Guidance
I know, O LORD, that the way of man is not in himself,
that it is not in man who walks to direct his steps.
Correct me, O LORD, but in justice;
not in your anger, lest you bring me to nothing. (Jer. 10:23&24)
I suppose one of the most absorbing topics in the Christian life is “guidance.” Examples include: “who does the Lord want me to marry?” and “what job does the Lord want me to take?” and “should I buy this nice house or the cheaper one?” and so on.
A magazine I get, Modern Reformation, has a whole issue on this topic. And I admit I read it thoroughly because I, too, am struggling with the question, “what do I do with the rest of my life now that Susan is gone?” I reflected on that a bit in my blog below on “The Balm in Gilead.” There I quoted the famous passage from Proverbs (3:5&6) about the Lord making our paths straight if we acknowledge Him in all our ways. In the passage above from Jeremiah the prophet proclaims a similar thought, but in his typical pessimistic style worries about the Lord’s anger. He also gives what mathematicians would call the “contra-positive” of the theorem expressed in Proverbs. The way of man is NOT in himself, NOR does man direct his own steps. This brings to mind yet another familiar proverb: Prov 16:9 which reads The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps. Both Jeremiah and the Proverb writer acknowledge that guidance often comes outside the heart and mind of a man or woman. That great word PROVIDENCE stands out here. The Westminster Confession of Faith puts it this way:
God the great Creator of all things does uphold, direct, dispose, and govern all creatures, actions, and things, from the greatest even to the least, by His most wise and holy providence, according to His infallible foreknowledge, and the free and immutable counsel of His own will, to the praise of the glory of His wisdom, power, justice, goodness, and mercy.
Since we are not privy to the Creator’s infallible foreknowledge and the immutable counsel of His will, much of providence will seem pretty mysterious to us. I suppose that’s where faith and hope come in. Though a child might not understand why she is getting this horrible injection, she has faith that her mommy intends it for her good. Jesus said we have to have faith like a little child to receive the Kingdom of Heaven.
And when we think of it this way–as parents raising up their children–we get another perspective on guidance. Parents are of course concerned with the BIG DECISIONS in the life of their child (marriage, vocation, etc.) but their day-to-day parenting chores are not so much directed at these as they are to the character of the child. How the child shows respect to its elders; has good table manners; knows right from wrong; obeys the ten commandments; etc.
One of the authors of articles in the magazine I quoted earlier put it this way:
“Discerning God’s will for our own lives is the (fallible) process of thinking and deciding about our own personal circumstances in the light of our developing a Christian character.” Given his desire for the Lord to “correct him in justice” I think Jeremiah would say “right on!”