This past week my sermon came from the most familiar Proverb.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
Proverbs 3:5-6
and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths.
Solomon offers a number of incentives in this chapter for the person who walks wisely. Verses 5 and 6 detail the demands for one to be wise. In my sermon, I listed those demands:
- Trust the LORD completely.
- Reject self-reliance deliberately.
- Acknowledge the LORD constantly.
God often convicts me with my own sermons. And one of the ways he is convicting me this week is about acknowledging him constantly. In all my ways, I must acknowledge him. In all your ways, you should acknowledge him.
What are our ways? Well, we have many of them. We have the way of our own spiritual walk. We have the way of family interactions. We have the way of work or school. We have the way of leisure. We could on. What is clear is that Solomon teaches us to acknowledge, that is recognize and testify to our relationship with the LORD in all our ways. Acknowledge comes from the Hebrew word da’at which means a relational knowledge. So we must confess and testify to the LORD’s saving presence with us in all our ways.
A verse in Isaiah relates what we mean.
Listen to me, O house of Jacob,
Isaiah 46:3-4
all the remnant of the house of Israel,
who have been borne by me from before your birth,
carried from the womb;
even to your old age I am he,
and to gray hairs I will carry you.
I have made, and I will bear;
I will carry and will save.
The LORD knows us from before birth and carries us into old age. He guides, protects, saves, and defends. He knows all our ways. He watches over his own throughout their lives. His saving compassion is motivation to acknowledge him in all our ways.
One way we could acknowledge the LORD is in light of our mission. Our mission at Wilkesboro Baptist is to lead our neighbors and the nations to follow Jesus. We do so by worshiping, learning, serving, and replicating.
Here are some thoughts I’ve jotted down for myself for this week.
In my way of worship today and this week, I will acknowledge the LORD. I will remember his greatness and majesty (Isaiah 46:9). As best as I’m able, I will go through the day and this week acknowledging the presence and greatness of the LORD in my attitude and practice of worship.
In my way of learning today and this week, I will acknowledge the LORD. I will be attentive to what I read, hear, and learn from others. Intentionally, I will seek to be teachable and to grow in my understanding of what’s going on around me.
In my way of serving today and this week, I will acknowledge the LORD. I will seek to serve the LORD as I serve others personally and ministerially. Rather than be overwhelmed by the ministry conversations and interactions of the week, I will seek to let each of them be a means of serving the LORD who is worthy.
In my way of replicating today and this week, I will acknowledge the LORD. I will consider conversations, relationships, and opportunities in light of the Great Commission mandate to make disciples. From my discipleship group to interactions with family and even to strangers, I will seek to acknowledge the LORD in these relationships by seeing these moments as opportunities to replicate the life of Jesus in someone else.
There are of course many other ways that we will walk this week. If we truly want the LORD to make our paths straight, then we need to acknowledge him in all our ways. The opportunities and decisions are in front of us. So let’s acknowledge him in our ways today.
Photo by Gunnar Ridderström on Unsplash
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