“The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and he delights in his way” (Psalm 37:23, NKJV). The Hebrew word for ‘ordered’ in this verse means fixed or pre-planned. God doesn’t work with a day planner. He doesn’t plan out our path a day, week or year ahead. No, he has an entire life-plan laid out for every believer. The moment we’re saved, that plan goes into operation.
What is this pre-planned path? Jesus answers very simply, “I am the way” (John 14:6). Christ himself is the path to glory and eternal life. He leads us toward our final destination, and our path ends in his arms, in heaven. The book of Hebrews tells us Jesus is “bringing many sons to glory” (Hebrews 2:10).
Yet, what we can’t know is the specific route that Jesus is going to take to get us there. None of us can be sure what the rest of our journey will look like. That path is a way known only to God. Take my own life, for example. I’ve been en route to glory for more than seventy years. Along the way, God has given me some goals, some dreams and some visions, which I’ve pursued; but the Lord has never outlined the entire path to me. In fact, even after all these years, I’m not sure where the path will lead me tomorrow.
When Jacob was old, he described his own path to Pharaoh. “The days of the years of my pilgrimage are an hundred and thirty years: few and evil have the days of my life been” (Genesis 47:9). The Hebrew word for “evil” here signifies afflictions, sorrows and adversities.
I can identify with Jacob. There are certain periods of my own pilgrimage that I would not want to relive. Of course, I praise God for all the blessings and miracles he has worked for me. I’m grateful for the faith he has built in me over the years. If I had to relive my life, though, I would want to know ahead of time that everything turns out well. However, that’s just not the way God works. The path of every believer is one of faith.