Its preparations are from Him.

Sometimes (like these days) I look at God’s assignment and realize my heart is insufficient to it.

And that’s a very good thing. In fact, if my sense of insufficiency is only sometimes, that’s too bad.

This morning I read the first half of Proverbs 16 and found some very applicable gems:

“The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, is from the Lord” (1).

“Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established” (3).

“Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord: though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished” (5).

“A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the Lord directeth his steps” (9).

[The Scriptures say in Proverbs 16:9 -- A man's heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps]
Proverbs 16:9

Real living so easily distracts from the One who is real life!

His mission and message kept John the Baptist very busy. But one day, in his bustling activity, he saw the One and shouted, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29).

John was not so caught up with his ministry and his message that he missed seeing Jesus. John was not so consumed with himself and his surroundings that he missed seeing Jesus. John was not so aware of the people that he missed seeing the Person. John was not so busy exposing and condemning hypocrisy that he missed seeing the True One. I wish this were true of me.

I can get so involved with these devotional commentaries…that I can actually miss seeing Jesus. I can become so involved with mission board work and school board work…that I miss seeing Jesus. I can get so bogged down with my failings (and successes)…that I miss seeing Jesus. I can become so consumed in my pursuit of solutions to interpersonal problems and family foul-ups…that I miss seeing Jesus.

My friend, how can I point out the Lamb of God to others if I have missed seeing Him myself? Life is not about commentaries, boards, failings (and successes), and problem-solving. Life is about Jesus! Because Jesus is life. And Jesus is the One who takes away the sin of the world.

The Voice and His Witness

I ended up at my own piece above after reading a friend’s post: Exposing God.