“Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding; think about Him in all your ways, and He will guide you on the right paths. Don’t consider yourself to be wise; fear the LORD and turn away from evil. This will be healing for your body and strengthening for your bones.” – Proverbs 3:5-8 (HCSB)

We have a tendency to operate the vast majority of our lives under our own wisdom, and we depend on our own understanding to see us through almost every situation. This is true of all non-believers, but it is also unfortunately true of most Christians as well. We live our lives in whatever way seems best to us, and only turn to God when we are at the end of our rope and have exhausted all of our own ideas. Proverbs 3 warns us against this kind of foolishness. When we have the complete and perfect wisdom of God right at our finger tips, why would we continue to wander in the dark under the guidance of our own sinful opinions and whims? The answer is pride. We honor ourselves above God. When we trust God in obedience and let His will overrule our opinion, we take ourselves off the throne and put God in the rightful place as Lord of our lives. One of the most basic and yet most difficult ways to do this is with our material possessions. The next couple verses of Proverbs 3 go on to say; “Honor the LORD with your possessions and with the first produce of your entire harvest; then your barns will be completely filled, and your vats will overflow with new wine.” Are you struggling to just get by today? Is nothing you try working and is your storage of supplies exhausted? Honor the Lord first. Put Him above your own understanding and recognize His wisdom as superior to your opinion. Honor Him with all you possess, and see the blessings that flow from this renewed commitment to serve and follow the One who is truly Lord. God, our Father, please be patient and loving with us as we walk this journey of taking ourselves off the throne of our lives and putting every aspect in submission to You and Your perfectly abundant plan.