Trust in the LORD with All Your Heart
“My son, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments; for they will add length to your days, and years and peace to your life. Never let loving devotion or faithfulness leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will find favor and high regard in the sight of God and man.
Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and turn away from evil. This will bring healing to your body and refreshment to your bones.
Honor the LORD with your wealth and with the first fruits of all your harvest; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will overflow with new wine. My son, do not reject the discipline of the LORD, and do not loathe His rebuke; for the LORD disciplines the one He loves, as does a father the son in whom he delights.”
““My son, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments; for they will add length to your days, and years and peace to your life. Never let loving devotion or faithfulness leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will find favor and high regard in the sight of God and man.” Once upon a time, workers joined a company, expecting that they would move up the corporate ladder and remain with that company until they retired. Sadly, that era has ended. Companies that once demonstrated loyalty to their workers, offering good medical insurance and educational advantages are now ruthlessly cutting back, mechanizing, and cutting costs by any means possible. In response workers are protecting themselves by scrutinizing their positions, poising themselves to jump to another company at the first sign of a problem. Marriages have not fared any better. Even among Christians, divorce rates sometimes approach 50%. Vows that are supposed to last a lifetime may be thrown aside quickly. In such settings, do loving devotion and faithfulness have any place at all?
The short answer is “Yes, devotion is a lot of work, but it’s worth it!” The longer you give to a relationship of any kind, the more rewarding it can be. We have worked in the same community for nearly 24 years; in that time, we have gained strong credibility and we have the chance to help the people who have become our neighbors and friends. We feel the same way about our marriage. In more than four decades, we have weathered injuries, a heart attack, several major surgeries, and the loss of parents and siblings. We remain each other’s best friends, although there are times when we remember Ruth Bell Graham’s statement. Someone was interviewing Mrs. Graham and asked her if she had ever considered leaving Billy. Mrs. Graham is alleged to have answered, “Leave Billy? No. Kill him? Sometimes!”
“Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and turn away from evil. This will bring healing to your body and refreshment to your bones.” There’s a line from a song from the musical Fiddler on the Roof that goes “Life has a way of abusing us, blessing and bruising us…” It’s amazing how many of us trust in our own understanding rather than asking God for assistance. Insanity has been defined as repeating the same mistakes and expecting different results, but many of us are really slow learners. In these verses, God is also promising that when we follow God’s plans for our lives, it will bring healing to our bodies and refreshment to our bones. Many of us are more than happy to receive refreshment to our bones because every joint in our bodies is likely to check in with all kinds of weird snapping and cracking noises.
“Honor the LORD with your wealth and with the first fruits of all your harvest; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will overflow with new wine.” One of the fundamental laws of the Kingdom of God is that the measure you give out is the measure you will receive. You need to honor God with your wealth and with your first fruits. First fruits are the very first harvest from your farm or garden, your first-born animals, etc. Giving God your first fruits is a risk; what if that’s all you get that year? How will you survive? What will you live on? But when you are generous, God responds in ways you can’t imagine. We spend a large amount of money weekly supporting indigent patients and their relatives in the hospital. Recently, we were shopping for a microwave when the shop owner asked to speak with us. When we wound up counseling the shop owner and praying for him, he gave us a microwave out of gratitude. (We did not ask for anything; we were simply trying to help him.)
“My son, do not reject the discipline of the LORD, and do not loathe His rebuke; for the LORD disciplines the one He loves, as does a father the son in whom he delights.” OUCH! This one is tough! Most of us are more than happy to talk about God’s blessings, but when it comes to God’s discipline, it’s a different story entirely. The problem is that all of us need correction, and the harder the calling God has for us, the stricter the discipline we must undergo to prepare ourselves for it. In Bible times, fathers would claim their natural children or children they had adopted and discipline those children. Discipline indicated sonship. When I was six, my parents added my foster sister to our family. My mother was a stern disciplinarian and didn’t hesitate to spank us when necessary. One day, my foster sister misbehaved, and even though she was sixteen years old, Mom swatted her anyway. Amazingly, my sister was thrilled-why? Because Mom treated my sister just like her other kids. That was the day when my sister really felt that she was part of the family.
Perhaps today you feel as if God is being hard on you, but what if God is preparing you for some great future and needs you to be ready? Neither my husband nor I grew up in wealthy circumstances, and my family lived quite simply when I was very young. But God was preparing us to live in a small northern Ghanaian village with no electricity or running water. That early training turned out to be essential.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help us to trust You rather than ourselves and to submit to Your discipline, knowing that You have high callings for us. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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