In the Center

Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever! Let Israel say, “His steadfast love endures forever.” Let the house of Aaron say, “His steadfast love endures forever.” Let those who fear the LORD say, “His steadfast love endures forever.” Out of my distress I called on the LORD; the LORD answered me and set me free. The LORD is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me? The LORD is on my side as my helper; I shall look in triumph on those who hate me. It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man. (Psalm 118:1-8 ESV). There are always some interesting statistics about the Bible. For example, did you know that the shortest chapter is Psalm 117 and the longest chapter is Psalm 119? In fact, when you begin to count the chapters before and after Psalm 118, which falls in the middle of these two chapters, you will find there are exactly 594 before and 594 after. Totaling those two, you reach a sum of 1188. And, interestingly enough, the exact center of the Bible is Psalm 118:8, which is highlighted above. And, that one verse has more to say about being in the “center” of God’s will than any other! I am often asked how to know God’s will for our lives. If we want God to guide us, our attitude needs to be right. Here are some practical guidelines as to how we can determine that we are making good decisions: 1. First, we must be willing to think. It is false holiness that claims inward impressions with no rational base and refuses to search the Scripture for direction and wisdom. God made us thinking beings, and he guides our minds as we think things out in his presence. 2. Second, we must be willing to think ahead and weigh the long-term consequences of our courses of action. Often we can only see what is wise and right, and what is foolish and wrong, as we dwell on the long-term issues. Remember that the law of the harvest simply states that “we get what we get because we went where we went.” 3. Third, we must be willing to take advice. It is a sign of conceit and immaturity to refuse to take others’ advice in major decisions. There are always people who know the Bible, human nature, and our own gifts and limitations better than we do, and even if we cannot finally accept their advice, nothing but good will come to us from carefully weighing what they say. 4. Fourth, we must be willing to be ruthlessly honest with ourselves. We must honestly question ourselves, asking why we feel a particular course of action will be right and make ourselves give reasons. 5. Fifth, we must be willing to wait. “Wait on the Lord” is a constant refrain in the Psalms and it is a necessary word, for the Lord often keeps us waiting. When in doubt, do nothing, but continue to wait on God. Get in the center of God’s will for your life today! Trust in Him and Him alone!