Path of No Return

March 27, 2022

Thank you for your new day. Thank you for your love. Thank you for who you are. I am quiet today. But I am thankful. Thankful for your comfort, for the love that you show continually. Thankful for your promises that you have surrounded me with. 

CONFESSION: It’s still weird praying for myself and just giving thanks at times. I’ve been taught all my life at church that you have to put others first, pray for others. And not that there’s anything inherently wrong with that, but it is truly a destructive practice. To love others as you love yourself requires that you love yourself. That you also extend grace to yourself. That you know what needs to take priority at that moment. That you know/understand when to pray for others and when to pray for yourself. 

Thank you away for showing me a new path, for preparing a place for me and leading me to it. You are a good God. You are not a man: lol, though we often say that you’re a man of your word. I don’t think I’ll ever stop being amazed at the way you guide. You do acknowledge what we may be thinking or hoping for but there are times you say, “There’s nothing bad about that, but for today, I have a better way. Trust me.”

And I do trust you. It’s mind-boggling at times how much I do trust you, though (I’ll admit) there are still a few aspects that I’m struggling with. But by your grace, I will keep moving forward in you. I will keep on deepening my trust in you until I no longer even have the desire to peep ahead or peep at the now. That I would place my feet firmly on the path that you have set before me with the full awareness that you will never leave me nor forsake me. 

Proverbs 3:5, 6 – Trust the Lord with all your hearts and do not rely on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your path smooth. 

SIDEBAR: Yahweh, you have a dry sense of humour. And yes, I do believe you do because if you didn’t we wouldn’t. I woke up with favour and fairness in my thoughts. Well not exactly woke up with it, but thought about it in the quiet moments before I actually got up. So I was intending to study about those as your promise for today. But once again you said no, that’s not for today and you led me down a different path (pun intended). What is funny though, that just above the first scripture chosen is one about favour. You literally just made a minor shift that set me in a new direction. But that’s how life actually is. Sometimes just a one degree shift alters everything. 

Thank you for leading, for determining which path is best for me each day. I love you.

Way maker by Sinach

Of Yahweh’s Promises Playlist

To Know Yahweh

Yada (acknowledge him): to know him, to announce him. This isn’t a secret knowledge of Yahweh (though it may start out that way). This is you knowing him for yourself and then letting it be known to others that you know Yahweh.

Orach (way, path): way, course and fortune of life, mode of living or of character, enjoyment of God, wayfarer (special reference to the way of a woman being able to give birth). There is so much tied up in this one little word. But the one that made me smile the most was “enjoyment of God.” We get the sense that in you directing our paths, our conduct would be affected, we would start to live and walk a certain way, but taking it a bit further, we would also find joy in you. The path would not be onerous to the point where we are just dragging our feet in repair (but following where we think Yahweh is leading). And that’s probably why some translations say make the path smooth and not just say direct your path. Because it’s not just about what the path looks like, it’s how you walk it. 

The word translated to direct is Yasher. 

Yasher means: to be smooth, straight or right. Pleasing, straightforward. 

The interesting thing is, we know that the Christian walk isn’t always smooth. We encounter so many things along the way. We bounce we toe, get scraped by a bush by the way, so why would it be considered smooth and pleasing? 

I think because while the physical path (literal path) is part of it, it’s not the whole thing. Our mental has a lot to do with what we find pleasing. We find joy ultimately in Yahweh and in any challenge we encounter along the way. 

Acts 2:28 – You made the path of life known to me. In your presence there is complete joy.

When we walk where Yahweh wants us to, we are ever in his presence. And in his presence there is rejoicing.

Caveat: There it’s a prevailing thought that in Yahweh (on this earth) that no matter what is going on, you’ll just be happy. And I think that this thought is wrong. If someone close to you dies, you’re not likely to be skipping and smiling for joy. But in that moment of sadness (which should be expressed), you also know that Yahweh is good and that beneath it all, he is holding you up and that thought brings joy. That even in that moment he is still leading: that we haven’t left his presence. 

Psalm 18:36 – You make a wide path for me to walk on so that my feet do not slip. 

So reading this have me confused. Why? Because of this text. 

Matthew 7:14 (KJV) – Because strait is the gate and narrow is the way which leadeth unto life and few there be that find it.

Now I grew up with this text in church. Always in the context of this “narrow” and “difficult” path to walk on and hardly anyone would even be able to find it, it’s so tiny. But if we know that the Bible doesn’t contradict itself something else is going on here.

Another translation (God’s Word) says: 

But the narrow gate and the road that leads to life are full of trouble. Only a few people find the narrow gate. 

And this is where we go to the dictionary instead of focusing on what we think we know.

The word small is also translated as strait and narrow means, the closely defined path, the ordained path. Which truly doesn’t mean that the path is so narrow, it’s difficult to travel (though we’ll look at difficulties in a bit), but it means that Yahweh has ordered our steps. He has set boundaries that we should walk in. These boundaries appear restrictive in comparison to those who follow Satan, but in and of itself, they aren’t restrictive. It’s only in comparison they seem that way and comparison steals your joy. 

But it says that this path is full of trouble. Comes from the word “thlibo” to press upon, persecute, press hard. 

Who is afflicting us? Yes (I firmly believe) that Yahweh does plan trials in our lives for our good and development (Israelite 101). But he does not persecute us or afflict us. But there’s someone who will, someone who would press in hard to push you off the ordained path that Yahweh has set for us. 

My visual is this: the path is broad (as in our ordained path), and Satan is on the side with a stick pushing you towards the edge, because the closer you are to any edge the easier it is to fall off. But we have to resist the push intentionally. Why intentionally? Because that way we remain in the middle of the path. Suppose we are not intentional? We’re just moving along, still on the path, yes, but not being diligent about it. What happens if the path curves? Your foot may slip off the edge or you may walk off all together but by ensuring that we are in his presence, by staying in the middle and not allowing ourselves to be pressed to an edge, we remain on the path Yahweh has set for us. We remain in his presence and that is definitely worth rejoicing over.

Thank you Yahweh for your presence. Thank you for the path that you have set before me. Thank you for your love and goodness. In your presence there is fullness forever more. Thank you.