Clarity

by Brandy Webb

Do you ever find yourself asking God to tell you what He wants you to do with your life?  Well, I do a lot.  Especially during those times when I thought I was going in the right direction, but nothing was going well for me.  I started getting confused and started doubting my decisions.  During these times I wish God had a cell phone that He would answer.  I know that we have prayer, but wouldn’t it be nice if He told us exactly what He wants us to do in every situation we face in life?   Wouldn’t it be awesome if we weren’t looking through a dark glass (1 Corinthians 13:12) and instead we had complete clarity?  

I know that we will see clearly in the Kingdom, and right now we have to deal with unclearness in life.  It is just not always easy to do.  I was thinking about this the other day, and I was looking through my Bible study notebook when I came across this quote: “I have never had clarity; what I have always had is trust. So I will pray that you trust God,” Mother Teresa.  Honestly, I have no idea where I saw the quote nor when I jotted it down, but it was eye opening for me.  I also had some points for myself right below it: Are we asking God for clarity, “What should I do” or “Make my path clear”, etc… Or are we saying “I don’t know where I am going, but I will follow You because I trust You.”

It is moments like these that I realize God does talk to us.  Even if He doesn’t answer cell phones or emails, He still has ways to “speak” to us.  I really needed to see these notes because I have been praying for clarity, instead of praying for His peace to aid me in trusting Him.  

There are many individuals in the Bible that didn’t know where God was leading them, but they put their trust in Him.  They trusted Him with all their hearts.  Which is what we are to do and not to “lean on our own understandings” (Proverbs 3:5).  In all our ways we are to acknowledge God, and “He will make our paths straight” (Proverbs 3:6).  This is what Abraham did when he left Ur to go to some unknown land.  It is what he also did when he nearly sacrificed Isaac.  He trusted God with his whole heart.  He had no idea where he was going.  He had no idea why God wanted him to sacrifice his chosen son, but he knew that God was the creator of everything and could do anything.

It is hard to not want to be in the driver seat.  It is hard to not try to plan every step of our lives.  It is hard to acknowledge that sometimes we don’t know where we are heading.  It is also hard to accept that God is in control, not us.  I know God can give us clarity if He wants to, but I have to be honest, in my experience the clarity usually comes after everything works out.  And I’m realizing my life could be so much easier if I would just stop trying to figure it all out and trust God to direct my steps, leading me to the place in which He wants me to go.

“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee..” Isaiah 26:3