an undivided heart (part 2)

BLOG January 2021

¹¹ Teach me your way, Lord, that I may rely on your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name. (Psalm 86:11 NIV)

I have learned that the Christian life is a journey. Once we surrender our lives to Jesus, the Holy Spirit guides our walk so we can be made more like Him. In the book of Philippians, we read these words of the Apostle Paul, ⁶”being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you, will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 1:6). Paul not only has confidence in the new believer’s perseverance, but also in their sanctification.

I have also learned that not all distractions in the journey are bad.  There are many good ways to serve God.  But If we are not serving where God wants us to be, the Holy Spirit will lead us back into God’s plan.  After I retired from teaching high school biology, I continued to consult for an educational technology company.  I had successfully used technology in my classroom, engaging students in hands-on learning. Training teachers to implement technology into their instruction was a good way to serve teachers.

But after a while, I sensed the excitement from my consulting career begin to wane. I would fly to a new city to present technology training.  I would meet new people, but only know their names from their name tags.  The next day I would fly back home. The experience left me empty and wanting more.  I realized I was helping teachers improve their technology skills, but that was temporal. 

As I am writing this blog our world is in the ninth month of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. This has given me the opportunity to use ZOOM technology to help people keep connected through Bible studies and Friendship International classes.  Since March we have been meeting for one to two hours a week to share our lives with each other. I found what I was missing in the consulting career – relationships. Now I am using the gifts that God gave me to make a difference in people’s lives for eternity.

Is what you are doing leaving you feel empty?  God has something more for your life. He has been at work in you preparing you for what is next.  Seek God and He will give you wisdom.  Is there “something more” for you this new year that living with an undivided heart will bring into your life?

¹¹ Teach me your way, Lord, that I may rely on your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name. (Psalm 86:11 NIV)