Jeremiah 10:23
Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
23 I know, Lord,
that a man’s way of life is not his own;
no one who walks determines his own steps.
that a man’s way of life is not his own;
no one who walks determines his own steps.
The other day some kids were taunting Katie through our back
fence. I watched it from a point where the kids couldn’t see me. When one of
them threw something at Katie and scared her, I remonstrated with them. They
dashed away out of sight yelling back at me. I knew at the time that my
approach was poorly chosen. What I should have said was something like the
following.
“Hey guys, dogs are pretty stupid when they bark at somebody
from behind a fence. I often feel that way, too. Katie doesn’t recognize you.
She may even think you’re up to no good. If you owned that house, you might
even want a dog to bark at somebody in your backyard whom you don’t know,
especially if they were there with malice in the minds.”
This may even have earned their empathy. If not, we may
still have parted as friends not antagonists. Hindsight is always 20/20.
Jeremiah adds this prayer to his lament that we don’t walk the way we want to:
“Discipline me, Lord, but with justice—not in Your anger, or You will reduce me to nothing.”
Truly the Lord does discipline us but with far
more grace than we ever deserve.
Thank
You, Lord, for covering our erring steps with Your marvelous undeserved,
forgiving grace.
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