CMA HeartBeat November 2024 | Page 25

YOUTH MOVEMENT By BEN Larson

YOUTH MOVEMENT By BEN Larson

β€œ Trust in the Lord with all your heart ; do not depend on your own understanding . Seek his will in all you do , and he will show you which path to take ” ( Proverbs 3:5-6 , NLT ).

I was reading this verse this week . and it stood out to me more than it has in the past . That is thanks to God ’ s Word being the Living Word . I find it amazing how we can read the same verse several times , and God can speak to us differently each time .
Proverbs 3 , verse 5 , β€œ Do not depend on your own understanding .” Man … How often do we say to someone or think to ourselves , β€œ That just doesn ’ t make sense ,” β€œ Why would they do that ,” or β€œ Why is this happening ?”
When I read those verses this time , God was reminding me of His provision in my life . The times when I said or thought these things , I can look back on them now and see how God has provided .
There are a lot of things in our lives that don ’ t and won ’ t make sense right now . But GOD IS STILL WORKING ; it has been an amazing experience in my faith journey , watching Him move over and over , and watching Him take the β€œ that just doesn ’ t make sense ” moments and turn them into β€œ ah hah ” experiences . And out of the β€œ ah hah ” experiences , watching how God has taken that experience and used it to help me through other experiences that have happened in my life .
This verse won ’ t always come easy in obedience , but I would like to encourage you with it . The verse says to trust in the Lord with ALL of your heart . That means 100 %. Sometimes , 100 % trust can come easy because all we have left is to trust Him . But other times , that 100 % trust can become very difficult when we are trying to figure it out on our own , or you ’ ve been hurt , and you don ’ t feel like God is really helping you right now .
I can tell you that someday , which could be days , or even decades , when you see the whole picture God will give you that β€œ ah
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hah ” experience where it will all make sense .
God says in this verse that we won ’ t understand it , and that ’ s why He says , β€œ Do not depend on your own understanding .” So why is it so hard for us to be obedient ? Why is our instinct to figure it out on our own ? I believe it is because we have made it our instinct or first reaction to take care of it on our own instead of relying on God ’ s provision in our circumstances .
When we are preparing for an event , and it seems like everything is going wrong , I can usually find it easy to say it ’ s all because God is going to do something truly amazing , and the devil is trying to stop it . But when it ’ s personal , it can be much harder to think the same .
When you find yourself in a difficult situation at school , work , or wherever possible , try writing this verse down and fully surrendering your situation to God and seeking His will for your situation . CMA
Ben and Rachel Larson serve CMA as National Evangelist-Youth Movement . 25βŽͺNOVEMBER 2024βŽͺwww . cmausa . org