Proverbs 3:5-8 Living Bible
4-5 If you want favor with both God and man, and a reputation for good judgment and common sense, then trust the Lord completely; don’t ever trust yourself. 6 In everything you do, put God first, and he will direct you and crown your efforts with success.
7-8 Don’t be conceited, sure of your own wisdom. Instead, trust and reverence the Lord, and turn your back on evil; when you do that, then you will be given renewed health and vitality.
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
Throughout our lives, we will continue to need God’s direction. Without God’s direction, we will be prone to get lost in our Christian walk. The good news is that God never leaves us, nor does He make our paths blurry. Instead, He makes our paths straight the more we lean on Him instead of our own understanding (Proverbs 3:5-8).
Proverbs 3:5-8 Amplified Bible
5
Trust in and rely confidently on the Lord with all your heart
And do not rely on your own insight or understanding.
6
[a]In all your ways know and acknowledge and recognize Him,
And He will make your paths straight and smooth [removing obstacles that block your way].
7
Do not be wise in your own eyes;
Fear the Lord [with reverent awe and obedience] and turn [entirely] away from evil.
8
It will be health to your body [your marrow, your nerves, your sinews, your muscles—all your inner parts]
And refreshment (physical well-being) to your bones.
First and Foremost; Turning to the Bible and going to God in prayer are the main ways to ascertain God’s direction. The Bible tells us the direct words of God and prayer enables us to speak personally with Him. By practicing these spiritual disciplines, we can sense where God is leading us. As we are following and obeying Him, it will be impossible to miss His guidance, direction, truth.
If you are seeking God’s direction today, you have come to the right place. Never doubt the Lord’s guidance—He will always lead us where we need to be.
Here are a few Bible verses to turn to when you need God’s direction. Through these passages, trust you will be directed by the Lord in the way you should go:
1. Psalm 32:8
“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.” Psalm 32:8
Whenever we need God’s direction, we can turn to Psalm 32:8.
In this ancient passage, we are told by God that He will instruct us, teach us, and counsel us.
Since this is true, we take comfort in knowing God is already directing our steps.
His direction has already been made known to us as we are following Him today.
He is instructing us and teaching us in the way we should go through the Bible.
It is also comforting to know God is counseling us with His loving eye on us.
This means God always has His eyes on us and is protecting us.
Never will the Lord fail us.
He is directing us and guiding us each day.
Listen to His gentle nudge and continue to follow Him. (1 Samuel 3:1-10)
God will keep you safe and protected as you continue to follow Him.
2. Psalm 37:23-24
“The Lord makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him; though he may stumble, he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with his hand.” Psalm 37:23-24
If we are faithfully following God, He will make our steps certain.
Psalm 37:23-24 starts out by saying, “The Lord makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him.”
What this part of Psalm 37:23-24 tells us is the Lord will make our steps firm if we are delighting in Him.
Those who delight in Him are those who love Him, obey Him, and follow Him.
If we are delighting in the Lord, He will make our steps firm and steadfast.
We also see that although we know we will certainly stumble, we will not fall.
The Lord will uphold us with His hand.
Therefore, even if we weave off course sometimes, God will place us back on the path we should be walking.
There will be times when we do stray; however, God will not allow us to fall.
Trust that He will straighten our paths and ensure His directions are known.
3. Jeremiah 10:23
“Lord, I know that people’s lives are not their own; it is not for them to direct their steps.” Jeremiah 10:23
The prophet Jeremiah is calling out to the Lord. He tells the Lord he knows the people of Israel’s lives are not their own, it is not for them to direct their steps.
Instead, it should be God directing their steps.
The lives of Israel belong to Him just as the lives of everyone in the world today belong to Him. Never should we be as bold to say we should direct our own steps—instead, we need to wise up, look up, look forward, trust God’s instructions to allow the Lord to direct our steps (Genesis 12:1-3).
Allowing the Lord alone to direct our steps looks like faithfully following Him, obeying Him, trusting Him and loving Him. Jesus will direct our steps if we let Him. It might be hard to discern His direction at times, but as long as we are obeying Him, we can trust that we are following His direction in our lives.
God has detailed plans for each one of our lives, and He will ensure we follow the right directions in order to fulfill these plans (Jeremiah 29:10-14).
4. Proverbs 20:24
“A person’s steps are directed by the Lord. How then can anyone understand their own way?” Proverbs 20:24
Each and every step is directed by the Lord.
As the writer of Proverbs says, “How then can anyone understand their own way?”
While this can be a confusing statement, we can interpret it to mean that God will direct our steps even if we are not aware at the time.
This is because God will fulfill His purposes in our lives—even if we mess up, even if we don’t know what’s next.
Whether we fail or not, God will still work through us and ensure we are going in the right direction.
If you are unsure of where God is leading you today, go to Him in prayer.
Use Proverbs 20:24 as a passage to direct your prayer.
Trust the Lord will give you clarity and guidance.
While we will not know all parts of God’s will on this side of heaven, we can trust Him with our steps. His directions will guide us and make our paths level.
5. John 14:6
“Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’” John 14:6
Our ultimate map is Jesus.
Since Jesus is “The Way,” we can know we are following the Father’s direction by obeying the Lord.
Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
Trust Him, with baby steps, Follow Him with your entire heart today.
The Lord is the way to everything we need for our life and the life to come.
His directions will never fail us because He is our Good Shepherd (Psalm 23).
As you follow Jesus, don’t be afraid of where He leads.
Sometimes His directions might feel intimidating or scary, but resolve to make the choice to trust Him. Trust He will protect you and keep you safe. Whether He guides you to go on short and or long-term mission trips in distant lands, start leading a Bible study, or break away from a bad relationship, trust His direction.
God has a way of speaking to us and making His directions clear.
Listen to His voice and obey Him (Psalm 19).
God truly knows what is best for us, even if we don’t understand it at the time.
Go to Him in prayer, ask for His directions, and faithfully follow His leading.
The Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are worthy of our trust.
God’s guidance in our lives will bring about our ultimate joy and sanctification.
The path might be difficult and strenuous at times; however, we can know God is working it out for our good (Romans 8:28).
Be it resolved then …
Choose to follow His direction today, see how your life changes for the better.
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Psalm 121 Authorized (King James) Version
Psalm 121
A Song of degrees.
1 I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills,
from whence cometh my help.
2 My help cometh from the Lord,
which made heaven and earth.
3 He will not suffer thy foot to be moved:
he that keepeth thee will not slumber.
4 Behold, he that keepeth Israel
shall neither slumber nor sleep.
5 The Lord is thy keeper:
the Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand.
6 The sun shall not smite thee by day,
nor the moon by night.
7 The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil:
he shall preserve thy soul.
8 The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in
from this time forth, and even for evermore.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
Loving God, Living God, Loving Hope, Living Hope, Loving Living Life His Way! "Many things are possible for the person who has hope. Even more is possible for the person who has faith. And still more is possible for the person who knows how to love. But everything is possible for the person who practices all three virtues." - Brother Lawrence (1605-1691), Practicing the Presence of God (1692). 