May your good Spirit lead me on level ground. (Ps. 143:10)
TO LEVEL THE PLAYING FIELD is to make the conditions of a competition equal for each player. Anyone who has ever gone for a jog knows running uphill drains you faster than sprinting downhill. But sprinting downhill may cause you to stumble. When you are on level ground, you can keep a steady pace and energy that makes the journey easier.
Sin can put our lives on a roller coaster. We feel good about what we are doing, and then we feel bad about it. We thank God for His forgiveness and promise to do better, but then we don’t. Paul understood this. He confessed to the Christians in Rome that he wanted to do good but seemed to always end up doing evil (Rom. 7:19–21). This is the fallen human condition. But Christ’s death on the cross levels the ground.
David pleaded for deliverance and holy guidance. Whenever we need forgiveness, is this not our plea as well? Hopefully, as we mature in faith, there will be less of a learning curve. Out of gratitude we will strive to do better, empowered by the Holy Spirit. Our ups and downs will be less severe, no matter where the road called life takes us. There may be hills and dales, bumps and potholes, but it will feel more level because we walk with our loving Savior at our side.
Turn to Jesus to level your path today.
Julie B. Cosgrove is an award-winning, multi-published author who regularly writes for several devotional websites and publications.
© 2018 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission.
