In the Beginning...

This is my first blog ever! I know that you can sense the excitement in my voice. Oh yeah, you can't hear me. But believe me, there is excitement. I find it simply amazing that we can log on to the Internet and immediately be able to share information with others all of the world. NO, this is not my first time on the Internet, but it is still amazing. Hopefully, others will find my thoughts worth reading and sharing with others.

For my first post, I want to share a verse that has been a theme for my wife and I over the past few years of our lives, and especially the last year. The verse is Proverbs 20:24, "A man’s steps are from the LORD; how then can man understand his way?" Now this is not a verse that eliminates our responsibility in life. This is one of those one-line drops of wisdom from Solomon. There is no context that it fits into within the chapter, but we know that it has to be taken in the context of the subject area covered in other places in the Scriptures. There are many other verses that talk about God's directing of the path of those who follow Him. Here are just a few, Proverbs 16:1,9 "1The plans of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the LORD." "9 The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps." And I will list just one more before giving my thoughts on this subject, and that is Psalm 139:16, "Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them."

The point for my wife and I, is that we have been walking faithfully in obedience to our Father, through the righteousness of Christ, in the power of the Holy Spirit, and our most used phrase has become, "We don't know what God is doing". We have many friends and family members who probably think we are crazy. And I'll admit we are, but we believe that we are following after God with all we are, and for us that has meant moving from place to place, being used by Him to touch people's lives, and when given the opportunity, making disciples. It may not be God's calling on your life, but for us, it has been an awesome adventure, and we would not change places with anyone else. We make our plans, present them to the Father, and He says to us, "Live for Me today, let Me take care of tomorrow, and regardless of what happens, all things will work out for My glory and your good. Do you trust Me?" And the answer to that question is, "Yes, because You alone are trustworthy!" And that is the point of the verses I use above. God's plan IS being accomplished. It's His plan, and no man can stop it. The choice for us is, will we be obedient and walk with Him as He is accomplishing His plan, or will we force Him to grab us by the nap of the neck, as He drags us along while we are kicking and screaming? I like the idea of walking in fellowship rather than walking in discipline. How 'bout you?

I do not claim to be as strong as Abraham, the Father of Faith, but I do know the more I leave things in His hands, the more faithful He proves to be!

Tim