Proverbs 4:26. Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure.
In verse 23 we were admonished to keep our hearts safe as a top priority of life. Why? Because everything flows from the heart – mouth (v.24), eyes (v.25), and now feet (v.26).
Two hundred years ago there weren’t paved roads in many places. But then somebody pondered the path. They planned where roads should be, built bridges over rivers, and tunnels through mountains and created level and safe paths for driving. Even today, when you go on a road trip you ponder where you want to go and how you will get there. (Of course, GPS makes this much easier today.)
In the same way, the wise person plans out what choices they will make, how they will live, and how they will respond to things. The wise person weighs out their decisions. They make the hard decisions to remove things from their life that will get in the way of trusting God and caring about others. The wise person isn’t “winging it” through life. They know that every choice they make is a step in a specific direction. They have pondered their path.
As a disciple of Jesus Christ you are asked to ponder the path. Jesus said, “I am the path.” The way. The only way to God. Follow me. This invitation comes with a warning to count the cost of following him on the narrow way. Hopefully you have done this. Hopefully you have counted up the cost and found that following Christ is still worth it. Too many Christians believe that the path of Christ is the path to glory, and it is, but the path to the glory of Christ always goes through the cross of Christ. Pondering the path of Christ always means taking up the cross of Christ. Counting the cost means understanding that you are on the same path of suffering unto perfection that Jesus himself travelled.
Hebrews 2:10. In bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through what he suffered. NIV.
Our pioneer, Jesus, pondered the path of his feet, a path of suffering that led all the way to the cross. This was the only path that could make him perfect. Not morally perfect as if he were full of sin that needed to be eradicated. The word perfect here means mature, full, complete. Only through his suffering was Jesus able to complete his task as our Savior. Only by going down humanity’s road of sorrow and dying, and doing it without sin, was he able to be our pioneer. Our trailblazer. Our captain of salvation.
The good news is that when you are joined to Christ by faith your path has already been pondered by him. He has laid out a path for you that will make you more and more like him and lead you all the way home to Heaven. Ponder THAT path. HIS path. Think about what Jesus has done for you and how he wants to live and love through you. The more you ponder Christ, the more your steps will look like his own.
You: Are you a planner or do you tend to “wing it?”
You in Christ: How does knowing that Christ has pioneered the path of your life help you to trust him as you plan your day?
Christ in you: What specific plans does the Christ in you want to make for today?
Pray: Father, thank you for planning my future. Help me to ponder Jesus as my path every day. Amen.
To Live is Christ 