Ask for the ancient paths...

“Thus says the L*rd: “Stand by the roads and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is; and walk in it, and find rest for your souls.” Jeremiah 6/16

Many times I think to myself, “How can I know what G*d wants?” This passage says that I must look and ask. Then when I find it I must walk in it and I will have rest?!? That doesn’t make sense logically, since following G*d is so difficult, it seems like we should constantly be trying if we want to “be h*ly as he is h*ly.” But this scripture tells me differently, when I find the way I must walk in it and I will have rest. I know this to be true because when I am walking in His ways I have so much more peace, my soul truly feels at rest. But, when I am doing what I want, because of the excuses that I make, such as “He hasn’t told me what to do, so I will just do my own thing and wait until I hear something loud and clear…” I feel extremely anxious and unsettled.

But when I look at the word of truth and follow it, that is when my soul is at rest, that is when I feel peaceful. I know that when I am not doing what he wants me to do, it is not because I don’t know, it is because I don’t ask him, because sometimes I think it will be too hard or I am too comfortable just doing whatever I want to do. But when I ask and walk, I am never disappointed. My soul feels at peace within me because I know that I am following the commands of the king of kings and because he has made me that way. He has created me with a deep longing for him and when I ignore that longing too much, I feel it no longer…

At the end of  this passage it also says, “But they said, ‘We will not walk in it.’”

That is what the people of Israel said to G*d when they walked away from his commands and that is what we say when we allow our consciences to be seared. So much of the time we rebel against G*d. He said of the Israelites after they walked away from Him “They shall never enter my rest.” If we do not follow his commands, if we do not soften our hearts, we will never enter his rest. It is a fearful thing to stand before the living G*d and find out that in your life you hardened your heart to his call. It is not about a pr*yer that you pr*yed once. It is about a life serving G*d, walking in the ancient paths. Sometimes my selfish heart forgets that.

David later spoke in the Psalms about this and he said,”Today if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.”

This is my pryr for you. Do not harden your hearts. Do not be like the chch of Laodicea who was lukewarm or the chch of ephesus who abandoned their first love. Search your hearts today and look for the way, ask for the ancient paths and walk in them.