Day 23 “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste (its strength, its quality), how can its saltiness be restored? It is not good for anything any longer but to be thrown out and trodden underfoot by men.” – Matthew 5:13 Additional reading: Galatians...
“Many plans are in a man’s mind, but it is the Lord’s purpose for him that will stand.”
– Proverbs 19:21
Romans 8:5-8 (AMPC)
5 For those who are according to the flesh and are controlled by its unholy desires set their minds on and pursue those things which gratify the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit and are controlled by the desires of the Spirit set their minds on and seek those things which gratify the {Holy} Spirit.
6 Now the mind of the flesh {which is sense and reason without the Holy Spirit} is death {death that comprises all the miseries arising from sin, both here and hereafter}. But the mind of the {Holy} Spirit is life and {soul} peace {both now and forever}.
7 {That is} because the mind of the flesh {with its carnal thoughts and purposes} is hostile to God, for it does not submit itself to God’s Law; indeed it cannot.
8 So then those who are living the life of the flesh {catering to the appetites and impulses of their carnal nature} cannot please or satisfy God, or be acceptable to Him.
During my third week of basic training at Fort Knox, we went through a wooded obstacle course. We were challenged with the task of climbing up a wooden tower that looked like an oversized version of Lincoln Log building blocks. The tower had four sides with each side having four log rungs that were about the size of tree trunks. Each rung was spaced about 4 to 5 feet apart going up. We were put into groups of four and not allowed to move from the obstacle until our whole group got to the top. All of the groups in my platoon flew through the obstacle except the last group. My drill sergeant called the rest of the groups back to cheer on the last group. When I got to the base of the tower, I saw all four of the soldiers in the group each struggling on their own to try to get up the tower. Finally, my drill sergeant had enough and explained to them that although the goal was to get to the top of the tower, the purpose of the training exercise was to teach us how to work together to complete a task.
All of the other groups had used the taller soldiers to boost the shorter ones to the next level, and then had the shorter ones assist the taller ones by helping them up. This is a perfect example of how we can confuse our goals and plans with God’s purpose. Proverbs 19:21 says, “Many plans are in a man’s mind, but it is the Lord’s purpose for him that will stand.” When we try to figure out things on our own or make plans without including God in their formation, things just get more and more confusing and much more difficult than they need be. Our best made plans will fail without God’s input, but His callings and purposes for our lives stand. Being solely focused on our own plans is the opposite of focusing on God. We must learn to seek the Holy Spirit and trust God’s purpose in every area of our lives and not rely on ourselves.