(Picture by Mary Kate, "Tantrum")
"There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death"
"There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death"
Proverbs 14:12
News just in; God is not provoked to change through my apoplectic attacks. He is not a man who is easily coerced. It doesn't matter how much I don't understand, how many fits I throw, what it is that I think I know better, He will not move. He is unchanging. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. And you know what? I'm glad.
Because what I'm learning is just like the verse above says, sometimes there are things I think are right, they feel right, they seem right, I want them to be right, they should be right...but in the end they will lead to heartbreak, pain, running off course, distraction, and a hot mess.
It's not that God wants to hold out on us, either. In fact, He is the giver of every good and perfect gift. He even provides us with a promise that anything we ask for in His name, we will get. But it has to be in His name. It has to be under His will, in alignment with His plan. If we ask for anything that will be good for us and for His ultimate plan to bring Himself the glory He deserves...it's ours. But how many times do we ask for things outside of this course we're on for our life? How many times have we asked for the very thing that is poison for our souls?
I am so relieved that my schemes and manipulation techniques won't work on God.
Imagine the disaster that would ensue if that weren't true. Picture the consequences a parent and child face when the stubborn toddler is able to frequently manipulate their parents. How much different, really, are we? God is the best Father, the most wise parent, the most patient caretaker. And He will not be manipulated. No amount of kicking and screaming, yelling and throwing tantrums, will move Him off the course He knows best.
Lately, I am so thankful for this fact.
The picture above is from the bedroom of my friend, Mary Kate. (Who, by the way, inspires me, spurs me on, sharpens me, and who Jesus lives in!) With it, the scripture Psalm 73:21-23. I like it best in the Amplified Version,
He will wait out our tantrums, He will not give in to our manipulation and fits, He will patiently discipline us and guide us, and even better, when it's all said and done...He will still be there holding our right hand.
I get this great picture in my head when I see the last part of that verse. I invision the moment after the big crying fit, you know, when it's super hard to breathe and you're taking in air at short intervalls. You're just starting to calm down...and you look down at you're right hand to see His still there. It's normally at these moments in life when you give out a sigh of relief and chuckle. You're foolish, He's patient, and you're still together.
Because, really, there is a way that seems right to us in that moment but it leads to death.
Nevertheless.
xoxo,
mp
Lately, I am so thankful for this fact.
The picture above is from the bedroom of my friend, Mary Kate. (Who, by the way, inspires me, spurs me on, sharpens me, and who Jesus lives in!) With it, the scripture Psalm 73:21-23. I like it best in the Amplified Version,
"For my heart was grieved, embittered, and in a state of ferment, and I was pricked in my heart. So foolish, stupid, and brutish was I, and ignorant; I was like a beast before You. Nevertheless I am continually with You; You do hold my right hand."
He will wait out our tantrums, He will not give in to our manipulation and fits, He will patiently discipline us and guide us, and even better, when it's all said and done...He will still be there holding our right hand.
I get this great picture in my head when I see the last part of that verse. I invision the moment after the big crying fit, you know, when it's super hard to breathe and you're taking in air at short intervalls. You're just starting to calm down...and you look down at you're right hand to see His still there. It's normally at these moments in life when you give out a sigh of relief and chuckle. You're foolish, He's patient, and you're still together.
Because, really, there is a way that seems right to us in that moment but it leads to death.
Nevertheless.
xoxo,
mp
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