Step by Step

Step by Step - Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways. Proverbs 4:26 

This one hits his one hits home, and is such a wonderful encouragement. I’ve read and re-read this post over the past two weeks, just letting it simmer and soak in. And just like God loves me enough to have this verse show up in the line-up just when I needed it, he loves me enough to have this song show up during worship on Sunday:

“A thousand times I've failed, still your mercy remains. And should I stumble again, still I'm caught in your grace….Your will above all else, my purpose remains. The art of losing myself in bringing you praise…To love you from the inside out.”

I want to be graceful and sure and always do the right thing. When I stumble, I feel disappointed, embarrassed, and dumb. But who am I trying to impress? God knows the depths of my heart and all my secrets. The ones I treasure with joy, and the ones I would rather not own up to…anytime…ever. But they’re not secret to him. And his mercy remains. When I stumble: 1) He’s not surprised because he knows (and designed) the path and 2) I’m caught in his steadfast loving arms.

As this Proverb implies, sometimes stumbles happen because I’m being careless. And inevitably, after a stumble or a wobble, it’s my natural tendency to take a moment to reset and regain my balance and composure. To bring my awareness back to the path or the task at hand. Maybe even glance over (or up) to get a reassuring glance before moving forward once again.

This insight rings through all the pain and embarrassment: “You don’t have to try to be steadfast—you are steadfast.”

For this, I am so profoundly grateful. (But I’ll try to give more careful thought to my path just the same.)