Finding Your Footing
We are three months into 2019 and I am just now finding the right words to express this particular topic that has been weighing in my heart since my birthday last year—finding your footing.
The new year (relatively new year) is always full of promise and uncertainty. There are so many things that can go right, but just as much, there are so many things that can go wrong.
For all my type-a's out there, you know how daunting it can be to go through life without a plan and without some level of structure. We always need to be one step ahead of the game. Am I right?
A little moment of vulnerability here – when I turned 26, I entered it without a single plan in mind, which is completely out of character for me because I have always been one to have a plan. This year, however, I came in with no agenda but to rely heavily on the spontaneity of God in surprising me with life abundantly. That can be terrifying, but also exciting.
We are constantly on a journey, whether that means with a map in hand and all the directions laid out, or without a map wandering aimlessly until a road is discovered. Through all that, what I have found to be my saving grace and confidence in life is that regardless of my sense of direction or lack thereof, God is in every step. He is in every moment.
Whether we find ourselves where we had envisioned or we find ourselves in completely new territory, we can be confident that God is with us.
Check out Proverbs 16:9, the current anthem of my life. It says, and I paraphrase, the plans belong to the heart of man, but the Lord establishes his steps.
It can be pretty intimidating knowing that God has given us the free will to plan out our lives, but at the same time reassuring knowing that regardless of what we plan God has His hand in every part of it. So when we mess up, He'll be there to help us pick up the pieces and when we get it right He'll be there to keep lighting the way.
Let it be an encouragement to us all that as we walk through life whether we have a plan A, a plan B, or all the way to plan Z, God will never leave us wandering. He is the light unto our path (Psalm 119:105). He is present in every moment.
Three things I've learned while trying to find my footing these last few months:
Be Here Now
Life is a journey, but you can't enjoy it when you're caught up looking too far into the future. What I've come to understand is that in life what you do right now will echo into your future. So instead of focusing on how to get to the future, build your future one step at a time with one foot in front of the other acknowledging and embracing every step forward.
Trust More, Worry Less
This is definitely easier said than done, but as I've meditated on Proverbs 16 more and more each day, I have found more peace that God is taking care of everything we cannot see.
We can trust that whether or not we make the right decision or make the right plans, God will always steer us back to where we need to be. He can use our success and our failures to bring us exactly where we need to be because He is not bound to what we do.
Learn to Encourage Yourself
Like David, we have to be diligent in commanding our soul to bless the Lord regardless of what we face. There is power in praise because it shifts our perspective somewhere higher and better. It removes us from the equation and puts God at the crux of it.
Let it be good practice for our soul to take captive of every thought that tries to build itself up against the truth and knowledge of who Jesus is (2 Cor. 10:5). Sometimes all it takes to get you in the right headspace to walking your path straight is speaking the truth of God's Word over yourself.
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If we allow Him into the areas of our life we feel we need the most control over and we relish in the spontaneously ordered nature of God, we will find that every plan works out better than we expected. We can rest assured knowing that when we can't find our footing, He will establish it for us.