When I worked in Costa Rica, my team and I would often host groups. During their stay, we’d take them to a rural area to a steep hiking trail with some rustic steps.
Those of you who know me well know that I’m not a huge fan of hiking. Why, then, would I take people on difficult hike? Because of what awaited us at the bottom of the trail…a huge, fast flowing, heart pounding, awe-inspiring waterfall.
The waterfall empties into a large pool of water surrounded by rocks. Not only is it a sight to behold, it’s a place where people can swim and feel the force of the falling water.
It such a beautiful place that it makes the hike down (and back up) the path worth it.
The idea of a path is such a great analogy to our lives, isn’t it? It represents the different directions we’ve taken and will take over the years based on our decisions and circumstances. It’s full of symbolism as we imagine it being smooth or rough, straight, or crooked, well-lit, or dark.
As you think back on your life, you might observe that some of the things on your path are the result of things that God did and some of the things are a result of decisions you made.
The Bible talks quite a bit about different “paths,” sometimes translated “ways,” and the more I studied the topic, the more I saw a pattern – God’s part and our part.
Our part
Like the Psalmist, we ask God to show us His ways and teach us His paths.
“Show me your ways, Lord, teach me your paths”. Ps. 25:4
“Direct me in the path of your commands, for there I find delight”. Ps. 119:35
We don’t always know what those next steps are in our life, so we ask God to show us.
God’s part
He makes known and gives understanding.
“You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand”. Ps. 16:11
“I run in the path of your commands, for you have broadened my understanding”. Ps. 119:32
When we ask God to show us and teach us, He does.
What else does God do?
He LIGHTS our path.
“Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path”. Ps. 119:105
- How does God light our path? By HIS WORD. His word is what illuminates the way before us.
- As we spend time in His Word, we will know the way we ought to go. It’s not about what the WORLD says, it’s about what His WORD says.
- When I worked in Costa Rica, we never took people to the waterfall at night, and you can imagine why. It was pitch black. There would be no way to see or safely make our way down the rock and dirt laden path.
What is our part/our response to a lighted path?
We walk on and stick to the path on which we know we ought to go.
- “My steps have held to your paths; my feet have not stumbled”. Ps. 17:5
- “The path of the righteous is like the morning sun, shining ever brighter till the full light of day”. Prov. 4:18
That’s the path of the righteous. Do you want to be on that path? I do! How do we do that? How do we keep our way pure?
- Ps. 119:9 “How can a young person stay on the path of purity? By living according to your word.”
What else does God do? What’s His part?
He does the Guiding and the Leading
- Why? Because He knows the way – just like in Costa Rica, we, who lived there, led the team to the path toward the waterfall.
- He has done the leading for a very long time.
- Neh. 9:19 reminds us how God led the Israelites: “Because of your great compassion you did not abandon them in the wilderness. By day the pillar of cloud did not fail to guide them on their path, nor the pillar of fire by night to shine on the way they were to take.”
- We see something similar in the New Testament in Luke 1: 76-79 in Zechariah’s prophecy about his son, John the Baptist which reveals:
And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High;
for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him,
77 to give his people the knowledge of salvation
through the forgiveness of their sins,
78 because of the tender mercy of our God,
by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven
79 to shine on those living in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the path of peace.”
Barnes Notes on the Bible gives us some insight on the cultural, historical context to help us see the meaning of “to guide our feet”:
“The figure in these verses is taken from travelers, who, being overtaken by night, know not what to do, and who wait patiently for the morning light, that they may know which way to go…. So (man) sat in the shadow of death. So he knew not which way to go until the Sun of righteousness arose, and then the light shone brightly on his way, and the road was open to the promised land of rest – to heaven.”
Barnes Notes on the bible
- Are you familiar with the song, Same God? The same God who led the Israelites out of Egypt and in the wilderness, is the same God who leads us today. He gives us direction. He guides our steps, just like He did in Biblical times.
I think we know that in our minds, but do we practice that as we make decisions? Do we seek His will, direction, and guidance? And do we wait for it before we act?
You know what else God does?
He Straightens our Path.
- Prov. 3:5-6
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;
6 in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight“.[a]
The Psalmist asks God in Ps 27 to lead him in a straight path. If you’ve ever been hiking or on a winding trail, you know how daunting it can be. You can’t see what’s ahead, what obstacles there might be, what the terrain is like…
But when you have a straight path, you can see far beyond your location. You know what’s coming – you have a clear path before you.
The caution is to stay on that straight path. Prov. 2
My son, if you accept my words
and store up my commands within you,
2 turning your ear to wisdom
and applying your heart to understanding—
3 indeed, if you call out for insight
and cry aloud for understanding,
4 and if you look for it as for silver
and search for it as for hidden treasure,
5 then you will understand the fear of the Lord
and find the knowledge of God.
6 For the Lord gives wisdom;
from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.
7 He holds success in store for the upright,
he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless,
8 for he guards the course of the just
and protects the way of his faithful ones.
9 Then you will understand what is right and just
and fair—every good path.
10 For wisdom will enter your heart,
and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul.
11 Discretion will protect you,
and understanding will guard you.
12 Wisdom will save you from the ways of wicked men,
from men whose words are perverse,
13 who have left the straight paths
to walk in dark ways,
14 who delight in doing wrong
and rejoice in the perverseness of evil,
15 whose paths are crooked
and who are devious in their ways.
Those who have left the “straight paths” have made choices to do that.
The choices we make determine the paths we take.
What is our response to God as He straightens our path? What is our part?
Let’s CHOOSE TO TRUST AND RUN!
- Run? Yes! We get on our running shoes.
- Ps. 119: 32, “I run in the path of your commands,
for you have broadened my understanding.” - We trust God so much that when He:
- shows us our path, the way we should go,
- and He lights it up,
- he GUIDES us,
- AND He STRAIGHTENS the path before us,
- we don’t have to be afraid. We can go WHOLE-HEARTEDLY ahead!
Maybe that means boldly sharing your faith with your neighbor, or praying for something bigger than you’ve ever prayed for before, or stepping up to serve in a way you know God has called you…
Now I’m not saying your path won’t have challenges at times. I’m not saying it will be easy or smooth all the time. But remember why I endured a rough hike in Costa Rica. It was all about that amazing waterfall that awaited me at the end.
Remember what awaits you at the end of your path – eternal life with our God – it’s worth it.
Let us go be radiant on our path this week!
Go Be Radiant 