Guided by the Master
Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths.
Proverbs 3:5-6 NKJV
Iva and I embarked upon a new adventure. A deep snow had blanketed our community, but it was melting fast. After two fun-filled days of playing in the snow, which Iva loves, I decided to venture out.
I don’t know about your neighborhood, but our city snow plows miss a lot. The warm sun had chased the ice away except for the multiple snowbanks left by the snow plows.
Iva went full steam ahead, happy to be walking again, but as she began crossing our first patch of snow, I hesitated. She noticed my reluctance as she looked back at me. Then she continued forward.
“Wait!” I exclaimed unsure of proceeding.
Iva knew I disliked the slippery spot we found ourselves on. She continued, but at a much slower pace until we reached the pavement again.
From that point on, Iva carefully guided me across multiple snowbanks, sometimes taking me around them. Iva and I had never worked together in this amount of snow. Usually the streets remain icy or filled with salt, which isn’t good for Iva’s paws. She was raised in Massachusetts by Racheal Belle, where snow was frequent. But Iva never learned to guide in the snow. She had been trained at Guiding Eyes from April to September, when snow wasn’t around.
Iva worked like a pro, guiding me across places I didn’t want to travel. Places that made me feel uncomfortable at best. Apprehensive and unsteady at worst.
God spoke to me as Iva directed my steps. He said, not audibly, “Carolyn, this is how I guide you, but you often want to put on your brakes. You don’t want to journey through the unknown. You pull back when the going gets rough. “
Iva was saying, not audibly, “Trust me, Mom. I’ve got this.”
And that is what God says to me too. Trust Me to direct your steps. Finances look bleak? Trust Me. You feel weak and inadequate? Trust Me. You have lost loved ones? Trust Me. Prayers aren’t answered fast enough? Trust Me. The enemy attacks? Trust Me. Stepping out in a new calling? Trust Me.
And God says that to you too. He wants us to trust whole-heartedly as He takes us by the hand and guides us across troubled waters. Half-hearted faith won’t do. Trust God with that stronghold. Trust God with that addiction. Trust God with that rebellious or wayward child. Trust God to walk you through grief, death, disease, depression, and peril.
Christians are guided by the Master. As the Israelites traveled to the Promised Land, they were led by a pillar of cloud during the day and a pillar of fire by night. Likewise, God goes before us, leading the way. Will we follow in faith, or will we shrink back in unbelief?
Copyright 2019 Carolyn Dale Newell.
Originally posted on July 23, 2020 @ 7:48 pm