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| “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.” |
| —Proverbs 3:5-6 |
When I was growing up in the 1950s and 1960s, it was very popular for Evangelical Christian teenagers to become part of Youth For Christ International. This nationally significant organization had arisen in the early 1940s out of rallies held across the United States and overseas. The Rev. Dr. Billy Graham became the first full-time staff member of Youth For Christ International.
Youth For Christ had a number of key elements that those of us who participated in the twice-monthly rallies adopted: the red-covered YFC Bible, which we were encouraged to carry on top of our books at school; and choosing a “life’s verse” from Scripture that would both mark and guide our lives. We were very serious about our devotion to Christ and His Kingdom. We participated in Bible Study groups, as well as faithfully attending the rallies. We devoured each issue of YFC Magazine when it arrived in our mailbox. We followed the travels of Billy Graham, Jack Wyrtzen, Dave Breese, Sam Wolgemuth, Torrey Johnson, and other key YFC leaders.
I can remember the evening that I sat in the control room at radio station WESB in my hometown of Bradford, Pennsylvania, when the telephone rang and the local YFC leader, Ted Hess, asked if he could stop by the radio station on his way home from work. Naturally, I agreed and soon he sat next to me as I monitored the broadcast of a New York Yankees baseball game.
“Have you been praying about your life’s verse?” Ted asked me.
“Yes, I have,” I replied. “And, I’ve been thinking quite a lot about it, too. I have no idea what God has in store for me. In some ways, I feel drawn in three very different directions: radio broadcasting, fire protection, and the ministry. I really don’t know which of those God wants me to pursue. But, I know He will reveal His plan to me in His time. So, I think I know the verse that I will choose as my life’s verses. They’re Proverbs 3:5-6.”
“Oh!” Ted exclaimed. “I think that’s a perfect choice for you.”
And so, I took the words of King Solomon, as recorded in Proverbs 3:5-6, and made them my own:
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.
While I have failed in my quest to be obedient to God many times over the years of my life, I have never lost sight of the truth of these two verses. Time and again, God has proven faithful to these golden words. The more that I have learned to lean on Him, to trust Him, to give Him the whole of my heart, the more He has directed my path. And, the more I have made certain to acknowledge Him and the key role He has in my life, the more I have the confidence of knowing He is keeping my pathway straight.
This new day, I commend these verses to all who may read this blog post. Let us do what these verses instruct. Let us trust God will all our hearts. Let’s specifically determine to not lean on our own understanding. Let’s acknowledge God’s critically important role in our lives. And, let us enjoy, with great peace, the reality that God will make our paths straight.
