All The Way

TITLE: All the Way
DATE: June 5, 2019
TEXT: Proverbs 3: 5-8 – ESV - Trust in the Lord with all your heart,  and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him,  and he will make straight your paths.  Be not wise in your own eyes;  fear the Lord, and turn away from evil.  It will be healing to your flesh  and refreshment to your bones.
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Yesterday I was in a fast-food restaurant. My younger daughter, Kris, long ago observed, Fast food should be fast.”…….Yesterday it wasn’t.

There was one lady taking orders, a couple of folks cooking and one bagging and distributing the food. They were all doing a pretty good job. The problem was with the person who was putting in her order.

No, she wasn’t ordering for a High School football team… she was just putting in an order for herself…, and she couldn’t make up her mind. The line got longer, the people more impatient. Finally, the lady was asked to step to the side until she could make up her mind.

One of the great mysteries of life is the difficulty people seem to have in making up their minds.

There is a reason for that: in coming to a decision, most people usually only decide to do something halfway. If you want to see the principle in action, just watch a child jump into a swimming pool for the first time. He wants to be in the water, but he’s… just…. not… sure.

That was not the situation for Cortez when he began his conquest of Mexico in 1419.

With his small force of 700 men on shore, Cortez set fire to his fleet of 11 ships. His soldiers watched their ships, their only link to the outside world, their only way of escape, burn and sink to the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico.

From that moment on there was only one direction they could go: forward. Forward into Mexico and forward to meet their future and their fate. Cortez was a fellow who believed in going all the way.

God says people who wish to follow the Savior should also ‘go all the way.’ That’s what the Psalmist was telling us: trust with all your heart.” Please note, he does not ask for a quarter of your heart, or half , or even a large percentage of your heart.

The Lord wants all of you.

The Lord knows it is not wise to try and follow Him and the world. Trying to do that leaves an individual with too many divided loyalties, too many conflicts. When the world tries to pull us one way, God wants us to go the other.

Which leads us to an interesting thought, which may have some practical application.

Are your days filled with confusion, pain and doubt? Do you seem to be spiritually spinning your wheels without getting anywhere? Then ask, “Am I only going halfway?”

Which is why this devotion encourages you to  let go of the world and let the Lord take hold of you.. all the way.  Let Him, because of what His Son has done by His life, death and resurrection, help and direct you… all the way.

THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, lead me past my own shaky understanding and empower me to trust You. Guide my path as I follow the Savior Who went all the way to rescue me. In His Name. Amen.

The music which introduces and concludes our devotions was written by Guy Baumann. He along with three of his brothers perform on the album: The Baumann Brothers which may be ordered here: http://thebaumannbrothers.com/index.html