![[Photo of a straight path]](https://www.deankwilson.com/Blog_images/straight_path.jpg)
| 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 |
Trust is a learned response. Some people seem to trust easily. Others have greater difficulty in giving their trust. Each one handles trust because of what the experiences in their lives have taught them. I assert once again: trust is a learned response.
With that in mind, we can examine the verse at the beginning of this blog post in light of what our life experiences have taught us. Almost everyone prefers to have the pathway of his or her life laid out in a straight direction, so it becomes possible to see where one is headed. In fact, if the pathway is straight enough, the traveler can see quite far into the future and develop confidence that if he or she stays on that straight path, the road ahead will have some predictability.
Of course, life really isn’t all that predictable. We never really know what perils may await us, hidden in the bushes alongside the straight pathway. Nevertheless, if we can see far enough ahead to take a deep breath and strike out in a forward direction, we can move on with some degree of confidence.
Thus, the Scripture verse at the beginning of this blog post has become the guiding principle for many followers of Jesus. Conceptually, if we trust in the Lord with all our being and determine to not lean on our own understanding—that is to say, resting solely on how we perceive life to be—and if we acknowledge God’s divine hand on our lives, then He will provide a straight pathway for us.
As a teenager, I was encouraged to find and adopt a verse of Scripture by which I would determine to guide my life. Along with any number of my peers, I chose this verse. I am so glad that I did. The truth of the Scripture verse has proven completely accurate over the course of my life. Whenever I have set aside my own understanding, trusted in God, and acknowledged His Presence as the guiding force in my life, He has laid out the pathway of my life in a straight direction.
Yes, I have had numerous perils along the way. In many cases, those perils arose from my own foolishness. In other cases, I had afflictions that came as the result of living in a sin-cursed world—the kind of perils that everyone faces in this life. Through every trial and difficulty, in the good times and in the bad times, God has always proven faithful to the words of this verse.
Without hesitation, I can commend this verse to anyone who desires to bend their selfish human will to God’s divine and perfect will. I urge everyone who will read this blog post to do exactly what this verse says to do. I can guarantee that anyone who obediently follows the guidelines of this verse will never be disappointed.
