How many times have you heard or quickly recited Proverbs 3:5-6? As a child, it is usually one of the first verses that you memorize. And while it is a wonderful verse to memorize and tuck deep into your heart; knowing it from such a young age often causes us overlook the powerful message contained in these two verses.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understandingIn all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight. (Proverbs 3:5-6 NIV)
We all know that we need to trust in the Lord. And we try to, for the most part. But the trust that the author is talking about here is trusting in the Lord through situations that don't make sense. He writes, "lean not on your own understanding."
This is where I begin to struggle. I ask myself, what does it mean to trust God through my understanding? And what does it mean to not lean on my understanding? I don't think that I am the only one who has a hard time trusting in God when I can't understand what is going on.
But that is what we are being instructed to do. To place our trust and faith in God despite our circumstances and despite what we think should happen.
Then the author instructs us to submit our ways to God and He will make your way straight. I like the way the NIV translates this verse. I feel like it really speaks to my heart. We must submit our plans, our hopes, our dreams, our visions; so that He will lead us down straight paths.
We only have three more months in Thailand before we return for our one year home assignment. Our prayer for these last three months is that God would use us to do His ministry in ways that are beyond our understanding. We know that God is faithful and loves the Isaan people. We long to submit ourselves to Him, so that God alone would direct us and this ministry.
Please pray with us for the various ministry outreaches and evangelism that will take place over these next three months. Please pray that God would continue to draw the Isaan people to Himself and that we would be faithful in our ministry here until the very end.
Thank you for your faithful prayers and support.