Trust in the Lord with all your heart
Our lives are full of challenges, questions and mysteries. Many times we see certain effects but we cannot see the cause that has brought forth those effects. As we may remain unaware of the deeper realities, we treat the effects rather than the cause. As people feel empty and hollow, they try to fill their lives with meaning with material things like money and possessions. We may go a step further and enter into relationships, hoping that those relationships will deal with the vacuum of our lives. What we do not understand is the fact, that all those seemingly good things do not really deal with the actual need of our lives. We are made by God and for God. He is the purpose of our living. Only He can fill our vacuum and give us meaning and make our lives worth the living. As long as He is absent, we will never find true fulfillment in our lives. No matter what possessions you may have, these will not satisfy your soul. We all need to have a heart to heart relationship with God. He will bring definition into our lives. (Proverbs 3:5-6)

Do not lean to your own understanding
While we live in a world full of knowledge and can ‘google’ anything we may want to know in seconds, we do not really find understanding to the most central questions of our lives in ‘knowledge’. Our understanding of issues is woefully inadequate. The ‘WHY’ questions of our lives too often remain unanswered. When a product malfunctions, we may do all our investigations and still not find the answer. Going back to the manufacturer by consulting the operations manual or speaking to the manufacturers directly will give you the answers you may not find elsewhere. This is true with you and me as well. If we fail to understand the purpose of our lives, the answer can only be found from your maker. He can explain to us the purpose of our lives and why we are the way we are. Only God knows your purpose and He can save you from misapplying your life to wrong causes.

In all your ways acknowledge Him
It may be easy to be happy and cheerful in good times. When everything runs according to our hopes and dreams, we may even give God thanks for the good things that we experience. But when we go through tough times, when we are frustrated and see failure after failure in our lives we begin to doubt ourselves and even our God. We have difficulties to accept, that even tough situations may have value for us and hence we consult all kind of ‘counselors or healers’ that promise us a quick fix solution. We do not realize that such experiences have great value for our lives if we go through them with the knowledge that our creator is ultimately in charge of our life. The Bible tells us in Romans 8:28 that ALL things will work out for good for those who love the Lord. Provided that we have put our life into the hands of God and walk with the understanding, that no matter what we will go through, He will always work out things for our good.

He will make your paths straight
God has a good plan for your life. It is His desire to prosper you and not to harm you. He wants to give you hope and a great future (Jeremiah 29.11). Notice that God wants to give you hope in every situation, which should make you conclude, that you are not yet at your destiny. What we seem to forget too often is the fact, that we are woefully falling short of the original design and purpose of God. We have scars of sin and we are wounded by our failure to live our life right with God. When I have a wound that is filled with dirt, a band aid is not be sufficient. The wound needs to be cleaned and every contamination needs to be removed in order for healing to take place. But this process is very painful. Yet there is no way that this process of cleansing can be avoided for healing to take place. We do not understand the processes required for our lives to become whole and complete. But if we acknowledge Him in our lives and if we trust Him and accept that He loves us and cares for us, than we will be able to go through pain knowing that He will work out all things well.

Jesus went through suffering and even through death without seeking for a shortcut or a quick fix. He understood His purpose. He gave His live so that we too can live with Him a life of purpose and destiny. Do you understand your purpose? Are you willing to endure pain and hardship without fully understanding what purpose it may serve? Trust Him even in your darkest hours, that He will make your paths straight, that He will remove the objects in your life that will hinder your healing. Do not look for a quick fix, but let the Almighty God do his precision work in you so that you can fulfill your destiny. Trust Him, He will make your paths straight!