Walking Daily

O LORD, be gracious to us; we wait for you. Be our arm every morning, our salvation in the time of trouble. At the tumultuous noise peoples flee; when you lift yourself up, nations are scattered,  

and your spoil is gathered as the caterpillar gathers; as locusts leap, it is leapt upon.The LORD is exalted, for he dwells on high; he will fill Zion with justice and righteousness, and he will be the stability of your times, abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge; the fear of the LORD is Zion's treasure. -Isaiah 33:2-6

Walking with Christ daily is so important for my life, and anyone's life who has made the decision to receive Christ as their Savior. When someone decides to allow Christ to be their Savior, there is so much depth to that decision. In our own flesh we are nothing but evil. On our own strength, we sin everyday, We hurt and disappoint others, we destroy ourselves, and most of all, we hurt our loving Father. We are not able to see the incredible privilege set in front of us. God sent Christ into the world to take the world's in upon his shoulders. Mine, yours, and even the worst of our enemies. We deserve death in return for the sin and hurt we pour into the world but God actually allows us to have an option. We do not deserve another but God gives us Christ to receive the punishment of death instead of us. I will never understand the true depth of the gospel....of Christ actually taking away the pain and disappoint in my life when I don't deserve the gift of such a selfless act when I am made of flesh that is pure selfishness. The day that I made a true decision for Christ to be my Savior, I needed to realize that it was going to be a life-long journey of walking along side Him everyday of my life. Beth Moore illustrates a picture that put things into a different perspective for me today. Most people of heard of the Footprints poem where the second set of footsteps belong to God and when there is only one set of footprints it is when God carries us. Except, that is how so many people only view God. They only view Him as one who is there in times of emergency. To some, God is just there to pick us up and carry us until we can stand on our own again and then we go back to our lives on our own time, strength, energy, and knowledge. These people probably appreciate God but they don't necessarily stay in close contact with Him once crisis passes just like you wouldn't hang out everyday with the EMT that pulled you out of a near-fatal car wreck. What a disgustingly wrong view of our Abba Father. God is here to save us but more importantly, He wants to live with us. Picture the footprints story this way: 

Everyday after you make the decision to follow Christ there are footprints walking through each day of your life. Many of the days have two set of footprints that appear and you ask God, "Are those my footprints every day, and is the second set of prints when You joined me?" God answers, "No, My precious Child. The consistence footprints are Mine. The second set of footprints are when you joined Me." "Where were You going, Father?" "To the destiny I planned for you, hoping you'd follow." "But, Father, where are my footprints all those times?" "Sometimes you went back to look at old resentments and habits. Sometimes, you chose your own path. Other times, your footprints appear on another person's calendar because you liked their plan better. Sometimes, you simply stopped because you would not let go of something you could not take with you." "But, Father, we ended up OK even if I didn't walk with You every day, didn't we?" God holds you close and smiles, "Yes, Child, we ended up OK. But, OK was never what I had in mind for you."

Wow. I truly do not desire to just be "OK" with God. Ever. God does not desire for us to be just OK with Him, either. He created us and desires us to share every aspect of our lives with Him. We should walk God's way because His way is far better than what we can imagine. 2 Corinthians 2:14 tells us, "God always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ." The Lord knows we will not walk perfectly with Him but He does call us to walk consistently with Him. In Isaiah 33:2-6 from above, we are able to see three results of a daily walk with God. First, God offers us the daily treasure of His strength. Psalm 84:5 says, "blessed are those who strength is in you, who have set their hearts on pilgrimage." We often forget that we are on a journey leading to an amazing heavenly city. We will go from trial to trial and we also need to go from strength to strength from the Lord. Second, God offers us the daily treasure of His sure foundation. Obedient lives flow from obedient days, and victorious lives flow from victorious days. Verse 6 states how God is our stability and sure foundation. Third, God offers us the daily treasure of wisdom and knowledge. God is rich in salvation, wisdom, and knowledge. His wisdom and knowledge will be poured onto us little by little when we spend time seeking wisdom and knowledge from Christ everyday. We need God's wisdom and knowledge in His Word to guide us and show us the path that He truly wants us to take. Psalm 119:105 says that God's Word is a lamp to our feet meaning the guide for our steps day by day. His Word is also a light for our paths for our immediate futures. We need to spend time each day with our First True Love to be able to experience the privilege of seeing two sets of footprints in our lives daily. Walk with Him closely and He will bring blessings beyond imagination.