January 24, 2018
I AM PERSUADED THAT HE IS ABLE:
TO ORDER MY STEPS
Psalm 37:23 The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way.
Did you know that everything is built the same way? Everything is built one step at a time. Houses are built that way, bicycles are assembled that way, and even cakes are baked that way. When it comes to putting something together, many of us have tried at times to skip steps, discard instructions, and jump ahead because of our impatience. We all know how that turned out. We learned that there was a reason and purpose for every step. The same principle applies to God’s will. We just cannot skip steps with God.
This verse does not say the giant leaps or strides of a good man are ordered by the Lord. God specifically says “steps”. It is wonderful that God does not require from us more than we are able to do. Some of us cannot always grow giant leaps at a time, but every one of us can take the next step. We do not get saved one day, and the next day morph into some spiritual stratosphere. God builds us one step at a time.
Note, the verse does say the steps of a “good man”. The Hebrew word used here means “a valiant man or warrior”. So this verse is referring to an individual that desires to be a servant or soldier of God. This is a person that wishes to take his or her orders or commands from God Himself. This is a rare type of individual. Most of us do not really like taking orders from anyone. Of course, because of that, we also have the tendency to take some really ignorant “steps”. When an individual takes a step that God has directed them to take, it is always the right step. As we all know, right steps take us to the right places, and wrong steps take us to the wrong places.
Finally, notice in this verse that this “good man”, who follows orders from God, doesn’t just obey, but enjoys doing so. He delights in God’s way. I have always been taught that obedience with the wrong attitude is the same as disobedience. A valiant man receives his orders from God, and cannot wait to do it.
Is that you, today? Is that me, today?
May our prayer be, “God, tell me the next step, and I will be glad to take it!”.