Let God Direct your Steps

 “A man’s heart plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps.” Proverbs 16:9 NKJV

In a heartbreaking story titled “Helen Schlachtenhaufen Was a Contender for the World Championship Team. A Bloody Fall Dashed Her Hopes,” published over the weekend, it was reported that “As the bell rang for the final lap of the women’s 1500 meters at the U.S. Championships, Helen Schlachtenhaufen began to wind up her kick. But before she could accelerate, she hit the ground—hard—slamming her chin on the red rubber track at Hayward Field. Shell-shocked, Schlachtenhaufen watched as the field pulled away from her, dashing her hopes of qualifying for the World Athletics Championships in Toko.” After Saturday’s race, Schlachtenhaufen said “One moment [I] was running and then the next moment was on the ground… I feel like going into this race, I felt probably the most confident I have in a while. That’s part of why it stings so much.”

And, while you and I may make plans for our lives expecting to see those plans come to pass (after all, this is what we do, right?) the Bible is clear that “A man’s heart plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps.” Which is a good thing when you stop to consider it! You see, God knows what we need and when we will need it. As such, He will work situations in our lives in such a way that will cause us to put our trust and confidence in Him rather than ourselves. It’s these divine re-routings in the form of tests, trials, losses, and disappointments that cause us go where God wants us to go rather than where we want to go—and inevitably then, serve to make us more like Christ in ways that we can never truly understand other than in retrospect. 

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts,

Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.

“For as the heavens are higher than the earth,

So are My ways higher than your ways,

And My thoughts than your thoughts. - Isaiah 55:8-9 NKJV

So, if things aren’t going as you “planned” today and your hopes have been dashed, take heart my friend. You won't feel the sting for long when you stop and remember that God‘s thoughts are not your thoughts and His ways are not your ways. His ways are much higher than yours and His plans so much better than yours. Trust the Lord as you allow Him to direct your steps then, completely confident that the plan God has for your life is much better than the one you have.

Heavenly Father, thank You for reminding us that your plans for our lives are always better than ours. Knowing this, help us to trust You when we don’t understand why our plans failed, and to look to You to direct our steps. Teach us to place all our confidence in You, Lord rather than ourselves. It’s in your precious name we pray Jesus. Amen.

Happy Running!