“Sometimes life is so hard you can only do the next thing.  Whatever that is, just do the next thing. God will meet you there.”

Elisabeth Elliot

Greetings all! I hope you’re doing well today. A week ago, I used this quote for an Afternoon Pick-Me-Up, a feature that we air Monday-Friday between 3:45pm & 4pm.  But let’s take it a step further.

A similar phrase is used in some 12 step meetings.  It says:

                     “Do the NEXT RIGHT THING”

     This falls in line with another often-heard statement: “One Day at a Time” (which is also, btw, the title of an old hymn.)  Most folks who have gone through recovery will tell you that they had to break it down into smaller increments (1 Day, even 1 Hour) in order for recovery to work.

I believe that there is a big “God connection” with all of this that can be seen in the Bible. Take Jesus, for example.  Picture Him and the disciples walking from one town to the next, when a man stops Him and asks to be healed of His affliction. Jesus looks at the man, then the disciples and then up to the sky and, finally, back to the man, and He says this:

“I’d really like to help you, truly I would, but the disciples and I have a noon lunch meeting, and the sun is showing me that we’re already running late.  But I’ll tell you what, I’ll pray for you on the way back this afternoon.  That’s the best I can do for now.”

Now you’re probably reading this and thinking “there’s no way Jesus would do this,” and, of course, you’d be right. He had no Day-Timer, no calendar on His cellphone, etc. etc.  And He needed none of them, because He ALWAYS did the NEXT RIGHT THING. And why?  Because He ALWAYS sought and carried out His Father’s will (even if it meant being hung on a cross to die).

And if that’s good enough for Him, I’m thinking it should certainly be good enough for you and me. I’ll leave you with a few verses that you have probably heard many times before:

     “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight.”

     Proverbs 3:5-6

Grace and Peace,

Dennis