(This entry was made in my Wordpress blog on the 2nd Sept. I'm wanting to start a series about knowing and going God's way, but I need to copy a few entries first, as an introduction.) I've still been pondering Proverbs 3:5-6, and tonight in the bath I thought, I really must get something written about it in my blog. Hey, it's been about a week since I've written anything! I love my blog, and I hate not making entries. But then I had a "DUH!!" moment! "Why not pray about it? What have you been thinking about? 'In all your ways acknowledge Him...'" Sometimes one can be SO BLONDE!!! :-) Well, I've told the Lord about it, and asked that He would show me what to write... so here I go!!! ..... ********************************** Have you ever gone garage sale shopping, and you've come home not scoring a thing, or worse still, what you did score ends up being a dud. Well that happened to a friend of mine yesterday. And I said what he should have done before he went was pray about it!! :-) Is that crazy? I shouldn't talk because I do the same thing. Sometimes I set off on my day with my own plans, having it all figured out. I forget to ask the Lord about it. And guess what? BUMMER!! I end up flat on my face, and embarrassed, at the least. But I remember as I new Christian, I used to talk to the Lord about everything. I'd take Him shopping with me, ask Him for a parking spot and to find the bargains. And guess what? It worked!! But I was only a baby Christian then... and then I "grew up". I didn't have to ask God about all those petty things. I was mature enough to figure it all out, eh? And NOW.... .... I'm reminded of my Proverb I've been pondering. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your path." (Proverbs 3:5-6, NKJ) You know what? I always found a parking spot when I followed that principle. ********************************* And in the tub I was thinking about Abraham!! Didn't he do that? No not ask for a parking spot.... they didn't have parking problems back then!! :-) He just believed and trusted God. God came to him and told him to leave the country he was living, and go to a place that God was going to show him. Now that sure needed faith. He didn't have a clue where the destination was. Not like us!! So often we have to know the end, what's going to happen and where we're going to end up. But Abraham, trusted what God told him, and followed, and God counted that as righteousness ... being made right with God. Then God told him he was going to be the father of many nations. But hey, Abraham and Sarah had no kids, and she was barren. And THEN they goofed!! Sarah had a plan, and we know THAT plan (Ishmael) is still causing trouble today. But yeah, God let them make that mistake so they would learn. And then He sent their heir that they had so long waited for, Isaac. An amazing miracle!!! And THEN... the unimaginable!! God wants Abraham to sacrifice his promised son. How could Abraham figure that one out. He'd waited a lifetime for this boy, and now God wants him to kill him! Imagine what we'd think. YET, Abraham believed God. He trusted that God knew what He was doing, so he followed God's commands. And after climbing up that mountain with Isaac, and tying him to the altar, God stopped his hand when he was about to plunge the knife in!! Whew!! Just in time!! And God then provided the lamb for the altar. So even in the hardest times when God doesn't seem to make sense, we can still trust that He DOES know what He's doing, and that He is testing our faith. Will we still believe when the chips are down? So hey, it's okay for God to change His mind half-way through. Not that He really does change His mind! He had the plan all along, but that's how it appears to us. Anyhow, that's some of my bathroom reflections!! (Oh, and BTW, if you wanted to read more about Abraham here is where to go: For the LONG STORY, read Genesis 12-23; for the shortened versions, read Romans 4; Galatians 3-4; Hebrews 11:8-19. ) |