Proverbs 3:6
"In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight."
This verse is very interesting in that it tells us things we would not expect. There is truth hidden behind the plain-looking words here. The word acknowledge is not: let people know about... or pray a little prayer to... a little tip of the hat or cross of yourself....to acknowledge God in each aspect of your life. Instead the word is the word to know and suggests intimate knowledge of God and is suggested in each of the avenues of your life in order for the promise to kick in. In every arena, in every situation, in every relationship the believer is to be intimately aware of and related to God. Clearly this carries with it the idea that you are interacting and reacting in these arenas as God would.
It is this relational connection to God and understanding of His desired reaction or action that allows Him to so readily make your path straight. This is not guidance through the difficulties of life; this is road building and throwing obstacles and difficulties out of the way. God is actively at work for you, making your pathways through life less complicated. Boy, don't I need this. I gain this incredible blessing by having a deeper relationship with God.
God says that He blessed Cyrus and made his paths straight so that He would be in a situation to release the captive Israelites at the appointed time. This idea of the Lord making a person's path straight is a clear acknowledgement of the fact that the world is a much more complex place than one person can control. There are things and actions that are completely beyond the control of the individual that must come together in order for that person to live and enjoy the blessed life. One of the ideas is that it would be wise to be intimately acquainted with the road-builder of life who controls everything and can smooth the way for you. We will never know on this side of heaven – and maybe not there – how many obstacles and difficulties the Lord threw out of the way. It will be interesting to see the unedited tape of what the Lord was doing behind the scenes to give us the life we lived. Jeremiah 10:23 says it is not in a man to direct His steps. Jeremiah realized that there were forces way beyond himself that controlled how he lived his life – all kinds of forces.
Until tomorrow,
Gil Stieglitz