly, that’s all!

Therefore, to assume that obedience to the instruction of the Lord is boring and lonely is a huge lie. So, how can we peacefully enjoy obeying the Lord?

With godly wisdom, we seek the help of the Holy Spirit so that when he produces fruit of joy and peace in us, we peacefully enjoy obeying him spontaneously.

When we sense pressure of doing God’s will, our human effort is exerted. If we sense joy and peace in doing God’s will, there’s no pressure. It shows that we trusted in the Lord with all our heart, we did not rely on our own understanding, and  in all our ways we acknowledge him. Our path and lifestyle then become smooth.

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