Ps 37:5; Prov 16:3. Commit Your Ways and Works to God
There was a time when I would write out a ‘to do’ list each morning, then lament each night when I didn’t complete everything on the list. I lived with a sense of failure because of the things that were left undone, rather than with the joy of knowing I had accomplished many things on any given day.
We didn’t watch television, and computers and the internet were still a mystery to us, so I couldn’t be accused of wasting time on soapies and computer games. It’s just that five young children take a lot of looking after.
Despite my high productivity, I always carried a sense that I was failing to meet ‘the standard’, and lived with that mindset for many years.
Fast forward to 2003. My fifth child was 21, and we had two other children aged 7 and 5. Over the years, I had become a little more relaxed in my approach to the mountain of things that always needed doing. It wasn’t just maturity that was changing me though. God had also helped me along the way.
Some of the key ways in which He ministered to me was through a few scriptures.
Psalms 37:5 says, “Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass.”
Proverbs 16:3 says, “Commit your works to the Lord, and your thoughts will be established.”
So, each day, instead of looking at the mountain of things to do, I began learning to commit things to the Lord and trust Him to lead me into what is important
I often pray and say, “Lord, I commit my way to you and trust You, knowing that you will bring to pass your purposes. Give me wisdom and strength for the day. I also commit my works to You. You know the things I want to do, but you also know what I need to do, so I trust you to direct my thoughts along the way.”
These days, my ‘to do’ lists are much shorter. That’s not because I don’t have much to do. I’m never idle. However, I find that during my morning devotions, God often reminds me of something I need to do, or speaks to me about something I hadn’t planned on - like visiting an elderly neighbour. With a little ‘thankyou Lord’, I immediately jot them down. That way I can forget about them until devotions are over, then move ahead with a clear sense of direction for the day.
When I approach each day with this attitude, there is no need for anxiety when things I thought I would do don’t get done. There is no need for me to become impatient at being held up by unexpected things. There is no need to become agitated or anxious when something takes months to do and I don’t get time for weeks on end to further the project.
If I am serious about committing my ways and works to God and if I really trust Him to fulfil His Word, I will not fret.
God will give me the thoughts of what I need to do.
God will bring His purposes to pass in my life.