Taking One Sovereign Step at a Time

Standing at the bottom of the long staircase that reached to the sky, looking up, I felt sickeningly dizzy. I volunteered for this? On a rainy, windy day? Who does that? No backing out now – the slanted stairs of the winding staircase beckoned to me and the long line of people behind me urged me onward, too. The howling wind outside and the drips of water that landed on my nose and the slippery stairs were making this adventure a little uneasy for this cautious gal.

Once we reached the top, we were informed that it was too dangerous to go out onto the last level due to the high winds and rain. Fine with me. I was ready to head back down. Isn’t this so like our walk with God? The steps God has for us are determined. They help us to reach to higher heights. The waves and winds try to intimidate us from continuing to take the next step that God has right in front of us, but we dare not look back from where we came, and we cannot stop in the middle, either. We must press on toward the goal knowing that God is sovereign over it all.

Sometimes the step might seem pointless and sometimes they might seem to take us off track, but with God, every one of our steps is ordered and with a divine purpose far beyond what we know and see.

Knowing that God has a purpose in all of our steps and in our missteps gives us peace. When we don’t move forward in a step that we had hoped for, God sovereignly did not have that divine appointment for us. We wouldn’t want it, anyway. While we wait eagerly for another step to open, God is at work there, too. And when He grants favor in one direction and the door is opened for us to walk through, we do so by His strength and for His glory. He hems us in from behind and in front of us. He is in complete control.

Recently, this truth filled my heart to overflowing when I was confronted with doing what seemed impossible, but the LORD powerfully enabled me and showed me the next step I was to take. He is faithful.

Sometimes the steps we take in this life might hurt. God is no less sovereign, no less in control. He is not unkind in those moments, either. The difficult steps prove His sovereignty as He masterfully weaves it all together and causes our painful steps to be useful and, oddly enough, to become a blessing. No steps are wasted in His plan.

The One Who created the universe in every finite and infinite detail is capable of planning our lives, too. 

It feels radical and freeing at once to walk through this life simply trusting in our God. He already knows each step that we will take and the ones we won’t. Resting in His sovereignty over it all gives us boldness to live and to know that although we may have wanted our steps in this life to look different than they do, our plans pale in comparison to God’s.

Psalm 139:5 says it well ~ as we walk on the path God has laid out for us, He is in complete control. He is on that path with us, too, working out His purposes for us: “You go before me and follow me. You place your hand of blessing on my head.”

Lord, thank You for guiding us and leading us through this crazy life. Help us to be faithful and to trust you, no matter what.