Of course, that doesn’t mean we’ll always like what we see or how we see it: And that truth comes from God and His Word. We have to find an objective measure that tells us the truth. If we’re ever going to truly trust in God and flee evil, we have to know exactly where we stand. “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who needs a defense attorney when we can pretty much find a reason for any bad thing we do? The prophet Jeremiah captures this very well: We will go to great lengths to excuse our behavior, our actions, and our sins. We aren’t so good at evaluating ourselves. Handing over the first part of our paycheck takes a huge amount of faith, after all. If we can trust God with the first of our wealth, we’re truly showing how much we depend on Him. “Honor the LORD with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.” ( Proverbs 3:9–10) But Solomon, who had quite a bit of wealth himself, knew that his money didn’t belong to him: In other words, we often have a “me-centric” starting place.Īnd when it comes to money, the struggle is even harder. When something bad happens, we want to console ourselves or find someone to blame. When something good happens, we want to congratulate ourselves with a reward. Instead, it means we have to make a serious change: 4. Running from evil and pursuing God doesn’t come naturally to most of us. When we pursue Him, we find life-abundant life. “This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.” ( Proverbs 3:8) But our Creator promises to honor our commitment to Him when we shun evil: Fleeing from the evil desires that pull at us means spending a lot of time crying out to God and leaning on Him. “Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.” ( 2 Timothy 2:22) That works the best when we start pursuing something else in their place: Sometimes, the only way to live the life God wants us to live is by separating ourselves from the bad influences that keep dragging us down. “Do not be wise in your own eyes fear the LORD and shun evil.” ( Proverbs 3:7) Instead, life works best when we remember the true source of our blessings-God-and focus on the things that please Him: In other words, our blessings can easily become our stumbling blocks when we think of them as what we deserve or what we need to be happy. John, the writer of the fourth gospel, describes them as the desires of the flesh, the lusts of the eyes, and the pride in our lives ( 1 John 2:16). So much in this world can clutter up our relationship with God. But in order for that to work, we have to… 3. We handed the keys of our lives to Him, and we know that He’s able to lead us. “Evening, morning, and noon I cry out in distress, and he hears my voice. In fact, the Bible promises that when we reach out to Him in prayer, He hears us: We show that we’re leaving our troubles and burdens and dreams in His capable hands. When we pray, we admit that His ways are higher than ours. “in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight” ( Proverbs 3:6) We need more than a commitment to depend on Him we need to cry out to Him to show that dependence. ![]() Surrendering to God begins with our lips and our thoughts. What if we don’t feel like we can trust Him like that? That’s where step 2 comes in… 2. So, each day we must consciously lay aside our own plans and expectations-and surrender to His plans. “Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!” Romans 11:33īut sometimes trusting Him completely like that can be tough. We may know in our minds that He possesses all wisdom: Instead, we’re meant to rest in God’s understanding. But living the life God has called us to means unlearning that lesson. ![]() Most of us have faced disappointments, which have taught us that we can only depend upon ourselves. Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding ( Proverbs 3:5) But Solomon, the famous king who wrote Proverbs, knew that trust is exactly where we must start: ![]() We live in a world where trust must be earned and seems to be in short supply. Follow these 7 daily steps to make sure you’re leaning on the Lord: 1.
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