Have you ever felt prickly? You know, easily irritated, frustrated, discombobulated, anxious? I assume we all have at one time or the other. What triggers these feelings? I suppose the causes vary from person to person. For me, having to live in mess and chaos such as during a move or remodel, money struggles, too much busyness and not enough peace and quiet, relational misunderstandings, injustices...these can trigger me to become prickly and irritated.
I've had almost all of those triggers in the past two weeks-remodeling, a lot of busyness, some unexpected plumbing expenses related to our remodel, and an injustice involving the plumber we hired. I've, indeed, had some prickly emotions happening!
This morning I read Proverbs 3:5-6 in The Message Study Bible.
"Trust God from the bottom of your heart;
don’t try to figure out everything on your own.
Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go;
he’s the one who will keep you on track."
It's a familiar passage to me, but in a different translation.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;
6
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths. (NKJV)
Unfortunately, I think we can get so familiar with a verse that we forget the importance of living what it says! Perhaps, we begin to take its truths for granted?
Trust in the Lord completely,
and do not rely on your own opinions.
With all your heart rely on him to guide you,
and he will lead you in every decision you make.
6
Become intimate with him in whatever you do,
and he will lead you wherever you go.(TPT)
This morning, I spent my devotional time focusing on this one passage, then I took everything that I was feeling frustrated, irritated or anxious about, wrote it down, and committed it to God. I felt so much better after choosing to trust and lean on Him about each specific situation or circumstance. I had been wrestling with my thoughts and trying to lean on my own understanding instead of relying on God. No wonder I was so frustrated! I think I need to make this verse more than a favorite passage that I've filed away in my memory banks - I need to make it a daily practice!
Elizabeth, this is so true. Familiarity can rob us of the wisdom in those words. The TPT version gives much to mull over this morning. Blessings!
ReplyDeleteYes! In the same way a loved one is so familiar that we can take their presence for granted, I think we can take these familiar portions of God's word for granted and forget to heed what they say.
DeleteThis rings so true. The past, mine was a plumbing issue also. After waiting and waiting for repair, hard part to find, and then they drop the ball and place ordered from even with expedited shipping, did not send it out. Anyway, I get on the verge of a panic attack, which I am prone too, but then I handed it to God and the peace did come. I doubted it would, but then I saw the situation in another light. So, I'm being patient. It will get fixed, things can always be worse la la went through my mind. And so now know it will get resolved one way or another. Even in all that anxiety with the plumbing problem, I could hear God and also my hubby who was so patient in a crisis telling me to just be calm. Now praying next week will have better answers because I am human. haha
ReplyDeleteThe scripture you share is such a great reminder that I should have found and read, but thanks to you, I now have and can lean on it to remind me who takes care. Have a great week.
Oh, friend, I can so relate! In our case we hired a plumber to put new fittings on our tub for a new faucet. I chose the one with the highest ratings on YELP. I was shocked at what he charged, over $800, but thought it must be because there was some saudering of pipes involved. After he left, the brand new faucet leaked. He said I needed $2100 of additional work done, things like a new water heater, in order for the faucet to stop leaking. Two other pros have told me that what he's saying makes no sense. Come to find out, he's highly rated on yelp because he removes the negative reviews. It's been a challenge for me to deal with him, needless to say.
DeleteSo easy to quote, sometimes harder to do. But if we step out of the way, He will take over.
ReplyDeleteSo true! I have a "let me fix things" and "let me figure this out" type personality. I need to "let go and let God" every day!
DeleteCantankerous! That's my word for myself when I get out of sorts. I think the Bible uses the nasty sounding word "contentious." Trusting Him with all my heart and allowing Him to rid my heart of cantakerousness, is the answer. Thank you for being so honest with us in order for us to be more honest with ourselves.
ReplyDeleteI hate it when I get cantankerous. I see how ugly it is and don't want to be that way. God help me!
DeleteYes, I can relate. The power in this verse is when we put it into practice! Thank you for sharing honestly about your experience.
ReplyDelete