The Choices We Make (Proverbs 21:1)

The Lord is in control of everything. No matter what the situation or the circumstances, the Lord knows what is happening and how to control the situation and its outcome.

"The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord as are the watercourses; He turns it whichever way He will." Proverbs 21:1, Amplified

The one reason why the Proverbs focus so much on "kings" in general is that the Lord wants His children to know and to understand that no matter what the status is of a person, He is still God, He is still in control.

The verse is not trying to say that the Lord moves a man despite his own "free will". The Bible tells us, "Let every soul be subject tot he governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God." (Romans 13:1, NKJV) No king that is, or was, or will be ever surprises God. He has appointed everyone to his position. This includes our current president.

Will God "control" man? No, for this would be a violation of man's free will. The verse never states that the Lord will control the king, rather He turns the heart of the king. It is more like a bend in a river, the river's natural inclination is now to go the direction of the bend and not the other direction or even straight. The paths of man can be viewed the same way. When there is a bend in our path, or even a Rock, our natural inclination is to follow the direction of the path. Go knows exactly what will happen in any given situation. The choices that our president is making today, the Lord knows that he was going to make them. He knows the outcome of Obamah, if he will enjoy another term and the state of our country. Believe it or not, the heart of Obamah is in the hands of the Almighty Jehovah, not Allah. Obamah is going the same direction the Lord intends.

Which Way Do I Go? (Proverbs 14:12)

Everybody seems to know the way. Step into a crowd of people and ask for directions, you will get five different ways. If you need to loose weight, there are hundreds of ways found on television and infomercials. There also seems t be many different ways to heaven. So what is the right answer?

"There is a way that seems right to a man and appears straight before him, but at the end of it are the ways of death." Proverbs 14:12, Amplified

Any way concocted by man seems to be the right way. The first few steps on a man made path makes the soul feel better. Now I am referring to religion. Every heart needs salvation whether it is spoken of or not. Everyone wants to find that way to heaven. Every way seems to be right. The one thing that separates Christianity from the rest is that it is prescribed by God. God laid out a path to get to heaven, He built a bridge that covered the gap. Just because one does not like that way does not mean that another way can be found.

Directionality (Proverbs 4:18-19)

There are two different paths for us to follow in our lives. The path of the just and the path of the unjust. Though at times both seem to be moving in a forward motion, only one is the correct path. Yes, both paths do have directionality, but the destination of either one is vastly different than the other.

"But the path of the uncompromisingly just and righteous is like the light of dawn, that shines more and more - brighter and clearer - until [it reaches its full strength and glory in] the perfect (to-be-prepared) day." Proverbs 4:18, Amplified

Every morning as I sit and do my devotions, I am blessed with watching the sunrises in the morning. During prayer, I usually walk outside to smell the crispness and freshness of the morning breeze and as I write the Lord blesses me with beautiful sunrises.

It is interesting that Solomon likens the path of the righteous to this splendid event. The light of dawn brings about newness in the day. And as the morning grows older the light gets stronger and brighter. But realize that the path of the righteous is not like the sunrises or the lights of the dawns. There is no plurality, it is a continuous event constantly unfolding. The directionality of the righteous is toward the light. There is clarity on the path of the righteous. This light will continue to get stronger and stronger until that day, the day of the perfection of the saints. The Lord allows for no shadows on the path of the righteous, only clarity of direction.

"The way of the wicked is as deep darkness; they do not know at what they stumble." Proverbs 4:19, Amplified

The wicked on the other hand have no light to guide them. It is a deep darkness. It seems as though not even light from the heavenly bodies illuminates their path. The wicked cannot afford any light that may expose the true nature of themselves. The word for darkness in this passage can be defined as "duskiness" in the original language. Dusk is the opposite of dawn. However, from the language of the verse we seem to find ourselves way past dusk, even in concealment. The wicked immerse themselves in a purposeful blindness not knowing what makes them stumble. Is it a not knowing or a not caring? Anything and everything can potentially cause someone to stumble. On the path of the righteous one can see those road hazards and take precautionary measures to avoid stumbling, but the path of the wicked there can be no time for preparation because one cannot know what lies before him. Only the days present sins are his priority.