“For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:9
The reality of the truth that this verse expresses should be a “no brainer” for us. God is god! And we are not. We are His creation. If He created us then He should know what is best for us. Our trust should be in Him and His wisdom above all else. His ways are heavenly and ours earthly. His thoughts are far superior to ours. And yet the greatest struggle for mankind is to submit our thoughts and ways to Him.
Proverbs is defined as a book of wisdom. In Proverbs 3:5-8 we read:
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and don’t lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes. Fear the Lord and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your body and refreshment to your bones.”
I know these verses to be true. We must put our trust in Him and His Word alone at times. In order to triumph through a crushed pelvis in 2000, I had to listen to the voice of God through praying while searching for answers and guidance in His Word. He specifically gave me Proverbs 3:5-8 June 2, 2018 when I broke my tibia, which is our second largest bone, and severely hyperextended my knee while jumping a creek participating in the Marine Corp Mud Run in Pinnacle, NC. Due to 11 inches of rain the night before the mud run, when I jumped the creek my front foot sunk up in mud just below my knee. My foot was cemented in the mud as the force of my whole body went forward at a sprint. It snapped my tibia and tore ligaments and who knows what else in the back of that knee. An MRI was never done, only an x-ray to confirm what I already knew. I saw a sports orthopedic doctor only once with a follow up at the insistence of EMT and my children. I did not have insurance and was not going to accumulate a large medical bill that I did not believe was necessary.
When I received these verses in Proverbs the Holy Spirit empowered my faith to believe the Word He had spoken to me while praying. I know from years of seeking Him He is trustworthy. I know my ways are not His ways left to myself. I know His ways are true and perfected. Mine are not. In order for Him to help me I had to put all my trust in Him, and not lean to my understanding. He told me not to make a decision in any way without acknowledging and seeking Him first. I was not to be wise in my own eyes. I was to fear God and turn from any sin or evil. If I obeyed I had a promise from my Father:
“It will be healing to your body, and refreshment to your bones.”
Before this accident I was in the process of training a client for her first half marathon trail run to be run August 4th, “The Rabid Squirrel” in Danbury, NC. This was an extremely difficult trail run, and I did not want this client doing it alone. We had both previously signed up, and she continued to train and joined me in trusting the Lord.
The doctor had told me I could not begin to attempt to run before October. To make a long story short we both showed up that morning August 2 standing on His Word He had given us. My knee was hurting as I approached the starting line. My feeling was I would rather try and fail, than not try at all and give God the opportunity to be totally my strength and my healer. I finished this half marathon running the primitive trails descending and ascending the mountain ridges, even though I fell over rocks at one point, and I then had to press on to get to the finish running through a river with a rocky bottom and swollen current! My client also finished her run that day which was the greatest physical challenge she had ever attempted. Again the injury was June 2 and this half marathon was August 4. Basically 8 weeks, and remember I was told I could not even attempt running til October. Only God!
You will never know how great God can be in your life if you never give Him the opportunity. Most people who know me, know I am an experiential teacher. I only teach what I have lived. Therefore, I can teach with passion knowing I am teaching the truth. The best teacher in life is experience. For me it has been experiencing the faithfulness and love of God throughout my life. Has my life always been easy? Quite the contrary, but I have lived life fully and triumphantly through Christ as He has promised in His Word. (2 Corinthians 2:14-16) May I encourage you to do the same. He has no favorites!
In His love.
Teresa Roberts
Masterpiece Fitness
276-237-6680
“I have become a marvel to many, for You are my strong refugee.” Psalm 71:7
(Photos from the Rabid Squirrel Half Marathon)
