Have you ever watched people participating in a 3-legged race?
If the people tied together are in tandem, they can make really good progress. But what happens if one of the parties decides to do their own thing?
God gave me this image as I was confessing my divided heart. See, sometimes I’m focused on the Lord. I’m walking with Him, serving Him, worshipping Him. And other times? I get distracted by the things of this world. They aren’t necessarily bad things. Family, work, fiction… all gifts from God. But when they pull me away from Him, they need to be brought into submission.
When we come to Jesus, we get “tethered” to God. If we walk with Him, following His lead and stepping as He directs, He will do amazing things in and through us.
Yet too often, that untethered leg starts veering off in another direction. Sometimes, this slows our progress with God. Other times, it tears us apart.
Maybe you can relate to that. If so, know that this is not a new struggle.
In the Psalms, the writer prays “Teach me your way, Lord, that I may rely on your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name.” Psalm 86:11.
There’s hope!
In Ezekiel 11:19-20, God promises: “I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their God.”
If you’re currently walking in sync with the Lord, keep going! The race is wonderful when you’ve got the right Person by your side!
And if you feel that “free” leg carrying you in a different direction, echo the prayer of the psalmist and claim the promise from Ezekiel. God is waiting to bring you back into step with Himself!
Candle Sutton 