God directs our steps

Proverbs 20:24 (NLT)
24 The Lord directs our steps, so why try to understand everything along the way?

King Solomon tells us that everything we do depends upon God. All of our actions depend upon His Grace and His Mercy. We are unable to predict the future or even get a small glimpse of what it looks like. So how can man understand what he is to do when he doesn’t even know what is going to happen.

Every now and then you find yourself in a place where God has put you for a purpose. I am still amazed by a story I have told several times. I was out of town and went to a restaurant. The only place they had to sit at the moment was the bar and since I was alone I said why not. I sat down and noticed a beer mug next to me that was almost empty, which the bartender cleared off. A few minutes later a man came back arguing with the bartender that someone took his drink after he just stepped away for a minute (actually it was several). To calm an argument the bartender poured him another full glass. I sensed I needed to say something to this man so I said, “Having a bad day?” He responded, “You just don’t know. I just got out of prison. I don’t have a job. And then my beer was gone.” I started asking about his prison experience and I asked if anyone from his church ever visited him. He said yes. In fact he said that during a visit from a chaplain he came to know Christ, but that didn’t make life easy. I assured him no one’s life was easy and that being a Christian wasn’t always easy. At times we have to wait on God and see what He has planned for us. The man then said, “You sound like my grandmother who I am staying with. She said God has a job for me and she even knows some people who want to give me work. “I told him it was nice to have a grandmother who cared and he could count on the fact that God and Christ also cared about him. With that he said, “You know I think I will go talk to my grandmother about those jobs.” Then he thanked me for talking with him and got up and left. The surprising part is the beer he so craved and argued for was left there intact on the counter without a sip taken from it. This man wanted to drown his sorrows in beer when what he really needed was someone to show him some compassion and reassure him life would be ok and that God was in control. Remember God directs us and we don’t have to always understand why, but know that He cares for us.