“Therefore, strengthen your tired hands and weakened knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated but healed instead.” Hebrews 12:12-13 CSB
The walk with Christ is not easy for the human body; this is why the author of the letter to the Hebrews encourages readers to strengthen their tired hands and weakened knees. A Biblical walk with God can leave the body feeling discouraged, disgruntled and uncomfortable. Setting aside the world’s pleasures and walking in faith, disregarding what society around us dictates, is challenging. The body does not like it. But, this is where the part of Christianity comes in. No matter what our flesh is going through, when we enter our place of prayer, we have divine communion with God, with which our souls are nourished, energised and restored. No external problem can touch, steal or damage the internal relationship we now have with God. Let the reader understand that the proper walk with Christ is HARD, but the inner peace we get from Him allows us to endure all trials with the joy of the Lord. This inner peace is how the apostles and early saints were able to take and die terrible deaths while having a manner of peace and joy as if they were resting on a cloud of cotton wool.
As you acknowledge the reality of walking God, take note of what the author recommends, “make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated but healed instead.”. One thing we all must do is reflect on and fix what was wrong and broken. A reference to making your path straight brings to mind the point of undoing what was wrong. When you are walking in a jagged or erratic manner, you have to first retrace back to the original straight path before moving on. You may have to put boundaries in place or checkpoints to ensure you continue walking in the desired direction. So in our lives, when we are looking to make our paths straight, we should look to correct the wrongs our unpredictable ways have caused. It means fixing and putting boundaries or support in place to ensure we do not wander off the path. This restructuring could look like restoring broken relationships you caused, throwing away sinful habits you have accrued (smoking/drinking/pornography), dedicating to weekly fasting to overcome gluttony, changing your clothing habits, having someone manage your finances or tithing to where God directed you, these are just some ideas that come to mind. Now once you have straightened your path or corrected your wrongs, it is then at this point that Jesus can heal you.
This is the crucial point for you to reflect on today. There is a gross misbelief that people think they can be given freedom from their issues miraculously without any effort. The scriptures are clear. We first need to straighten our paths before receiving the healing. We must first cast away our sins and walk on a straight path before we receive our complete freedom. This is why we must walk in faith. You must first let go of those sinful behaviours and habits that brought you comfort and walk in faith, trusting Jesus will bring more joy and comfort. The flesh never wants you to correct what was wrong. The body never wants to apologise or accept fault. People do not want to fix the broken damage. But the way of God points us to do these actions, so we must step in faith and walk into those uncomfortable situations; guess what happens? The peace and joy that comes from Jesus flood our hearts until we over-pour from our mouths into endless praise to the King of Glory!
Today walk into the uncomfortable and accept the peace and joy for your soul.
