August 01, 2023
It’s the nature of our fallen condition to look in all the wrong places for help. Whether for the routine of every common day or the big moments that confront us with crises or challenges, our lives consist of an abundance of decisions. Who we become and how we affect others is the sum total of these choices.
THE BROAD ROAD
The natural tendency of our flesh is to look to ourselves. Even though the One who created us instructed us to “lean not to your own understanding,” we do it without conscious thought. In our pride, we think it’s ours to do. We handle our life in the arm of the flesh … which always fails us. “There’s a way that seems right to a man, but the way is death” (Proverbs 14:12). This tragic lifestyle is not merely eternal death, but death to the best life, the life you were designed to experience with God. Every moment of each day that we fail to take the high road, we experience a measure of death and also bring that to those around us.
THE WORLDLY ROAD
If we realize we can’t quite get there, we turn to the world. Worldly advisors are everywhere. Some we do not even believe we’re following are mentoring us daily. The daily drip of news commentators, the influence of friends who do not have a real clue of God’s agenda, the prevalent philosophies of this world, and the push of peer pressures influence us.
And there’s the most nefarious of all. The Devil has everything to gain by constantly whispering to us (which he does with fiery darts and scheming precision). He has one intent and one alone. He simply wants to keep us from God. He doesn’t have to do something cataclysmic. He just has to divert us a bit or distract us. Aborting nearness to God is His constant scheme.
THE SUFFICIENT ONE
There is only one thing God wants. He wants you. He made you and bought you back at Calvary. Twice over, you belong to Him. And every pressure, problem, and decision in your daily life is designed to push you back into vital, abiding intimacy with Him. This was the secret to David’s overwhelmingly successful life … a life that still touches us thousands of years later.
My soul waits in silence for God only. From Him is my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation, my stronghold; I shall not be greatly shaken. (Psalm 62:1-2, emphasis mine)
The only-ness of God. David waited for God. This was not passive but aggressively turning to God through His Word and prayer. Through the intentional gaze upon the Father throughout the day. Through a deliberate desire for nothing else but God. David wanted to make every decision in perfect concert with the Father. In fact, it wasn't just about decisions. It was about being with God as His constant Shepherd and friend. He knew that “the nearness of God is my good” (Psalm 73:28).
David was never satisfied unless He was positioned in the Lord’s presence. He constant goal was to stay there (and his greatest failures came when he didn’t).
Notice it is not, “My soul waits for God and a good book, the latest seminar, a video, another meeting, so-and-so’s opinion, what social media says, etc.” He waited for God ONLY and was not content until He heard God’s voice and found the Father’s protection. He climbed upon this solid rock, for God alone could save him. He snuggled under God’s wings for shelter and strength. He found His rest there, his confidence there, his direction there, his life there.
GOD + ________
Is there something in the blank for you—even seemingly good things that rob you of the God-life? Or have you discovered the blessed, secure, sufficient only-ness of God?
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