That it may go well with you…

Deuteronomy 5: 32-33 “You shall be careful therefore to do as the Lord your God has commanded you. You shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left. You shall walk in the way the Lord your God has commanded you, that you may live, and that it may go well with you, and that you may live long in the land you shall possess.”

Throughout scripture, we can see this phrase, that it may go well with you, which seems to allude to a motivation and desire of the Lord. He desires for His children to prosper–He wants good for us.

This passage in Deuteronomy comes immediately following Moses giving the Ten Commandments and instructing the Israelites of the commands of God. I don’t love rules–I tend to be much like the disciples where I ask questions and look for the bend in the rule or the exception that could be made, and struggle to follow with precision rules given to me.

I like freedom.

I love wiggle room.

I like to build things like budgets and itineraries, workout plans, meal plans and schedules with flexibility, so I don’t feel squished.

I sometimes do that with the boundaries of God–I still want the wiggle room. I want to carve out a section of exceptionality ‘just in case’ I need ______ or I want ______ or _____ happens.

Embedded in that desire I find this wrestle–this wrestle between what I want and God wills. What I want and what God may ask me to wait on or surrender all together. Trusting God requires our heartfelt obedience to Him, when we don’t see the point, or trusting Him causes pain or we don’t see an end in sight in the cost of obedience.

Where can I find motivation to still trust, still follow and listen and obey the rules of God.

It has to be motivated by the belief that God means what He says. That baked into the rules and guidance of God is goodness–He is good, He is holy, He is for us, and therefore I can trust Him. His good is my good–His rules put us on the path that leads to the most freedom and offers us what we would ask for if we knew all God knew.

I have to fight to believe this. And honestly it doesn’t happen everyday. We all choose, at times, to do our own thing–create the wiggle room and exception, and sometimes, like Adam and Eve, what seems like a ‘slight deviation’ can turn into a massive gulf between us and God. Thank goodness for Christ who bridges that gap–who makes a way to return to Him, and to learn again what obedience and trusting means.

May it go well with you friend–trust in Him, and no matter what circumstance you find yourself in, the Lord is with you and therefore you will have all you need.