The wise see danger ahead and avoid it,
    but fools keep going and get into trouble.
Proverbs 27:12 (NCV)

“Oh, why do I want to do everything!”

These are the words I spoke to my husband after a discussion about my commitments for the coming week, month, and year. I resist boundaries. Like the sheep who breaks through the fence and leaves the safety of the pasture, I often wander into dangerous territory.

I like to think I have no limits. I am several decades younger. That my body is as strong as it was then I was 30. That I have as much time left on this earth as I had when I was 50. I imagine this wandering from reality as freedom. It’s the opposite.

Instead of giving me freedom, this thoughtless-wandering takes away my freedom. How so? By following every stray desire that comes into my mind, I lose the ability to focus. I don’t do what I must do today in order to walk out the vision God’s given to me.

God’s vision for us fits the reality of who we are, as humans, in every stage of life from birth to death.

At the same time, his vision for us stretches beyond what we can do by ourselves. As we submit to the boundaries he sets for us, God does amazing things in and through us. He does “much, much more than anything we can ask or imagine” (Ephesians 3: 20 NCV).

Jesus showed us how to do this. He accepted the limitations of a human body and the limitations of time. He had only one vision: to do what Father-God called him to do and that he accomplished.

How did he do so?

Jesus us our example, as well as our Savior. He does not leave us on our own. As we study and meditate on Scripture, his Spirit shows us what boundaries we need, and gives us the power and freedom we need to carry out our God-inspired vision.


 In the early morning, 
 When I first awake
 I converse with Jesus 
 about which path to take.
  
 Sometimes, I’m feeling tired; 
 The path looks very steep.
 I’m tempted to turn back; 
 I began to fear defeat.
  
 He cares about my body; 
 He cares about my soul.
 He says, “I’ll walk beside you;
 I will help you reach your goal.
  
 “I know that you are weary; 
 I remember your age.
 “Your load won’t be too heavy,
 if with me you engage.”
  
 I respond, “Oh Lord, I know this; 
 You’ve proved it many times.
 I will face this mountain; 
 I’ll take your arm and climb.”
  
 I look into my Savior’s eyes;
 I see that he is good and wise.
 A song of praise begins to rise; 
 I know that we will win the prize.
  
 Jane Ault
 1/28/20 

10 Responses

  1. Excellent words of encouragement and confirmation of what my Lord Jesus has been speaking to my heart.
    I do not like going too slow. At present I am dealing with an affliction and I am so tired.
    I cannot image even wanting to sleep thus much.
    So I look to Jesus (Hebrews 12:2) from whence come my help.
    Psalm 34:19, 22 is what He spoke to my heart.
    He even told me what I was afflicted with before going to emergency.
    So I rest my case…Isaiah 40:31
    Your prayers are appreciated as I pass through this valley. Blessings…
    BonnieJoy

    1. May God bless you, BonnieJoy. As you go through this valley, may the Holy Spirit give you an awareness of Jesus’s presence. May you find strength in him.

    1. Thank you for letting me know. I pray that God would give you, directly and through others, the courage and encouragement you need.

  2. Dear Jane,
    I can totally relate to being a wandering sheep. I let go of one thing and then take up 3 things instead and forget to leave room to listen to God’s voice and rest in Him. Thank you for today’s encouragement. I needed it!

  3. Dear Jane,
    How I understand the feeling of wanting to do everything!! I have felt that way from as early as getting my first Girl Scout handbook! Then I remember while all things may be permissible, they are not all profitable for the Kingdom! Today’s blog is such good reminder to walk closely in the Spirit, and be about our Father’s agenda.

    1. Oh yes, Donna! Let us live like Jesus did, doing only the things the saw the Father doing. Additional things are truly not profitable. Thank you for that reminder.

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