Saturday Sermonette - Hard Duties

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding;
In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct[a] your paths. Proverbs 3:5-6 NKJV

Back before Christmas, Streams in the Desert had a devo that really spoke to me, but I didn't write about it--until today. The last threee weeks, I really needed this bit of wisdom:

"Every hard duty that lies in your path, that you would rather not do, that it will cost you pain and struggle or sore effort to do, has a blessing in it. Not to do it, at whatever cost, is to miss the blessing.
"Every hard piece of road on which you see the Master's shoe-prints and along which He bids you follow Him, surely leads to blessing, which you cannot get if you cannot go over the steep, thorny path."

Well, the path has indeed been thorny. I realize the blessings will come, but you know what? Even the thorny path is a blessing. Something I learned years ago is that not all blessings are happy and pleasant. Some are like horse-sized bitter pills, some of them like the hill too high and steep to climb. Some leave us weeping and confused.

And it might not be until years later that we see the blessing. Or maybe that curtain will stay down without revealing it until that final day. It doesn't matter.

There's a decision to be made. The Bible says we should give thanks in ALL things. Will you trust Him anyway? I have learned to do so. Imperfectly, I'm afraid. One thing that seems to have held true: The harder the trail, the greater the joy when you continue to trust Him.

No matter how tough the path, keep walking in His footsteps. It's like the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, but more likely to happen.

Lord, thank You even for the dusty, rocky, steep, and ugly trails. Help me stay on that path until I reach the destination You have in mind. No matter what, I'll love You and Trust YOU. Amen.