Meditation

Read Isaiah 48:12-19—Isaiah 48:17 (NIV)

I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.

When our son Joel was learning to ride a bike, he had to ride in the driveway and on the lawn because there were no sidewalks near our house. Our gravel driveway was short and bumpy, and riding on the lawn wasn’t much fun either. So Joel eyed the road in front of our house hopefully. My husband looked at the same road, but where Joel saw a straight, smooth, wide stretch for his riding pleasure, my husband saw fast-moving traffic—definitely not a safe place for a 5-year-old to develop his riding skills. My husband didn’t enjoy withholding this pleasure from our son, but where Joel saw fun, my husband saw danger.

Sometimes it is hard to understand God’s commandments or why God withholds what looks so good and right to us. But our perspective is limited. We can’t know or see what God knows and sees. We can only trust that out of great love for us, God looks our for our welfare to accomplish what is best for us in the long run.

Prayer—Thank you, Father for looking out for our good. Increase our trust in your loving heart. Amen.

Thought for the Day—God knows best—better than I do.

Esther Zeiset (Pennsylvania)