Proverbs 16:3(NLT)
“Commit your actions to the Lord, and your plans will succeed”
In His Word, God calls us His masterpiece. We are indeed His finest work. Ephesians 2:10 says that He created us in Christ Jesus to do all the good things that He planned for us long ago. When it comes to building a solid foundation of believing, this verse is one of the blocks in the first layer, and it must be firmly in our hearts. Everything that God wants for us, His children, can be found in Jesus Christ. What does this mean? Well, one of the reasons that God sent Jesus Christ to the earth is to show us life the way it is intended by Him to be lived. Within the example of Christ, we see an up-close and personal demonstration of what love looks like and how love ought to behave. Christ is the living Word of God, and when our actions do not mirror the actions, attitudes, and thoughts of Christ, we are stepping away from his example and therefore stepping away from the blessings that come with it.
Some of us are praying for a new home, car, job or relationship, and we have been praying for quite some time now for these blessings. As God’s children, we should never think for one second that God is withholding these blessings from us, because God doesn’t do that. Psalm 84:11(NLT) says, “For the LORD God is our sun and our shield. He gives us grace and glory. The LORD will withhold no good thing from those who do what is right.” This is a very beautiful and encouraging verse. It is also very educational because it lets us know that God doesn’t promote and bless everything. He doesn’t grant favor to those who do what is wrong. He blesses those who do what is right. So, God blesses those who honor Him and have faith in what He says in His Word.
The issue is that all of us think we’re doing what is right. We think anything goes when it comes to walking with God and that simply isn’t true. The blessing of God follows the Word of God, and that will never change. To do as Proverbs 16:3 says, which is to commit our actions to the Lord, we must line up our actions with God’s Will, because God’s Will is His Word and His Word is His Will. This is one of the many reasons that the example of Christ is so important to our lives. Jesus said in John 6:38(NLT), “For I have come down from heaven to do the will of God who sent me, not to do my own will.” Jesus Christ had free-will just like you and me. God wouldn’t give it to us and not give it to him. So, Jesus could have chosen to do his own will at any time, but he only did the Father’s Will, and this is our example.
In John 8:29(NKJV), Jesus said, “And He who sent Me is with Me. The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him.” Some of us are trying to separate ourselves from the example of Christ. They say, “Oh, that’s too hard. I can’t live like that.” They think they are missing out by not doing the same things the world does. It is very true that they are missing out. They are missing an opportunity of a lifetime, which is to live and love like Jesus Christ. Living like him is where the real action is, and that’s where the blessings are as well.
Through Jesus Christ, God gave us everything. Jesus gave his life on the cross as a sacrifice for our sins. Romans 8:32(NLT) asks, “Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else?” Jesus Christ demonstrated the reality that God doesn’t withhold anything from those he loves. We withhold His blessings from ourselves when we do not do what He says in His Word.
A friend of mine, Katrina, has been praying to God about owning a house. God requires us to demonstrate good stewardship over the blessings He gives us. We have to show that we’re prepared for the blessings we seek, but Katrina’s priorities are not exactly lining up with that. Instead of paying her bills, she spends money on manicures, recreation, and other luxuries. Even with the apartment she has now, she’s hardly home and does very little to maintain it, yet she’s asking for a house. Her words are saying one thing, but her actions are speaking a foreign language. God wants her to have a beautiful home, but faith requires the right action. James 2:22(NLT) explains this perfectly. It tells us that God was pleased with Abraham’s faith, and here’s why, “his faith and his actions worked together. His actions made his faith complete.” Many of us are missing this wisdom.
Any ol’ actions will not do. Jesus Christ said in John 14:6(NKJV), “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.” He also tells us in John 10:9 that HE is the door, and the key to opening it is to be like him. Our actions must mirror Christ. They must mirror his brand of love, because his brand of love is the key. He’s our example, and he has shown us that only God’s Word will prevail, and following it yields results every time, without failure. Jesus Christ is the way to receive blessings. If we put our faith and trust in the reality of his love and life, we’ll keep our lives on a continual trajectory of higher and greater blessings from glory to glory, and faith to faith.■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“Commit Your Actions to the Lord”, written by KLizzie, edited by Reverend Fran Mack, for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2023. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.