Straight Paths

I woke up around 3:00 am this morning and was unable to go back to sleep. I am not complaining because it ended up being a blessing, but I was a little irritated while I lay there tossing and turning for over an hour. You see, I had this song in my head that I could not get rid of; a song that I used to sing while teaching (or rather, corralling) a preschool bible class when Adam and I were first married.
The reason for this random song was lost to me at first, but when I decided to stop fighting it, and instead sing along (quietly, of course), I figured out what God was doing.

The song goes along with the passage from Proverbs 3:5-6

Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your paths straight.

It is easy in times of uncertainty to think that we can take control of the reins and do a better job of leading than what God is currently doing. Sometimes he doesn't work as quickly as we think he should, or we are perceiving him as not working at all. When we allow these thoughts to take action, we are no longer going along the path that God set for us.
Instead, we start running towards the things that seem to quiet that uncertain feeling even if it is temporary. But the problem is, it will only last a short time, because eventually, those feelings will start creeping in again and we will be forced run to the next safe spot. We end up zigzagging on a crooked path, having spent more wasted time and energy than God's straight path would have required.
In most cases, God's path does not require much outside of trusting him. But, trusting God is a major issue. It is during those times of uncertainty that we can choose to seek our own path or trust God and watch him work.
It's not always easy but it is always rewarding.