Understanding

"Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding." ~Proverbs 3:5

This scripture was on my mind last night as I lay in bed about to fall asleep.

Important words for me to remember,

and valuable council I had forgotten to follow this past week.

I have recently been going to the Lord with a few personal things in my life.  

After prayer and reflection came comfort and promptings that I should do certain things and pursue certain paths.

So I followed those answers to prayer

with a reassuring feeling that they were the right things to do, 

that they would bring about good things,

that if I followed the Lord, everything would turn out okay.

I supposed the test was for me to follow what I felt the Lord wanted me to do,

but I was wrong. 

The test came when things began to not go as I had hoped/thought that they would.

I became confused and started doubting the Lord.

I thought to myself, "I did what I thought I should do and things aren't working out!  Why did He lead me in this direction!?"

And then this scripture came to my mind: "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding."

 I have been leaning unto my own understanding.  

I have been following those promptings with the expectation of seeing immediate results that I want or that I think I need.

 Why do I repeat this pattern in my life of thinking that I know what should happen, that I know what I need, and that I know what is best when I have such a limited understanding of His bigger plan for me?? 

While I can only see a few brush strokes at a time, 

He can see the whole canvas.

I need to stop trying to interpret what I think should come from following Him, and begin to trust in Him more. 

After last night, I started to see a few more brush strokes come together and realized that: oh, yes, the Lord does know what He is doing after all!

 I need to let go of my limited understanding and rely on His omniscient one.

And I have the feeling that life will afford me plenty more opportunities to work on this principle. :)